DVD Update #12 Shooting Begins

Success with a steep learning curve...

We are two days into our 17 day shoot and still mostly on schedule. We were able to cover a script a day plus deal with all the first time trouble-shooting kinks of setting up sets in poorly lit, echoing rooms, teaching kids lines on the spot and fixing/finding props at the last minute. We're all exhausted but in two days I feel like I personally have just attended film school and have learned an enormous amount about how to make the next few weeks much smoother. When we aren't filming, I'll be spending my time simplifying and organizing the scripts better to make sure the shoot days are smoother. When we are filming I'll prep people better for the entire day so we can move faster as a team.

Day 1 Set: Kids painting props for the school annual day

Day 2: Kids at school talking about the sounds they've learned that day.

Before each scene, the kids practice their lines with a coach.

Shooting in 100-104F weather is exhausting, especially since we are on location and do not have a cool AC studio space to use. This means we can't even have fans on when the camera is rolling. Snacks and lots of water breaks are essential!

A true experiential learning experience for everyone. We all pause to watch and listen to the last take to see what needs to change, mistakes we've made and what worked well. Digital cameras and instant playback are such a blessing when working with kids.

Production Team Meets Chennai Filmmaker R.S. Prasanna

The production team, a dynamic group of ten volunteers, interns and Aid India staff, met today to confirm roles and responsibilities and discuss the (slightly grueling) schedule. R.S. Prasanna, a Chennai filmmaker, was our chief guest and motivational speaker. He led a very helpful discussion on how to make a movie with little or no budget. That's us! We focused on trouble shooting especially in the areas of lighting, sound, direction and keeping the momentum going for 3 weeks, especially with the kids. So glad to have a resourceful and experienced filmmaker on call for this initiative.

Two of the child actors prepare a bingo game card using opposites vocabulary. The main focus of the 2 week rehearsal preparation has been to build up their confidence of English vocabulary, grammar, writing and reading that they have already learned through games, activities and one on one interaction with multiple teachers.

The phonetic sound letter props are almost finished. These will be used throughout all the segments to help reinforce the sounds being taught in each segment. Do you know what sound 'ie' and 'oo' make? Think 'tie, die, fried and ' and 'moon, spoon, stool, boot'

Today we took the letters outside and filmed the kids dancing around with each sound in various locations. Still lots more to do, but we got about 1/3 through the letters before the sun got too high in the sky and we were attracting too much attention to be productive.

Adam, our camera in charge, is spending his summer holiday volunteering for this production. Lucky us! He arrived less than a week ago and has already bonded with the kids--playing games, introducing kiwi to them for the first time and teaching them how to hackey sack. And has already spent several long hours in the sun filming on the streets of Chennai.
A great addition to the team!

Our Chennai-based interns are hard at work on their laptops checking scripts, sourcing last minute items, location scouting and working on story-boarding. These guys will be assistant directors as well as our main post-production editing crew. This production would not be possible without such a talented technical team!

DVD Update #11 Rehearsals

Day 1: All the teachers, volunteers and recently arrived interns meet the students

We've completed 1 full week of rehearsals and while we are trying desperately to stay on schedule, the kids are getting a little antsy. They want to get out there and get in front of the camera. But we've also had less than perfect attendance. This is in part due to last week's Cyclone Laila and 1 resulting fever. And this week both boys have had stomach problems and have been out for 1-2 days. Because of the background of the kids, it can be hard to track them down when they don't show up and while the parents have been supportive, they are not always communicative or responsive.

Due to attendance issues we decided to take on 1 more girl from Chennai. We first met her at the annual day of the school both boys attend. Their English teacher wrote a very cute drama for the kids to act out to show off their English talent. Our new actress played a teacher and played it very well. It was extremely hard to track her down considering it is summer holidays. However, it turns out her grandmother and uncle both work for a house (as domestic help and a construction worker) 1 block from our office. We were able to talk with the family and while they didn't seemed disinterested, said she could participate. We gave them a copy of the pilot episode in hopes that they realize what a great opportunity it will be for her.

We start each morning with some light yoga stretching. My goal is to get them to eventually do 5 minutes of meditation. Currently 30 seconds is a struggle. (Note: the boy on the left had to remove all his clothes because he walked in the cyclone to the office for rehearsals and was drenched)

Students spend 45 minutes reviewing vocabulary and practice speaking
English with each other and their teacher.

The students spend one hour reviewing phonics and doing reading related activities.

