We have put together a number of pages with all the information we think you will want to read about before deciding to join the Documentary Filmmaking in Kenya Study Abroad program. If there is something we are missing, please get in touch with the program leader, Dr. Madrid-Morales, at dmmorales2 (at) uh.edu to let him know.
Some of the most frequently asked questions by students in the past have been compiled into a FAQ section. Check it out for additional practical information.
After reading all of this, if you think you might want to register for the course, please fill in this form so we can send you more details on the registration process. Keep in mind that there’s a very limited number of spaces available for this program, and these spaces will be allocated on a first-come-first-serve basis, upon payment of a $200 deposit by check.
About the Program
The ‘Documentary Filmmaking in Kenya’ program is a three-week course (3.0 credits) open to all undergraduate and graduate UH students. Although there are no pre-requisites, it is highly recommended that students have some prior experience in journalism and/or media production. The program comprises three 5-hour-long workshops held on campus (between 16 and 19 December 2019), and a two-week component abroad in Kenya (between 28 December 2019 and 12 January 2020). The goal of the program is to teach students how to conceptualize, shoot and edit a full-length documentary film about the impact of new media and the so-called gig economy in Kenya.
Destination
Kenya is located in East Africa, it has a population of over 50 million people and is, roughly, the same size as Texas. Nairobi is Kenya’s capital, and the coastal city of Mombasa is the second largest. The official languages in the country are English and Swahili, although many people speak other local languages. Kenya was a British colony until it became an independent country in 1963. Kenya has a rich history that pre-dates the colonial era by many centuries.
Faculty
The leader of this Study Abroad program is Dr. Dani Madrid-Morales, an Assistant Professor of Journalism at the Jack J. Valenti School of Communication, who worked for over a decade as a broadcast journalist in Spain. The pre-departure component of the program will be taught by Dr. Sahar Hamzah, also an Assistant Professor at the Valenti School. During our trip in Kenya, we will be joined by Dr. Brian Ekdale, an Associate Professor at The University of Iowa, who is also an award-winning filmmaker.
Flights & Accomodation
We will depart Houston (IAH) on Saturday, December 28th via Frankfurt (Germany), and come back from Nairobi (via Frankfurt again) on Monday, January 13th. Flight tickets have been pre-booked, so you do not need to worry about making any travel arrangements on your own, other than being at the airport 3 hours prior to departure. The cost of the plane tickets is already included in the price of the program. In fact, the price you pay for the program includes all local transportation as well (except any travel you might do on your own).
Health
The US Centre for Disease Control and Prevention recommends receiving a yellow fever vaccine if going on a safari to Kenya. Since we will be doing that, and might travel outside the “safe areas”, you will be required to show proof of your yellow fever certificate by November 1 (or a doctor’s notice indicating that, for medical reasons, you are exempted from receiving the vaccine). You won’t be able to join the program unless you have a yellow fever certificate.
Safety
Overall, Kenya is a safe travel destination as long as you stay away from areas that might be more prone to violence and conflict. The program will only visit areas that are considered safe for travel, where tourism infrastructure is very well developed.
Petty crime does occur in big cities, and you need to keep that in mind at all times. You must exercise extra caution when walking around the CBD, you should avoid walking alone and, under no circumstances, walk on the streets after dark.
Schedule in Kenya
During weekdays, we will spend most of our time shooting interviews and footage for the documentary. This means that our schedule will have to be very flexible. Some days we might need to start our day very early to beat Nairobi’s terrible traffic, while others we might need to work until late in the evening, so we will be able to have a late start.
Some evenings, we will invite local filmmakers and producers to come to the house where we will be staying, and you will have a chance to chat with them over snacks and drinks.
Topic
The documentary you will be helping conceptualize, shoot and edit will be about the impact of digital media and the gig economy in Kenya. In short, digital technologies and digital media have transformed many aspects of everyday life in Kenya, as well as many other African countries. There are great new opportunities for people to work, mobile phones have made banking very accessible, and new digital-only media outlets are helping uncover corruption cases.
Visits
While the primary purpose of this program is to shoot a documentary film, there will be plenty of time to visit some of the most famous sights in Nairobi and Mombasa, which are Kenya’s two largest cities, and the places where we will be spending most of our time. Also, the program includes a two-day safari to one of Africa’s most well-known National Parks, the Amboseli National Park at the border between Kenya and Tanzania, and a short stay at an eco-lodge in Diani, by the Indic Ocean.