Day 11 - We Got That B-Roll!

Thursday (June 16, 2011) several students in the 2011 Navajo Oral History project drove around the Navajo Nation capturing video of interesting things or places that may fit into the documentary films being made about four Navajo elders.

The term B-Roll refers to video used in a news or feature story -- other than the main interview --that helps explain or reveal a situation to aid the viewer in understanding the story.

Watch this funny video on YouTube to get a better idea of how videographers think about B-Roll:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SItFvB0Upb8.

One of the student teams this summer is interviewing WW II Navajo Code Talker Keith Little. Robbie Christiano thought it would be a great idea to visit the Navajo Code Talker Museum in Kayenta, Arizona, and get some shots of the equipment used by the Code Talkers during the war.

We also stopped at Miranda and Vernon Haskie's place in Lukachukai, Arizona, to shoot some B-Roll of sheep, goats, horses, etc. I called it Vernon's Wild West Show, when he lassoed the goat and rode bareback on the gentle horse he just rescued.

(Ben Haskie rides Blackie-Two, while his dad, Vernon, looks on.)

Later, Michael Ruka and Alyssa Reimers wanted to set out to get some panoramic shots of the Chuska Mountains since they figure prominently into the life story of Harold Morgan, legislative assistant to the Navajo Tribal Council.

In the evening, our group drove to Chinle, Arizona, to enjoy a sit-down meal at Garcia's Restaurant in the Holiday Inn. It was delicious. We needed some down time after all the running and deadline stress that has been looming the last few days.

It seems every year about this time -- the middle of the second week -- a few students seem to hit the wall and have some down emotions. I'm sure this is related to the fast pace of the program, the constant driving, running, and working, and the self-imposed pressure that comes from wanting to do an excellent job of telling the elders' stories. We experienced that a bit today.

The camping weekend in Canyon de Chelly is coming at a perfect time. For the next two nights we'll be camping with the Lettie and Flemen Nave family in the canyon. We'll be enjoying delicious food, hiking in the sun, and hanging out late into the evening around the campfire. We'll be able to get some rest and prepare for the last official "in the field" class day on Monday (June 20, 2011).

Please note: for Friday, Saturday and most of Sunday (June 17-19) we will not have internet, and will probably be out of cell phone range while we are in the Canyon. There will be no blog updates, and probably no phone calls. We'll be fine, relaxing and having fun. We'll be back "on the grid" Sunday afternoon or evening.

NICKNAME UPDATE

In the past few days, the remaining three members of the WSU delegation in the Navajo Oral History project earned their nicknames:

- Alyssa "Giggles" Reimers -- For the obvious reason

- Alex "Phishmonger" Fisher -- because she has tried hard to interest the rest of us in the music of the jam band Phish. It kind of worked. I found several of the band's tunes that I like.

- Dave "Pigpen" Dvorak -- this refers equally to his somewhat messy room, and to Ron "Pigpen" McKernan, an original member of the Grateful Dead, one of Dave's favorite bands.

Things are going great and the documentaries are coming along well.

ADVANCE NOTE:

-- There will be two receptions to premiere the student-produced documentaries this fall. The dates haven't been confirmed yet, but they will most likely be in early October. Since this is a collaborative project, receptions will be held both at Winona State University in Winona, Minnesota, and at Diné College in Tsaile, Arizona. The public is invited to attend these events, to view the films and meet and congratulate the filmmakers.

The featured Navajo elders will be present at the reception in Arizona, and we've heard that one of them may be able to attend the reception in Minnesota as well.

Day 10 - Interviews and B-Roll

Every day here on the Navajo Nation during the 2011 Navajo Oral History project has started early and ended late. The students working on the Navajo elder documentaries have bonded with their elders and are working hard to gather and tell their stories respectfully and accurately.

Two groups left in the morning and stopped at Navajo Code Talker Keith Little's home for a third and final interview with Keith.

(Above three photos by Jessica King)

Keith enlightened the group more about his service to the United States during World War II and how he was treated-- and his work celebrated-- since his return home in 1945. Keith's wife, Nellie, spent quite a bit of time digging through photo albums to find pictures of Keith and his family over the years.

It was hard for your blog editor (a Minnesota Viking fan) to find out that Keith Little really likes the Green Bay Packers. This was a joyous moment for Robbie Christiano, a Packer fan since childhood.

The second group in this van did a third interview with Harold Morgan, legislative assistant to the Navajo Tribal Council. As that interview ended, Harold explained the significance of the bell mounted outside the Tribal Council chambers, and rang the bell for the students.

During a short break between interviews, the groups visited the Navajo Nation Museum and Zoo and shot some B-roll of important sites around the Window Rock, Arizona, area.

(Above three photos by Alex Fisher)

(photo by Molly Golden)

About dinner time, the groups stopped at Sawmill, Arizona, at Harold Morgan's place and interviewed Harold's Grandson, Michial, who spoke highly of his grandfather and the things he has learned from him.

This group stopped at a supermarket on the way back to the dorms at Diné College and bought some pizzas to make for dinner.

The two other student work teams left the Diné College campus at 7:15 a.m. and didn't return until after 9 p.m. They spent the day interviewing Mitzie Begay for a third time. As they finished their interviews and prepared to leave, Mitzie gave each of the student journalists gifts and the emotions were high in the room through lots of hugs.

