Story development.

I had a great experience working with the students of UNC, specially with Ariana. I think we were a great team and were able to handle every single cultural difference and the obstacles that the short amount of time implied. Mexico city is a hectic place and in the few days we worked together we had to change character and be at several places at the same time, being able to divide the work and handing in a different vision of Mexico.

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In progress

Just flying over Mexico City is an amazing experience. It's like no other city I'd ever seen, the way the cityscape sprawls out over the hills as if the city was alive. It's an amazing city, full of contrasts, from the cosmopolitan life at the city center to the grit and despair of the Bordo Xochiaca dump. To be able to experience it with all the incredible students at Monterrey Tec was a blessing. But what I will remember most is the time I spent with the "Enough to Survive" team as they documented Sabina's story. It was a difficult time for her and she had every reason to cut loose this group of storytellers. But she continually opened her life to us, even as her fellow pepenadors were giving her grief for her participation. When we brought her to Tec to show her the story, it was a truly unforgettable and emotional experience. Sabina, like all of our participants, had such a moving story. It was a privilege to play a small part in getting those stories out for all to see.

Working to organize the production of so many stories and to help solving many different needs of teams and instructors of various backgrounds all functioning over this big city and travelling huge distances at the same time can be a challenge, but it gave me a big rush of adrenaline that kept me going with eyes and brains wide open until the end. Processing all information from diverse outcomes, conflicts, and necessities made me value and appreciate more the whole teaching and learning experience demanded in media production. I know that I’ll never stop learning so I really thank my colleagues from UNC for this whole process as well as all our students who were the real generators of these alternative but complimentary visions that are just small notes in the big concert that this fascinating country is.

Just flying over Mexico City is an amazing experience. It's like no other city I'd ever seen, the way the cityscape sprawls out over the hills as if the city was alive. It's an amazing city, full of contrasts, from the cosmopolitan life at the city center to the grit and despair of the Bordo Xochiaca dump. To be able to experience it with all the incredible students at Monterrey Tec was a blessing. But what I will remember most is the day I spent with the "Enough to Survive" team as we documented Sabine's story. It was a difficult time for her and she had every reason to cut loose this group of storytellers. She continually opened her life to us, even as fellow pepenadors were giving her grief for her participation. When we brought her to Tec to show her the story, it was truly unforgettable and emotional experience. Sabina, like all of our participants, had such a moving story. It was a privilege to play a part in getting those stories out for all to see.

It was exciting to take a break from The Washington Post newsroom to coach students in multimedia storytelling in Mexico. Never try to "spanish-ize" words to make them more understandable. I was trying to get on the campus in Mexico at TEC. I tried to tell a guard I was a professor but I mistakenly told him, "I am a prophet from America!" He was not impressed but he did let me through after a few minutes of not understanding me.

Collaborating with an international team as intense as this one was one of the most enriching experiences of my academic career. In addition to having to adapt to unexpected challenges such as culture shocks and different work styles and methods, I learnt to assume the roll of the person in charge of a real international production and work on selecting the theme, searching for the lead persona and planning the story with my UNC partner from the very beginning. This project surpassed all my expectations and complemented the high level of professional formation that we receive at Tecnológico de Monterrey: To be a good leader, to be absolutely committed to a team work and to defend our projects with efficiency. Reframing México was a complete challenge that became a success thanks to the effort, willingness and commitment of everyone involved in the project (from lecturers to students) and I hope the results of this hard work have been reflected in the final product.

Mexico City is a fascinating place. So when the opportunity to produce a multimedia project with Monterrey Tec arose, I was intrigued. Yet after having produced student multimedia projects in seven countries, I knew it would be challenging. With only eight days on the ground over Spring break, creating in-depth, meaningful stories in one of the world's largest cities would take absolute dedication by every member of the team. Collaboration, access, language and transportation issues dogged our every step. Yet with great challenge comes great opportunity, and the perseverance and determination of this team produced the project you see here. I am very pleased to share "Reframing Mexico."

This project was quite a gratifying experience for many reasons. I explored aspects that I never had before, such as working under high pressure conditions with a multi-cultural team. I was responsible for searching for the right people to represent my country and my culture. Fortunately, the people in our story are a clear example of the richness of Mexico. I was able to learn theories and ideas in the classroom, but also experienced the real world by being in charge of the production.

I came from Colombia to México to learn more in professional and cultural aspects. For me, the project "Reframing México" was a fulfilling experience in both aspects, because I got to know much more about México, its culture and its people, in addition to interacting with our American partners and learning from them. Making the documentary about an old woman who worked all her life selling quesadillas and provided education for her daughters was a life experience. From her I learned that with initiative and love it is possible to build a future and succeed. She's and admirable person who gave us some of her experience and magic. Spending a whole week with the production team was maybe the best part of all the experience. In the end, watching the finished projects was like giving birth to a child and learning that, beyond all the difficulties, the important thing is persevering to obtain the good things of life.

