Well the filming is done, for whatever it is worth, which is not my call, that will be up to Roy, the director, to judge on when I get back with the tapes. We have about six hours of footage which Labib has shot, some of which I think is impressive. I am relieved it is all over, and very glad that I just have one more day's work of finishing off, copying tapes, arranging payment and so on and then I can leave. Working with a team with a different culture and first language was more of a challenge than I could have imagined. When the work became intense or pressured by time there was little room for maintaining understanding and sharing the relevant information clearly and quickly. Yesterday was a case in point, there were three convents next to each other, and it took us the best part of an hour to arrive with the right sister in the right building, despite numerous conversations in French, Arabic and English person to person and by mobile phone.
Anyhow that's two weeks of my life spent out of my depth, and outside of my regular world. If that helps to make good documentary TV so be it: and if it doesn't it was still worth it. That I have been on a steep learning curve way beyond my daily life experience and culture has been remarkable. That I was also visiting the world of TV making at the same time has made for an educational experience for myself even greater than the last visit.
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