Saturday, June 25 from 4:30pm to 6:30pm at the Kandy City Centre:
Moving Image Panel Discussion
Moving Images is a series of stunning audio, video and photographic portraits on facets of life in post-war Sri Lanka. These high-definition productions, the country’s first, range from portraits of resilience from war ravaged Jaffna and reflections on the Eurasian community by the last surviving Eurasians themselves to fascinating lives in Colombo invisible even to most who live and work in the city. Produced for and supported byGroundviews, the critically acclaimed citizen journalism website, this unique content is available in full online at www.movingimages.asia
The discussion at the panel session on Moving Images will focus on Kannan Arunasalam’s production ‘Koothu, Kerosene and Paper: Portraits of Resilience’ – an evocative attempt to capture the expression and survival of the people of Jaffna, and Menika Van der Poorten’s production, ‘A Lost White Tribe – The Eurasians of Sri Lanka,’ which is, by her own admission, a ‘personal journey’ and ‘collection of memories’ about a once identifiable Eurasian presence in Sri Lanka. In addition, four short audio slideshows from ‘WALKABOUT: Slave Island,’ produced by Sharni Jayawardena and Tarika Wickremaratne on the post-war drive for development and its impact for communities that reside in Slave Island will be screened at the session. Nigel V. Nugawela, the Co-editor of Groundviews, will moderate the panel session.
Discussant Biographies
Kannan Arunasalam was born in Jaffna, grew up in London, and returned to Sri Lanka in 2005, where he now lives and works. He focuses on narrative journalism using new media, radio and film. Kannan’s latest project http://iam.lk explores regional identity through the lives of 36 elders in sound and image.
Menika van der Poorten’s photography includes personal exhibition work and freelance commissions. She has exhibited widely, both locally and internationally. Her photographic practice is informed by living between different cultures and communities. Interested in different ways of narrating stories Menika is influenced by memory, spaces, and personal stories. Menika has been involved in Photographic education both here and in London for over 20 years, The development of photography education is one of her major areas of interest as is the concern for promoting documentation.