Home from Uganda
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Jim Quattrocki and I returned from Northern Uganda today with about eight hours of new footage. Our shoot with Immaculée Ilibagiza went well. We recorded her in a number of locations around Kitgum, Uganda. This photo is a video still from the production.
The LRA Asks for Forgiveness
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A Woman Named Rose
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Kitgum, Northern Uganda
Yesterday I met a woman named Rose. Rose is from Southern Sudan. Kitgum, the town we are staying in, is only a few kilometers south of the border.
Rose and her sister, Cecelia went to collect firewood one day. Two rebel soldiers abducted them at gunpoint. They killed Cecilia, stabbed and abused Rose. They turned Rose into a slave. After many days, government soldiers attacked the rebels and Rose was able to escape. She made her way to a hospital in Uganda. She is still suffering from her wounds and is very sick with swelling in her legs and arms. After all this, I asked her if she could forgive the rebels. “Yes, I can forgive,” she said. “I am a sinner too.”
Meeting the LRA
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Thursday was quite a day. In the morning we stopped by the local government officials office to pay our respects. This is a typical practice in Africa. The district governor was busy in a meeting with local elders. We overheard that elders were making plans for a visit from a peace delegation that included members of the Lords Resistance Army. The LRA is currently locked in three way negotiations with the government of Uganda and Southern Sudan. As part of the peace effort, the LRA agreed to send a delegation of representatives around to Acholi villages to gather their input and extend their request for forgiveness.
Of course, this was a spectacular revelation. We jumped into our SUV’s and drove to an IDP camp about one hour south of Kitgum. A few minutes after we arrived, a motorcade roared into town flanked by machine gun toting soldiers wearing raincoats and sunglasses.
The delegation also included army officers from Uganda, Kenya, South Africa and other African countries. Lawyers, politicians and negotiators were also present. The entire village turned out as the team paraded through the village, ending at the local school. Several thousand people gathered under a huge Mango tree to hear speeches, music and poetry. “Stop the war, stop the war,” the children pleaded.
At one point, an LRA spokesperson stood and asked the assembled villagers for forgiveness for the crimes committed by the LRA. Current negotiations are stalled because the International Criminal Court has indicted top LRA leaders. If negotiations were up to the LRA and the Acholi people, the war would be over tomorrow. As it stands, a final resolution must wait. Still, these are real signs of hope.
Lot’s o’ luggage!
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It takes a lot of luggage to shoot a documentary in Uganda! Made it to Amsterdam safe and sound. Met up with our old buddy Kevin Jacobson. Tomorrow it is off to Africa!
Back to Uganda
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It’s back on the road this Sunday. Jim Quattrocki and I return to Kitgum, Uganda to expand a documentary we started last year. “Ready to Forgive: An African Story of Grace” looks at the Acholi people of Northern Uganda. For twenty years, the Acholi faced war, rape, torture and abduction. Rebels known as the Lord’s Resistance Army forced tens of thousands into internally displaced person camp. An estimated 20,000 children were abducted. Despite all this, the Acholi want to forgive the people who torment them.
The host for our program is Immaculée Ilibagiza. In 1994 Immaculée survived the Rwandan genocide by hiding in a closet with six other women for 91 days. Her best selling book about forgivness, “Left to Tell” makes here an ideal narrator for our program.
Upon our return, Jim Parks and I will be re-editing the material into a one-hour program for air on NBC in December, 2007. Our deadline is November 22, so this will be a real tight turn-around. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America is funding this program. They received the slot on NBC through the National Council of Churches .
We invite you to join us, November 4-14 as we post photos, video clips and stories about our production.
The Life of Apostle Peter with Rick Steves
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The Life of the Apostle Peter with Rick Steves is my fifth collaboration with the noted author and PBS travel show host. Past programs include: Opening the Door to Luther, Weaving a Global Neighborhood, The Life of Apostle Peter with Rick Steves, Faithful Travel and In the City for Good.
Rick graciously offered his time and energy to not only host these programs on camera, but also do much of the writing and coordinate many of the travel arrangements.
This is the last installment of Mosaic, the video magazine of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. The ELCA has decided to discontinue the series after a long (21 year) run. Thanks go out to Jim Parks who edited the last 48 programs. He is a gifted artist and musician. Jim Quattrocki was along to do much of the shooting over the years. I am grateful for his talents. Wendy Blanck worked with me on the administrative side for many years. She held the whole thing together as no one else could. Melissa Ramirez Cooper, Barbara Berry-Bailey, Wyvetta Bullock and John Bachman also made major contributions as hosts of the program.
Finally, thanks go out to Larry Foreman, creator of the Mosaic series and the many ELCA communication staff members both current and past who contributed in many ways. Personally, it was an honor and great privilege to be part of this small contribution to the reformation movement in modern times.
Rome Shoot Photos
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Here are a few photos, Rick, Emily and I took during our shoot in Rome. Enjoy!
www.frakesproductions.com
Rome Shoot in the Can
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All’s Well That Ends Well is a comedy by William Shakespeare. They say it is tough to classify because it is both tragedy and comedy. That’s how our shoot here in Rome went. It started out great. Two days of perfect weather, a great team: Rick Steves, Sean T O’Sallaigh, Emily Frakes, our driver, Ensio and myself. Annamaria and the staff at Hotel Aberdeen backed us up.
As I say, everything went great. We got the whole program shot and were ready to celebrate Tuesday evening. While labeling video tapes, I knocked the tape holding day one at Hadrian’s Villa into the trash can. Before I discovered the error, the maid swept through the room, emptied the garbage and took it outside. Then, the Roman garbage truck decided to come on time. In two hours, my precious video tape was in the Roman dump and compacted!
After much scrambling, Rick and I returned with Enzio to Hadrian’s Villa and re-recorded day one in a rapid two hours. Rick is on a plane to Istanbul. Emily is headed back to Chicago. Sean is back in Dublin. I’m waiting for my flight home tomorrow.
All’s Well That Ends Well…
Rome Image Montage
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Here are just a few of the images from our shoot in Rome for “The Life of Apostle Peter with Rick Steves.” The shoot is in the can!
www.frakesproductions.com