My YTV Global Media Experience

Hi I’m Sarah and have been a volunteer at Ulfah Arts for around one and a half years. As a young person who is trying to make her way into the Media Industry  I was privileged enough  to be given a life changing opportunity to go on a 2 week placement to work as part of a team to create a documentary. My group decided to focus on the social action that was taking place in Cappadocia and how that was benefiting its people especially the young people.

 There were many things that I enjoyed about the trip. I got the chance to work in another country whilst filming which gave me so many skills itself. Overcoming language barriers in interviews , finding our way round the town, setting up in an extremely short amount of time were all things that have up skilled me and made me a better professional.

Admittedly there were a few mistakes that I had made but I loved the fact that it was okay that I made them and got the opportunity to learn from them on the job. Being able to experiment with different frames and angles whilst witnessing some of the most breath-taking views I have ever seen in my life.

The best thing about this trip was capturing so many stories and being able to eventually share it with the world. Interacting with people of a different culture and learning so much inspired me to look at things in a different perspective. Along the way we got to meet the most interesting people such as a horse whisperer who rescued horses from the mountains and trained them individually. He also made tea from 6 different varieties of flower from the mountains which tasted AMAZING!  Seeing how their community overcomes homelessness and helps the people around them so that nobody is left hungry or without a roof over their head was definitely something which I thought needed to be heard by other people. Having the opportunity to document all this on camera makes a real difference and emphasizes the importance of Media and how we can spread awareness and ideas all around the globe.

As a young person and being able to do this has empowered me to make more films and documentaries whilst spreading social awareness.  I want to take this time to say a massive thank you to Ulfah Arts for giving me this opportunity I feel like I have so much more knowledge and experience just from this one placement. And a thank you to all the people that I worked with, I feel truly inspired and I hope that every young person gets to have an opportunity like this one as it can make such a difference.

Me and my awesome YTV Team !!!

Malik And Louis Say Hi From Turkey

Quad Biking, Horses, Filming and Dancing

Today the group had been split up in to two. One half set out to scale Cappadocia’s valleys in there rented quad bikes. The other half, of which I was part of, decided to ride horses through Cappadocia’s valleys. Enio morricone eat your heart out.

Me and my horse

The horse farm was owned and managed by a man named Ismail, an ex hippie. We decided to interview him and gain a perspective from him of life in Cappadocia. We learnt that he preferred living a non-materialistic lifestyle and felt that Cappadocia allowed him to realise this type of life he wanted to live. The interview went smoothly despite the clouds coming and going which affected the lighting at first, but soon they dissipated. From a corner of the small farm classical music found its way to our ears and our hearts. It was being played from an old, dirty, seedy broken cassette player, yet the music it spewed brought a sheer ambiance and character to the place and the man. Under his lowly worn cowboys hat were the eyes of a worn, isolate man yet they were full of happiness. I often fantasised in my adolescence of living such a life, though my love for film making has far penetrated my past ideals and no more can I see myself doing anything else and having that same glee of happiness that resonated in Ismail’s character.

The horses bared our weight for an hour, scaling the dipping and rising valleys. Landscape open then cascading then revealing drops which our horses galloped down, throwing us back in our saddles; the sun was setting and our silhouettes lay on the meandering trails. The fairy chimneys stood tall hanging over us like goliaths. It’ll all be forever etched in our minds. All this in our short-lived spaghetti western-esque journey. The pain in our buttocks was all worth it.

Latter that night we travelled to Goreme and watched a traditional folk dance and music amidst a buffet, where  tourists laughed, and danced like horses. We had a day that encompassed us finding out about ourselves as filmmakers and got more then we bargained for. Each day we learn something new. The learning continues….

YTV, Up, Up And Away

“If travelling half way across Europe wasn’t enough for us, when we were told that we were yet to experience some of the ‘Must do’ activities in Cappadocia, all eyes lit up”

Youth Television is a Youth led media organisation which has developed a wide range of opportunities for young people in the UK throughout 2013 so far.

11 Young people, including myself were given a life changing opportunity to explore the historical land marks, cave homes & fairy chimneys from a bird’s eye view.  During the making of the full feature documentary in the heart of Cappadocia, we discovered some of the most breath taking views & finally understood why thousands of tourists visit the town Goreme every year.