I came to Mexico anxious and, as a photojournalism major at UNC, focused on being fast-paced and time effective. The subjects of my story, Naty and Esperanza, always insisted that my partners and I eat with them at their home. In addition to getting a taste of delicious, traditional Mexican food, I also learned to settle down and enjoy the time you are given. At their kitchen table, we all relaxed. We were able to get to know our subjects beyond the story. It wasn’t about constantly taking photographs and gathering footage, but creating a relationship and hearing fascinating stories.

My experience with this Project was Amazing, because I’ve learned a lot of my partner Terri Flagg, as I see her moving around, making the ideas to create the Project. It is valuable to see her interacting with the people she didn’t know without being afraid. In My case I also think I’ve learn to get in touch with the people and don’t be a shamed to talk to anyone in any place. Also I’ve learned a new way of thinking while producing documental or any audiovisual Project. Also I learn a new way to make scripts and to find the most interesting part of the story in some lines. So I think it was amazing!

I appreciate the opportunity to learn from different cultures, share with people who have other experiences than me. But what I most greatful of, is to be able to to have given voice to a group of indigenous Mexicans who even in Mexico, is rarely discussed.

Reframing Mexico was a great professional and personal learning experience. The production process was very gratifying because of the knowledge gained on the dynamics of media production and because of the experience of working with professionals from another country. It was fascinating to show Mexico from a different approach and achieving a quality result through challenging, funny, hard, and learning moments - and not only work, but also share with our partners what it is like to live in Mexico, especially Vanessa, with whom we now have a friendship. Thanks to all who are part of the project because of the great teaching, and thanks to Luis who gave us the opportunity to meet him and tell his story.

To be at the dump for nearly one month made me change the way I perceive life. Now I can see beauty in places, things and people that before I couldn't. I had a life experience with my excellent work team and with the people of the dump.

I'm very thankful for having the opportunity to be a part of this team full of professional people with a great passion for what they do. Spending all this time with Sabina and her lovely children in a place like Bordo Xochiaca was an amazing experience. I´ll never forget the kids’ smiles so pure and so full of joy, a true lesson of happiness. Thanks to all!

Las Hermanas Vampiro were really welcoming with us. Having the opportunity to watch them transform from regular guys to Vampire drags was quite an experience, not only to realize how much work they put into their drag persona but also to see how they get the attention of their fans. Still, the coolest thing was having the opportunity to try on their dominatrix boots and wigs so we could feel a tiny little bit of Vampire ourselves.

Carlos Bieletto and The Vampire Sisters (Las Hermanas Vampiro) showed me that people can be gracious and kind in spite of language barriers, different lifestyle choices, cultural differences and all of the other baggage that can sometimes get in the way of people connecting with each other.

Sometimes, to get the access you need, you need to get creative. Our actress was attending the red carpet premiere for her latest show, and we were told it’s only open to the cast and the press—certainly not students working on a school project. Gaby’s solution: Call in a few favors with some old magazine coworkers; 15 minutes later, there’s a press pass template sitting in her inbox. Ivan scanned our student IDs, works a little magic in photoshop, and that night we were proud members of the press, covering that premiere like it was our job. Which, come to think of it, it was.

"We are going to be like sisters," Pamela said, when I explained what kind of access I would need to do the story. She explained with Choche translating, that she wanted to do the project because she had immediately felt like we understood each other. I told her, again through Choche, that I had felt the same way. On my way to shoot the next day Choche was not with me. The taxi driver asked me how Pamela and I could communicate without speaking the same language. I explained to him in broken spanish that while language is difficult, we connect. After days of people slamming doors in our faces, to find such an open individual with whom I connected was truly affirming to the work we are trying to do. Funny stuff: me and Choche goth dancing with pam the first night we met Pam, Choche sleeping in the middle of the bar on the last night shooting, then his parents picking us up in their mini-van at 3 a.m., the story that got away: the long-haired, white Italian boot wearing, maybe Italian maybe Mexican maybe a dentist and part-time Harley Davidson customizer. Choppers? Choppers. Thank you Pam, Choche, my amazing family, especially my parents, who took care of my son so I could have this experience and tell this story.

Spring break in Mexico: days on the beach and nights at Senor Frog's, right? Not quite, though I did get a bit of a tan hanging out in front of prison one day. I was in Mexico for 12 days and worked on stories on four different topics. There were a lot of challenges--language barriers, traffic and transportation issues, safety concerns, gaining access to a Mexican prison housing minors, and trying not to eat all three meals a day from Oxxo--but there were also a lot of great things, like our Mexican partners, my UNC teammates and coaches, chilaquiles, and all the people who let us into their lives and shared their stories with us. And I learned that while tears might not get you a better story, they will get you napkins (from an old man on the street) and a Diet Coke (from Dean Richard Cole).

The most important thing I learned on the trip is that "if you want to get to Paris from Mexico City, all you have to do is ask." My partner Lys was not afraid to ask for directions. During the hours we spent driving around the city, Lys, a Mexico City native, asked for directions dozens of times. She would pull over her bright blue PT Cruiser, turn on her flasher and shout to random people on the street or in another car. Lys taught me to be unafraid and unashamed and that a journey - by car or otherwise - is most successful with lots of help.

