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21/07/2010

Ciaran Flannery is a one of the producers who makes Global Health TV

Being a producer for Global Health TV is a privilege. Not because of the organisation itself (which is great by the way), but because of the number of astonishing stories of selflessness and determination that we are able to tell.  It is our responsibility as producers to represent these stories in an honest and accurate way so that others in the global health community can learn from them and share in the successes and, sometimes, failures.  The challenge we face, though, is that merely representing a story accurately is not enough. The story needs to engage the audience or else the learning that can come from that story will never reach them.  So, although accuracy is of paramount importance, the way we tell the story is what matters most.

It is without question human stories that capture people’s hearts and minds.  It’s not middle aged westerners with white hair that viewers want to watch, it’s what the project is doing for the people who suffer the most.  As remarkable as any given global health project may be, it is seeing how it changes the life of a person that gives it resonance and makes the audience sit up and watch.  The key word there is “person” - by telling the story through the life of an individual we can truly connect with our audience.

We mustn’t forget why we are here though.  As I said, this is about sharing best practice and learning.  The lessons that have been learned must be told and sometimes the figures, the structures and the processes are where those lessons lie.  This is particularly true in stories about public health policy, for example, on stopping TB.  These things may not tug on the heart strings in the same way that a woman volunteer driving 200 kilometers across dust and desert to deliver mosquito nets to remote villages in Namibia does, (NetsForLife) but they are crucial to the collective learning of the global health community nonetheless.

So this brings me to the great quandary we face in most films we make for Global Health TV.  Where do we draw the line between the human tale and technical information in these videos?  We have five minutes to tell a story that you could spend hours talking about so we have big decisions to make about what we represent.  As television-makers our instinct is always towards engaging the audience first and foremost.  I for one believe that however interesting the learning from a project, you must always strive to touch the hearts of your viewers. People will just switch over otherwise.  So yes, let’s make sure that these videos have value, and that people feel they can learn from them, but not until we have succeeded in doing what television can be so great at - making people watch.