Before lunch students spend 15-20 minutes writing in their workbooks practicing words and sounds they have learned in reading class.

After lunch students work on their lines with on the volunteer English teachers.

Follow us on twitter: sistaKAA

It's official, you can now follow what's happening with the DVD production, rehearsals, and the shoot on twitter. Visit my twitter feed or follow us to get instant updates @sistaKAA

DVD Update #9 Interns, Rehearsals & Props

Quick update from the ground:

We have selected 6 talented interns to join our production team. They will be helping with camera direction, editing, lighting, production management, rehearsals and scouting out locations. We are very exciting to have this dynamic group of students and professionals onboard for the next few months. With their permission I'll be posting their bios to the blog in the coming weeks. Stay tuned. They are up and coming film makers!

Rehearsals with the students start tomorrow. I'm putting together the final rehearsal schedule which will include everything from a daily yoga class to spoken English and art projects. Anyone have suggestions or want to be involved, please let me know!

We have finished cutting and paper maching all the letters and sounds for the segments we will be shooting in June. We are in the process of painting them. Hope the 5 litres of paint lasts for all the props, it was almost $100US! Eeks! I'm compiling a list of all the other props we'll be needing to make, collect and buy. I'll post the list to the blog, if you have any of the items, please donate for a few weeks. We promise to take good care of it.

'English made easy' in The Hindu

The Ready to Read program and the DVD initiative was featured in The Hindu this week. Clink on the link below to read the article.


The Hindu: English Made Easy, April 5th 2010
by Seem Sanghi

An Video Introduction to Ready to Read

An Introduction to Ready to Read from Kirsten Anderson on Vimeo.

The Ready to Read program is designed to be an innovative intervention by teaching English reading and writing through a phonetic and whole language approach. In addition to introducing basic phonics through Total Physical Response (TPR), it also introduces students to common sight words, writing practice, group play activities and reading time. This dynamic reading program, specifically designed for Tamil-medium students, fits in a bag and can be easily transported. The need for this program is heightened by the fact that there is no comparable alternative, which uses culturally appropriate and relevant content. This balanced program supplements the primary school curriculum, enabling students to read words and simple sentences within a few weeks. In 2009-2010 it was piloted in 36 schools with about 2000 fourth and fifth standard students in eight districts across the state. The results to date have been encouraging and we have received an overwhelming response from teachers and students.

If you want more information regarding the Ready to Read program, please leave a comment, or email: info@aidindia.in.

Wow! Great news!

We did it, or rather all our kickstarter backers did it. We have reached our $4,000 goal for the next episode of our DVD project. Thank you so much to everyone who has pledged and is backing this project. Your support means a lot all of us on the English team at Aid India. It is encouraging to know that there are so many people out there supporting and encouraging us to continue this work. We met with our directors last week and have begun talks about the next several episodes. Now that we've raised enough money for another episode we are that much closer to our goal of completing the project. We hope to have the next shoot in June.

But we still have 16 days left on kickstarter and each episode is going to cost about $4000, so please pass this onto friends, family or colleagues. We can still use all the help we can get. Additional funds raised beyond our $4000 goal will go towards additional episodes. And the more episodes we can produce in one go, the more we can bring our costs down.

Please pass this on to friends, family and colleauges. We aren't done yet. For information about the reading project and the DVD initiative, please follow the link below to our kickstarter site:

Check out our Kickstarter page and make a pledge

Wow! What's that sound? - A 5 Minute Teaser

Wow! What's that sound? - A 5 minute teaser from Kirsten Anderson on Vimeo.

Behind the making of "Wow! What's that sound?"

In addition to interviews with the child artists, entertaining video snippets, bloopers and behind the scenes outtakes, this short documentary provides context into the reasons behind why we made "Wow! What's that sound?". And why we are hoping to turn it into a 12 episode educational DVD series as soon as we secure additional funding.

You can also view the documentary on vimeo in full screen.

Screening and Release at Madras Terrace House

Niveditha, Priya, Kirsten and Sumangali enjoy some Bhel Puri
on the terrace before the event

On Tuesday, December 8th, 2009 Aid India released and screened the first pilot episode “Wow! What’s that sound?” of their 12-episode English language DVD series at the Madras Terrace House, Royapettah. The pilot episode demonstrates an innovative approach to teaching English to Tamil-medium students in the primary school age group.

