The transmedia project Love Radio was created by the journalist and filmmaker, Eefje Blankevoort, and the photographer Anoek Steketee. The story is based on the radio drama Musekeweya (“New Dawn”) which addresses the reconciliation process that followed the Rwandan genocide. Combining reality and fiction, it consists of an exhibition, a 78-minute web documentary and “Tap Stories,” told through photos and text, specifically designed for smartphones.
The starting point for the two artists was the radio drama Musekeweya. Followed by millions of listeners each week, the program tells a fantasy version of the reconciliation. The irony is plain, given the importance of these “Inyenzi” (“Cockroach”) radios in inciting the Tutsis to violence during the genocide. However, 20 years later, the reality is more complex, and Blankevoort and Steketee still find themselves asking: “In the wake of all this horrific killing, how can the perpetrators and victims live among and love each other?”
This is how the duo became interested in the present. They paint a portrait of modern-day Rwandan society with radio as the focus, exploring to what extent fiction bring people to reconcile. Blankevoort and Steketee say the project addresses violence, reconciliation, guilt and innocence, forgiving and being forgiven. But Love Radio also examines groupthink, scapegoating, and the role of media in society.
http://www.loveradio-rwanda.org
http://www.foam.org/visit-foam/calendar/2014-exhibitions/love-radio
http://www.piclet.org/directory/Anoek-Stekeete
http://www.france24.com/fr/finalistes-FRANCE-24-RFI-prix-du-webdocumentaire-2014
Trailer :
http://vimeo.com/86986980