It was an early start for us all, as we set out from our hotel at 5.30am before sun rise. On arrival to our location, we were welcomed by other tourists, Hot air balloon staff, Hot drinks & refreshments accompanied by a camp site fire. The view from where we stood was lovely. We had never been surrounded by so many uniquely shaped rocks & fairy chimneys that stood behind us. Slowly the sun began to rise, as our Hot air balloon was prepped before us. It was time to board what seemed so big to begin with, but so small as we all entered into the basket which was about to carry us thousands of feet into the air. There were moments of excitement as we started to ascend higher & higher into the clouds.

The view was like nothing we had dreamt or imagined. For 40 magical minutes we travelled across the town overlooking some of history’s most uniquely shaped land marks, known as Turkey’s cultural treasures which wait to be discovered by thousands of tourists that visit Cappadocia each & every year. We slowly descended back to base; it was all over way too soon. As we safely landed, the team made a round of applause.  To complete the experience, we were hosted with a Champagne reception & flying certificates for taking part of one of Cappadocia’s must do activities.

“This was most definitely an experience to die for, and I recommend it to anyone who intends on visiting Cappadocia any time soon. Thank you YTV” -Lameia More

Day 6 Kam, Bunmi, Malik and Lateshia At The Fairy Chimney

Caves and Horses

Today our group has gone from strength to strength. We first kick started it by visiting the mayor of Goreme, feeling privileged to be in his presence he then allowed us to interview him asking various questions about the roles he plays in his community and Cappodocia, he also spoke about how he thinks tourists and the environment play a huge role in the development of Turkey. Overall he seemed like a very humble man. 

Here I am prepping my team for the interview

We then moved on to visit the Antolia cave pension 'cave hotel' not to far from Nevsehir town. The amazing sculpted cave had an unexpected traditional feel within the interior and gardens, here we again interviewed the owner and his wife and filmed shots of the hotel bedrooms ect. 

Here we are again interviewing the Hotel owner 

To end the day beautifully we went horse riding at the Dalton Brothers stables and had an amazing experience whilst simultaneously presenting to the camera and filming cut aways. We added more great footage for our documentary.

My Team Leader on one of the horses at the ranch!

Personally this trip so far has not only been inspiring but a huge learning curve. I hope to end our trip with superb footage for our film and amazing memories 

Roll on week 2!  Latisha xxxx 

YTV Meet The Mayor

Today was a very constructive day. We began with a breakfast in the dining area and then embarked upon the journey towards the Mayor of Uchisar’s  office which was within walking distance of the Uchisar Castle. At the Mayor’s office we had a criterion of set questions from which we would gather qualitative information in an interview. The staff at the office were very hospitable and provided complimentary chocolates and tea for us to consume after our session, which was pleasant.

Here I am meeting the Mayor

Following the Mayor’s interview we headed outside the governmental building to record some presentation shots and pans of the surrounding area including the Pigeon Valley landscape, it was a truly beautiful site. Whilst filming around the area we encountered a group of construction workers who were constructing the interior of a cave which would eventually become a cave hotel, this highlighted the emphasis on tourism and how it ‘s a key, integral aspect of Turkey.

Teams filming from rooftops over pigeon valley

Following this we headed on over to the Uchisar Castle where we also obtained and created more camera shots, presentation scenes and general overviews of the scenery. The peak of the castle is the highest point in all of Cappadocia, everything is visible from the topmost part of the castle, the views and landscapes are truly amazing and captivated everyone to the point where we couldn't believe what lay before us.

The castle we climbed right to the top

We then went on to have lunch at the Mayor’s building after which we went on to the most extravagant hotel in all of Cappadocia. The CCR hotel cost an estimated £18 million pounds to make and in addition to this there was still ongoing construction, this again stressed the fact that this area of Turkey is now benefiting from the holiday business.

The pinnacle of the day was later in the evening. We separated into our respective groups and went to meet some Turkish families to understand their culture and delve deeper into the components which actually define the people of the city. The families were extremely cordial and made us feel exceedingly welcome to the point where we were smothered with amazing sweets and delicacies. They even offered to package them for us to take back to the UK which was very nice of them.

                Overall Day 4 has been very educational and inspiring.