The Navajo language doesn't have a word for "goodbye." Instead, most Diné people prefer to say "Hagoneé" which translates roughly to "until we meet again."

These two student groups also visited with Debbie Dennison, a local school superintendent, who knew Jack Jackson, Sr. (another of the featured elders) well. Along the way, they captured b-roll video of the schools where the featured Navajo elders went as children.

(Above two photos of road construction around the Diné College campus by Alex Fisher., These photos help tell the story of the construction funding secured by Jack Jackson, Sr., one of the featured elders for this year's Oral History project.)

(Above two photos by Alex Fisher)

(above six photos by Dave Dvorak)

The group creating a documentary about former Arizona Senator Jack Jackson, Sr., also interviewed his neice, Deborah Jackson-Dennison, a local school superintendent.

(above two photos by Dave Dvorak)

In the evening, they stopped at the home of Tina James Tafoya, a former Miss Navajo, who now works with Mitzie Begay at the Fort Defiance Indian Health Service Hospital.

NOTE: This second van that included the Jack Jackson, Sr. team and the Mitzie Begay team arrived back at Diné College and immediately started downloading their video, editing their audio and photographs and transcribing their interviews. No pictures from this group, yet. This article may be updated with more images.

Thursday will be a class day and catch-up day. In class, each group will explain the progress on their journalism projects and decide on any last details that must be completed before the Minnesota students leave the Navajo Nation next Tuesday. The rest of the day will be spent running around gathering B-roll and photos to supplement the projects.

It's amazing to Prof. Miranda Haskie and I to see how quickly these young people have bonded with their elders and their fellow students. They are united by the importance of their work and the desire to do an honorable job of telling the amazing stories of their elders.

These students are working hard, pouring their time and talent into these projects. They are learning much about the craft of journalistic story-telling, and even more about themselves as they discover their place in a world that includes the deeply spiritual culture of the Diné (Navajo) People.

Day 9 - Nizhoni (Beautiful)

Nizhoni is the Navajo word for "beautiful." While there is no exact translation to English words, Nizhoni generally refers to inner beauty, and the peace that comes from living in balance with nature and others, with mutual respect for the well-being of everyone and everything.

This word is a great descriptor for how the students and faculty of the 2011 Navajo Oral History project feel today (Tuesday, June 14, 2011). We've been working on our documentary journalism projects for just over a week now, and the pieces are coming together.

Having helped lead this project for three years now, I have seen many examples of the principles of Nizhoni and Hozho (living in harmony with nature) at work. Things happen for a reason. Even sad and difficult events generally have a purpose of testing, strengthening, or teaching.

Today began with a class session during which each student work team showed samples of their work so far and discussed what materials they still need to gather this week. Each group talked about how excellent their interviews with Navajo elders were going.

Each group had some challenges to overcome: scheduling interviews, lighting or audio concerns, equipment malfunctions, and the like. And, like true professionals, each group found ways to get good interviews that they can use to help tell their Navajo elder's stories effectively, and with respect for the person and the culture.

The second half of the class period involved a tutorial on using audio gathering hardware, narration technique, and audio software and editing tools. The class also included a short tutorial on quick and easy ways to edit and improve photos using Photoshop software.

After lunch, a group of students and I went to Keith Little's home in Crystal, New Mexico, to build a raised walkway ramp between two parts of his home. This walkway, will allow better accessibility for Keith to get around his home while he is in a wheelchair.

In the middle of the project we had to drive about 45 minutes to Window Rock to the hardware store for some materials, then back to finish the job. The result was a very useful ramp that Keith really appreciated. His wife, Nellie, kept saying "Nizhoni, Nizhoni, Nizhoni...."

The team who worked on the project-- Robbie Christiano, Dave Dvorak, Tom Grier, Tashina Johnson, and Michael Ruka-- were proud to do this simple task for Keith Little, a decorated war hero, to make his life better.

(The space for the ramp... Before.)

(Michael Ruka, project foreman, measuring before lumber is cut. Measure twice -- cut once.)

(Dave Dvorak cutting a length of lumber with help from Robbie Christiano and Michael Ruka, whileTashina Johnson supervises.)

(Tashina Johnson and Robbie Christiano cutting lumber to length for the project.)

(Tom Grier and Robbie Christiano preparing one of the ramp supports. Photo by Tashina Johnson)

(Tashina Johnson nailing the ramp to support cross pieces.)

(Michael Ruka, Robbie Christiano and Dave Dvorak putting the ramp in place.)

(Robbie Christiano, Dave Dvorak, Michael Ruka and Tashina Johnson testing the strength of the ramp.)

(Keith and Nellie Little trying out the new ramp.)

(Keith Little and the Ramp Work Crew.)

In the evening, the students were hard at work on their projects: transcribing the interviews with the elders, reviewing and selecting still photographs, and getting started on editing sections of the video interviews.

(Dave Dvorak)

(Alex Fisher)

(Tashina Johnson, right, gets help from her friend Roberta Wagner, who is helping even though she's not in our class. )

(Molly Golden)

(Josh Averbeck and Robbie Christiano)

(Michael Ruka and Alyssa Reimers)

On Wednesday, the groups will be out in the field again to finish their interviews and to gather b-roll video to add visual interest to their projects.