Shooting a documentary film in a week is a challenge, especially since I had only met my partner through Skype and email before he came to Mexico. I remember being really nervous because I had never worked on a project like this before. But, as the story developed, I think I established a good working relationship full of funny experiences not only with my counterpart, but also with our character. Rogelio, our character, and his family were so accessible and, because of this, the atmosphere was always comfortable when were shooting and during down time. I remember once when we were preparing our interview, Rogelio was asking us what kind of food and beverages we liked. He then told us that he was going to invite Josh to drink pulque (a traditional Mexican beverage) because he wanted him to really get in touch with Mexican culture. I considered this to be a nice gesture because he was not only providing insight into his own life, but also teaching Josh about other aspects of Mexican life.

Shooting the best frame, buying tamales, and trying to catch the best light was the purpose of our filming days. The speed of production was as quick as the sun goes down and making this documentary was a whole experience because of that; my partners and Luis were definitely the best part of filming under this pressure. Our documentary subject, Luis, became our friend and I'm still in touch with him because every documentarian has this bill - not just with the crew but also with the character of the story. Luis' story is not just about the opening of opportunities, but also about showing other people that he can face the discrimination and he has the courage to put forth this effort for the sake of his kids. He is as strong as the sight of his eyes.

For part of our story, we needed to follow Luis’ bicycle-delivery route around the city. So with morning light, a 5DMII taped to the back of my bike, and a Flipcam taped to the front, I set off to follow Luis in what I had anticipated would be a leisurely day of biking around the city … I couldn't have been more wrong. We jetted off, weaving through busy intersections and routing opposite traffic at fiendish speeds. But it wasn't until we hit the first hill that reality sank in, and I soon learned that Mexico City is above 7,000 feet, and Luis Valdez was quite possibly Mexico’s own Lance Armstrong. At that point, it looked like our day of shooting was lost, but the calvary arrived in the forms of my wonderful teammates, Ceci and Javi. Ceci jumped on my bike and chased down Luis - amazing! Moral of the story: Hug your teammates often, include cardio training into any pre-shoot planning, and always remember that there are no leisurely rides in documentary!

To work on the lucha libre story I had to visit many gyms around the city. The locations of most of them were in low class zones where they´re not used to women entering gyms by themselves. Funny thing was when I entered with "Cachorro" Mendoza a day before UNC arriving and I just felt like being with a bodyguard. It's really different how people may treat you when you're with someone they know and respect. Meeting his friends and pupils was, without a doubt, rewarding.

One of the best experiences I had was on the day I went to the gym where my subject trained to shoot portraits of him and other wrestlers. The guys seemed so excited to have their portraits taken, almost as if they were posing for the camera for the first time. Each wrestler had their own unique pose to represent their persona and each one looked at the camera with an intense glare. I felt as if with each frame I was truly capturing the essence of their personality as a wrestler. I realized that the characters that they embodied in the ring were not just roles they played for a brief moment, but extensions of themselves.

My bed was on a concrete floor, comfortably layered with several sheets and patterned quilts. I woke just before dawn. There was little privacy afforded by the thin curtains dividing the small house into rooms, and I was afraid my alarm would awaken Rogelio and his family. I had spent the night in Rogelio’s home in Chimalhuacan, a sprawling neighborhood on the outermost edge of Mexico City. I photographed Rogelio as he went through his morning routine, capturing these simple, intimate moments. With no running water, Rogelio quickly washed up, had some bread and coffee and was off. This was my last shoot. Walking with him down the sunlit dirt road toward the bus, I felt a stronger connection with Rogelio. We came from different worlds, but in 10 days found ways of understanding one another. Once on the bus, I saw two small Mexican and American flags hanging behind the driver’s seat, side by side. “Why the U.S. flag?” I asked. “Está en nuestra sangre,” he said. It’s in our blood. I reached for my camera, shot from the hip, and took one last photo of Rogelio. Exiting the bus, I knew I had the footage I needed to tell his story, as well as my best night’s sleep in Mexico City.

While I was shooting Alonso at his house, his mom came home from work. She started asking me questions about the project and when she found out I go to Carolina, she immediately smiled. She told me that when Alonso was 11, she spent a year here studying law. We ended up chatting about basketball games, Franklin Street, spring at Carolina, and Southern barbecue. It was a little piece of blue heaven in the middle of Mexico City.

We entered the dump by a long, dusty road. Horse-drawn carts passed by, their drivers whooping. The stench, the packs of feral dogs, the trash tornadoes whipping through the air in a plastic frenzy. It seemed an impossible place for people to not only work, but also live. And then I began to notice the ways in which the pepenadors made an inhospitable place feel like home. The artificial flowers decorating a makeshift fence. The salvaged furniture forming entire improvised living rooms. The quesadilla vendor handing out steaming food. It was its own kind of neighborhood, bustling and alive. I remember Bordo Xochiaca in details – the details that made it human.