Ten journalism students will produce daily reports and a video documentary of the 2013 First Nations Summer Games at Muskoday, Prince Albert and Birch Hills from July 15-19, under the direction of CBC Network Videographer Richard Agecoutay.
The students are taking Indian Communication Arts (INCA) at the First Nations University of Canada. They completed the INCA Summer Institute in Journalism as well as specialized training in sports videography.
Agecoutay has shot sporting events around the world—2008 Beijing Olympics, 2010 FIFA World Cup Soccer in South Africa, 2011 Commonwealth Games in India, and he will be in Sochi, Russia to cover the 2014 Winter Olympics. “Producers rely on me to deliver compelling images of live sporting events,” he says.
“Shooting sports is challenging because the action is continuous,” says Agecoutay. “It takes extreme concentration to follow the action.
“As a camera operator, you need to be versatile, with experience in everything—news, documentary, sports, entertainment and studio productions,” he says.
Candy Fox took INCA four years ago and is finishing her Film degree. She says, “This gives me a chance to go into the field and work with people as the events unfold. I want to learn different styles and be able to handle any situation where video or storytelling is involved. This experience with Richard, who has 30 years experience in photography, theatre and broadcast television, will make me a better documentary shooter and journalist.”
Paige Kreutzwieser is a University of Regina pre-Journalism student who took INCA this summer. She says covering the Summer Games is “the chance of a lifetime.”
“I am passionate about sports and covering the Summer Games is my first opportunity to combine this obsession with my other passion – journalism,” she says. “I am so excited about interviewing the athletes and sharing their stories. And I can use this on my resume, to show that I am a video journalist who can go out and produce stories.”
INCA coordinator Shannon Avison says this gives her students a chance to use social media, including Twitter, YouTube, Instagram, to deliver stories as fast as they happen. “We don’t need a broadcaster to share stories,” she says. “Social media means everyone can share stories through the website—with other athletes and participants and people back home.”
Geraldine Carriere will host a daily newscast with stories, interviews and streeters produced by the INCA crew. “The opportunity to host (the newscast) means a lot to me,”says Carriere. “It gives me a chance to connect with our youth. All youth need a voice and I want to share their triumphs and challenges.”
Summer Games CEO Marvin Sanderson said the coordinators chose the INCA students because some of them have been participants in past games and understand the Games in a way another production crew might not.
He says the daily coverage, which will be hosted on www.incaonline.ca, and the video documentary will help the coordinators reflect on what was accomplished. “We want to leave a legacy of the games for everyone,” he says.
