Ramon Campos &
Alejandro Bernal
Winners of the 2020 Rory Peck News Features Award
Entry details.
WARNING: This video contains material that some viewers may find distressing
In Colombia’s northwest Uraba mountains lies a farming community known as the “Peace Community of San Jose de Apartado”. Led by German Graciano, the community has lived in the midst of conflict for nearly 20 years. Since it was founded in 1997, more than 300 members of the community have been killed by either the Colombian army, the FARC, or right-wing paramilitary groups. In memory of the fallen, Graciano leads his people, including the elderly, women and children, through the mountainous region to pay their respects to slain community members. It is a risky journey that community members have chosen to embark on as an act of defiance against a local hostile right-wing paramilitary group. Since the landmark peace agreement between the Colombian government and the FARC rebels in 2016, more than 700 social leaders have been reported killed across the country.
Watch the full piece here.
Biographies
Ramon Campos is a journalist and filmmaker with extensive experience working in the field. His work focuses on environmental and social subjects, mainly in the Americas. He holds a Master’s degree in Media Studies from The New School and a Politics degree from New York University. He has worked for international broadcasters, publications and organisations such as Univision, Aljazeera, VICE News on HBO, Americas Quarterly and more. Ramon worked as a senior producer on HBO’s doc-series “Outpost” (2015-2016), and his multimedia documentary on the Syrian refugee crisis, “The New Promised Land”, was nominated for a Gabriel García Marquez Journalism Award in 2016.
Alejandro Bernal is an Emmy-winning filmmaker based in Bogotá, Colombia. He has covered current affairs around the Americas for over ten years, producing specials for networks like Univision, Al Jazeera English, Vice Media and Discovery Channel, among others. He specialises in finding and investigating documentary subjects with difficult access, such as borders, insurgent groups and human rights issues. He has produced stories at the borders of Brazil and Paraguay, Argentina and Bolivia, the triple Amazonian border of Colombia, Brazil and Peru, and most recently has worked with Venezuelan migrants crossing into Colombia.
Read Natasha Bradford and Chiara Fabbri’s profile on Ramon and Alejandro here.
Judges comments.
“A super relevant film in a time when the peace process in Colombia is at risk of unravelling. It is quiet and unassuming, yet incredibly compelling – and the filmmakers manage to get under the skin of the story. They create a strong sense of place and the film gives a real sense of the journey, showing the complexity of the issue. It demonstrated the power of people and managed to give voice to the dead with dignity.”
News Features Award Jury