Jon (of Xylopholks) and Vedanth perform melodious magic before the show

The evening commenced with a lively music performance by Vedanth, the music producer and Jonathan Singer, xylophonist. Dr. Balaji Sampath, Director of Aid India delivered an inspirational talk on the role of education in bridging the growing economic divide and the importance of English in bringing about linguistic equality. This was followed by a brief presentation on ‘Between your desire and destiny there are DVDs’ by Mr. Robert Bellarmine, formerly of the British Council and currently Director of English for Empowerment and Enrichment.

A packed house--standing room only!

A documentary on the making of the DVD was then played, followed by a speech by Mr. Ravikumar, MLA, activist and author. Mr. Ravikumar also released the pilot episode and distributed DVDs to the child stars.

Ms. Vasanthi Devi and Mr. Ravikumar release the pilot episode of the DVD

During the screening of the pilot episode, the guests were delighted to watch the children’s lively engagement with the video. Ms. Vasanthi Devi, President of Aid India and former Chairperson, Tamil Nadu State Commission for Women remarked that the storyline was engaging, while also doing the job of an educational English lesson.

In addition to our guest speakers listed below, other participants included the child stars from Chennai and Koovathur and their families, the producers, directors, the cast, and NGOs, foundations & companies involved in education initiatives.

Ranga the Rowdy Rabbit was on display in the lobby.

Some of the caps and the props from the pilot episode were also on display.

DVD Update #6: Pilot Episode Release & Screening

DVD Update #6 Release & Screening Event

Aid India’s DVD Release and Screening of

“Wow! What’s that sound?”

Please join us for the official release of the first episode of our new educational English DVD series for the children of Tamil Nadu!

Date: Tuesday, December 8th, 2009
Time: 7pm-9pm
Place: Madras Terrace House
15, Sri Puram 2nd Street,
Off R.K. Salai, Near Deccan Plaza Hotel,
Royapettah, Chennai 600 014
Ph: 044-4503-8391

Initial Evaluation Results

Initial evaluation has been completed for methodology-applied classes in almost all 36 schools consisting of approximately 2000 students, however evaluation data has only been received from 27 schools consisting of 1,351 students (10% were absent) and 12 control group schools with 334 students (3% were absent). We are still waiting the evaluation results for approximately 600 students in schools who have recently started the program.

As indicated by the results of the evaluation (see Table below), 87% of children are at least able to read letters whereas only 39% of children are able to read at least words, which appear in the third grade government textbooks. However, only 15% of students were able to read at the sentence level. Even more shocking, only 3% of the control group students could manage at the sentence level. This discrepancy may be because the control group evaluations were completed in different districts in the state. These numbers are much lower than we estimated at the time of writing our grant proposal. Therefore, ensuring 80% of children attending our methodology-applied classes will be able to read sentences may prove challenging, as only 11-39% can read individual words. This goal needs to be re-evaluated. Perhaps achieving 80% at the word level and 65% at the sentence level will be a more realistic intended outcome.

Chennai ELCs Training #2

Last Thursday and Friday we held a training at the Chennai Block office for all the Chennai BRPs (Block Resource Persons). The Chennai BRPs are all running Spoken + Reading English programs at their schools. Thursday was focused on training them on spoken English content. And on Friday we focused on reading content.

The morning was spent doing a pre-test, learning the new reading jingle and reviewing how to do an evaluation. In the afternoon we split them into beginner and advanced groups. Each group was responsible for teaching one week of content and two activities to the rest of the group.



After lunch we spent the afternoon acting as students in a classroom while groups presented their content and taught us activities. Everyone took their student role very seriously and created a challenging (but very life-like) environment for the teachers. It was a fun and engaging way of covering lots of material and trying out new activities. Nobody was tired even though we had just eaten a big lunch.

We were finally able to give all the Chennai BRPs flashcards, picture cards, para cards and the first draft of the bilingual teacher's manual. The student activity workbooks will be sent to them next week. It's finally starting to feel like a complete program.

DVD Update #5: Filming!

