UNMIK ON AIR
6th June 2003
PHOTO
MARATON
(Luan
Qorraj)
Slug: The first
photo-marathon ever to be held in Kosovo – An attempt to capture the Kosovar
reality in pictures and a great opportunity for photography lovers:
Countless pictures of Kosovo have been taken by thousands of
local and international photographers over the past decade. Most of them tried to capture beautiful or
ugly moments of life and conditions in Kosovo, but there never was an attempt
to capture the flow of life in a single day. And that is about to change:
For the first time ever, and on the first day of summer,
Prishtina is to host a photo marathon where, during 24 hours, volunteer
photographers from all over will be running around the city taking pictures.
The subjects will be given to them on the day of the marathon itself. The best
thing about the marathon, says Gerard Links, senior advisor at the department
of Youth, Sports and Culture, is that the competition is open to everyone.
Gerard Links: This first photo marathon in
Prishtina is open to all participants in Kosovo on the 21st and 22nd
of June. It will be fun because for 24 hours people will run with the cameras
in the cities trying to find good creativity according to the subject. Of
course there will be a subject for night, for day and so…fun.
The photo-marathon is a
totally local initiative. Afrim Spahiu, the head of Gjon Mili school of Film
and Photography is one of the organizers of the marathon. All you need to take
part, apart from applying he says, is good will and a camera:
Afrim Spahiu: During 24 hours all
participants who have applied earlier will get one 24 shot film and every 4
hours they are supposed to take pictures on various subjects which will be chosen
before the media in front of the ministry building. Some of the subjects will
be easy, others will be more complicated but the idea is to make one whole
story out of 24 pictures.
20 thousand leaflets have
already been printed for distribution. But the organization of the marathon,
partially funded by the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports, is still
underway. Additional sponsors are more than welcome says Afrim Spahiu.
The idea is not an original one - it has been borrowed from
other countries that hold annual photo-marathons, from Istanbul to New
York. But the concept itself was born
in the Netherlands, says Gerard Links.
Gerard Links: The first people to do this
were the Dutch 25 years ago. These kinds of events are also very popular
especially in Scandinavian countries and the first prize will be participation
in the photo marathon in Copenhagen in Denmark
Organizers hope thousands of participants will turn up for
the Prishtina photo-marathon on the 21st and the 22nd of June. The hope is that this will become an annual
event, thus leaving traces of today for the future.
Gerard Links: I think that people have to be
creative, to be original and I think it will be very interesting to see, maybe
year by year, the change of the vision of the people in Kosovo.
Photography expert Afrim
Spahiu encourages everybody to participate and apply the marathon is free, and
the main prize is a place in the great photo marathon in Copenhagen. There is
no need to be afraid about the equipment or the quality of the pictures taken
since that is not what counts at the end:
Afrim Spahiu: It doesn’t have to mean that
photography can be made only with high-tech cameras and photographers with
perfect technology. It can be done with a very simple camera, what you call a
“fun camera”. It is about the idea, the composition. I say this again, high
professionalism is of no importance, it is about ideas, how you visualize the
idea that has been given to you.
So all of you who wish to participate in the Prishtina photo
marathon on the 21st and the 22nd of June - all you have
to do is dial 038 548 732 or 038 211 449, that’s 038 548 732 or 038 211 449-
and give your name and surname, there will be a strip of film waiting for you
on Saturday.
That does it for this edition of UNMIK ON AIR. Have a nice
weekend.