THE CHANNEL
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ISSUE 1 2015
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51
TheAIB
s
2014
INSPIRINGCREATIVITY
The documentary categories attract an immense
range of work from broadcasters and independent
producers. Many tackle challenging subjects.
Our top award in this category goes to ABS-CBN
Corporation in the Philippines for Failon Today:
Deluge. Presenter Ted Failon and his crew were
caught in the eye of super typhoon Haiyan in
November 2013. The team filmed dramatic footage of
the typhoon as it wrought immense damage and they
reported on the after-effects. The judges agreed that
this was a powerful piece of filmmaking due to its very
personal point of view – the presenter and crew
placed themselves in the path of the typhoon as it
made landfall and were able to bring the viewer
spectacular pictures of the devastation wrought on
the people of Tacloban.
Highly commended
Channel 4
Dispatches: Breadline Kids
Over 300,000 children were given food aid in the UK in
2013. While politicians continue to argue about why
so many kids are experiencing food poverty, Channel
4 Dispatches asked three children to reveal how it
feels when the cupboards are sometimes bare.
Cara is nine and lives with her gran in West
London; Rosie is eight and lives in Hull with her mum
and sister; and Niomi is 14 and lives in Suffolk with
her brother and her dad. Emotional, factual,
enlightening, said our judges – the judicious use of
kids makes the issue accessible and infuses it with
urgency.
Truevision produced the programme.
Each year our judges tell us that, as they judge the
entries, they see stories that they were unaware of
previously. Programmes have been bought as a result.
The AIBs
2014 continue this trend.
For Channel 4 in the UK, ITN Productions told the
story of the children of Syria who are often the forgotten
victims in the ongoing civil war in Dispatches:
Children on the Frontline. More than 11,000 children
have been killed and over a million are now refugees.
The judges were unanimous in saying that this is a
superb piece of filmmaking created in the most trying
and dangerous conditions – shocking and utterly
compelling to watch. It’s the story of five young
children engulfed in the fighting between pro- and
anti-regime groups, visceral and heartbreaking with a
feature film sense of cinema about it that is
breathtaking in the circumstances.
The cinematography is stunning and some of the
images of the children are unforgettable. The judges
praised the bravery of the crew making this film.
Highly commended
Channel 4
Pakistan’s Hidden Shame
The documentary tells the frightening story of the way
tens of thousands of young Pakistani boys have become
victims of paedophile predators, who appear to have
nothing to fear from law enforcement. At bus stations,
truck stops and alleyways perverted men prey on the
innocent, gang rape is common and child prostitution
rife. The judges felt that this is a story that must be
told and exposed, to halt this shameful practice. The
judges were impressed by the crew's ability to get both
the young boys and the despicable adults to speak to
camera and by the underlying meticulous research.
Domestic current affairs
documentary - TV
ABS-CBN
International current
affairs documentary - TV
Channel 4