Going to the first day of the shoot
Uma Rani, Kirstne, Sumangali (back row), Swetha, January, Vignesh, Chandru (front row)

Day 1, Audio Recording 2pm-7pm

We picked up the students at noon and brought them to the office. The Koovathur kids had also arrived. I asked Swetha and Chandru to come and help me get lunch from a nearby hotel. Upon leaving the office I realized that Swetha didn’t have chappals. Apparently her chappals broke at the bus stand when she reached Chennai and so she was barefoot. So after putting in our order for lunch we went to a small chappal stall and bought her new chappals for 40Rs. For lunch we ate parrota and meals together in the office with all the staff. For most of the students it is their first time being around computers and in an office. They wanted to see everything and explore, but we had to keep an eye on them so they didn’t disturb the office too much. We finally left for the hall in two cars at about 2pm. The kids and their teacher all piled into the ambassador with Parvathy. Sumangali, Priya, Kalai and I all went in Suman’s car and followed the ambassador to the Goethe Institute, Max Mueller Bhavan. Walking into the studio for the first time was a little exciting for everyone. They had never been in a big studio space before. It is like big concrete hall, that had a a vinyl floor rolled out in the middle. The production crew had put up a backdrop for the set and blacked out the windows. For the first day on the set, the students mostly sat with the music technician and the actors and practiced the jingle and other tunes that will be used in the episode. They recorded their voices for the music--wearing big headphones and talking into a mic. Even though it was their first time performing, they didn't seem to have any stage fright. They all warmed up to it very quickly. Although it did take them some time to get all the tunes down...and the music technician will need to have to edit a lot to make some of their recordings useable, but they were very cute!

On the set waiting for the directors to say "Rolling, Action!"

Day 2, Shoot 7am to 7pm

I was up and at Brinda school by 6:30am to meet the two boys. Vignesh was there right on time and came alone, at least a 15 minute walk requiring crossing a very busy street. Chandru was 30 minutes late but came by his father’s auto. We went to the office and picked up the Koovathur girls, got in the taxi and went to Max Mueller Bhavan.

Today the students got to put on their costumes, make-up and stand on the set in front of the lights for the first time. Very exciting, but they soon realized it was also very exhausting and hot. We were able to run the air conditioning unit for the room when we weren't shooting, but it was too loud to use all the time, so the room got very warm after awhile. We were constantly rushing up on set with water bottles and biscuits to keep the kids energized. Nobody knew what to expect the first day of the shooting, but we all figured out very quickly that this was going to be a slow long process that involved a lot of waiting around. The production crew had to shift and adjust lights. The camera men had to find the right angles and the directors had to set the stage. And then we had to manage the kids and make sure they weren't going to tear down the sets.

A long day on the set in front of the lights. They did an amazing job staying energetic and enthusiastic all the way through.

Day 3, Shoot 7am-10pm

I had another sleepless night singing “A kite cap, a cone cap” and “Tommy is a tall tiger” in my fitfull sleep. These songs and the jingle are going to drive me crazy. I guess its good that they are catchy, but if I can't get them out of my head soon, I might go mad.

Vignesh met me at Brinda at 6:25. The car picked us all up at the office at 6:50. We arrived at MMB by 7am and had tea and biscuits. As soon as Sumangali and Parvathy arrived we started getting the kids ready—makeup and ironing costumes. The kids were on the set by 8am doing some filler shots of them playing near the caravan while the other actors got ready. Chandru had the best part—playing the drum attached to the caravan. Yesterday we only got about 25 minutes on film and needed much more, so today was going to be a LONG day...lots of scenes to cover in a very short time. We had had high hopes of finishing early, but ended up barely dragging the kids out of the studio at 10pm. Lots of lessons learned about time management! We will need to adjust our planning and schedules a lot for the rest of the episodes.

A week after the initial shoot, we went to the Koovathur school and shot some scenes outside.

Some hilarious moments on set:

• One student can NOT pronounce tub and it comes out as ‘dub’
• When the kids met the creature they were totally freaked out. But even before he put on his costume, they picked out who he was in the room without having any clues. He has long hair and hadn’t shaved. He kinda already looked like a creature.
  
• Watching kids record for the first time—big head phones on listening to the music without being able to hear their own voice. They were mumbling and off tune.
  
• One student kept adding “ing” to every phrase in the song. It took many many tries to get it right. She was saying things like: “Read booking” “Play gamesing”
• Street/folk dancing during cap song...the boys love it. This may be a hit song. They went wild when they heard it and couldn't stop dancing to it.
  
• Cultural bathroom issues. The kids had perhaps never been in a bathroom with toilets and no squat toilet before. The girls were squatting on a marble floor bathroom with a toilet. Luckily there was a drain in the floor and they were washing it with water, but still--inappropriate. We found an outside toilet behind the studio that was squat style so that we could avoid the issue.
  
• Chandru saying “cut” “take” and “action” before the directors. We had to remind him many times that it was not his job.
  
