Shama, an insider looking in: a community-centred collaborative documentary production

Abstract

In this article, we analyse and reflect on the complex interweaving of documentary strategies and the five levels of performance that we designed in a small-scale community-centred collaborative documentary project entitled Shama. Shama Ethnic Women’s Trust is one of the first NGOs in New Zealand established and run by ethnic migrant women for ethnic women and their families. Applying a filmmaking-as-research methodology, the project’s aim was to respond to the scarcity of screen representation of ethnic NGOs. The purpose was not only to convey information about Shama’s activities and services but also to convey a sense of the internal culture of the NGO and its community spirit. The portrayal of minority groups in community production often leads to an outsider-looking-down approach. We felt that providing an insider view was more important than simply conveying the facts efficiently about the organisation. This goal led us to apply a collaborative documentary practice, avoid an expository style, characterised by a single authoritative voice, and opt for a mix of performative and observational strategies, in which multiple voices and modes of address are featured. By shifting modes of address, we explored the ways in which a short, no-budget documentary could represent the complexity of this NGO.