• Chandru using friendly verb forms with adults which is actually viewed as being very impolite. We had to have a talk with him about how and when to use polite forms of Tamil.
• Chandru needs a minder to sit with him, remind him every 2 minutes to be quiet. We may need to hire an assistant just to monitor him in the future.
  
• “Vignesh is a always a good boy” said by Vignesh after Gilli Gilli Valli said he was a good boy. He only talks in the third person.
  

The kids have become very serious actors very quickly. They remember their lines, know when and where to be and can change their personalities as soon as they hear the word "Rolling, Action!" But they have also started demaning A/c cars and will need to start wearing sunglasses to hide from the papparazzi. What have we created?

DVD Update #4: Photos on Flickr

An update regarding the DVD shoot will be posted soon, but in the meantime, you can view lots of pictures on flickr: Eureka Child.

DVD Update #3: Article in The Hindu

To see the complete article in The Hindu on October 7th, 2009, visit this link:
English fairy tale for students of Tamil-medium primary schools

DVD Update #2: Measurements & Rehearsal

All of our other pending projects have been pushed to the side this week. The pilot episode for the DVD is full speed ahead and there is lots that needs to be done. Thank goodness for a team of people: producers, costume designers, set designers, musical technicians, content people (us), actors, parents, teachers, and friends willing to give feedback, etc. This would never be possible without everyone enthusiastically working together on this project.

Last week we went to the school with a tailor and had the kids selected for the DVD measured. Cloth was bought and the tailor stitched them new DVD school uniforms. We choose bright fun colours: orange and purple. Sadly the tailor got the top and bottom confused and made the dark purple into shirts and blouses which will totally drown out the kids. We had asked for orange shirts and blouses. There needs to be a bright colour on top to offset their skin tones and hair colour. Deep purple will hide them entirely and we will only be able to see their teeth and the whites of their eyes on camera. Not acceptable! But we paid the tailor anyway. The producers are currently scouring the city for new lighter purple cloth and a tailor that can stitch 6 shirts in 24 hours.


Last week we meet with the parents of the students from the school in Chennai. We discussed the program and the logistics of the shoot. They all agreed and signed off on the permission slip. I am trying to keep in mind what I would be thinking and feeling if I were in their shoes...if I had been selected to act in a DVD in 4th or 5th grade, it might be the biggest thing that had ever happened to me. I wonder how something like this changes your life as a kid. Is it the biggest event to date for them? Considering movies are so popular here, giving kids an opportunity to act in front of a camera on a set is a pretty cool experience. As part of our side video project, the making of the DVD, we are going to do little video bios on each student when we drop them off at home this week.


Yesterday we had a 4 hour rehearsal with all six students and our main actor. She is great with children and they all seem to love her so it is working out perfectly from that perspective. She took them through several excercises and warm-ups to get them playing with their voice and facial expressions. And then she went through the first episode with them line by line. There was a lot of laughing and positive reaction to the script--Thank goodness! The kids seemed excited by the story line and picked up on the English very quickly. Only 3 of the students (all the girls) have been exposed to the program before. The boys haven't had any experience with the program so they are a little slower to pick it up, but tried really hard. Everyone had a good time. We ended the rehearsal with a parrota lunch and then managed to get all the kids home, earlier than expected.

Escorting them home was half the adventure yesterday. While we know that these kids come from disadvantaged backgrounds and live in slums, we never really see or experience the slums. Chennai has a few large slum areas, but most slums areas are hidden throughout the city down narrow lanes, hidden behind corners and blocked by walls or buildings. One turn off the main road and it is a different world. A world one wouldn't know exisited in Chennai unless you make an effort to find and see it for yourself. Yesterday I walked through two slum areas to drop off the kids after rehearsal. Being a foreigner there is obvious curiosity as to why I'm there. It's ok to see foreigners on the main roads, but there isn't any good reason why I should be walking through the slums otherwise. This was very clear in one area when the young men started calling out to me. As soon as we announced we were there with a student for a 'shoot for a school program' the attitude changed entirely. Not only was the student given slaps on the back (in congratulations), but we were shown straight to his house and everyone was instantly super helpful. It's all about relationships and establishing the right connections. We will be dropping him back again the rest of the week. It'll be interesting to see how their reaction to me and the others changes over time. But it'll be more interesting to see how he and the other students change over the days of the shooting. Will it increase their self-confidence? Will they display more pride? Will they step up to the acting role? Will they freeze up in front of the camera?

More after the shoot!