A Global Film Project, with Local Flavor
Welcome back to the Maltese-Detroiter!
We have taken same time off due to other commitments, but we also wanted to wait for our next big announcement. That day is finally here!
Some of you may have been aware, but I am willing to bet most are still in the dark about a project that the Maltese Club is actively taking part in this coming fall. Last September the club was approached by Charlie Cauchi, a filmmaker from England and Malta. Charlie is the lead artist and director of Latitude 36 – a transmedia project supported by the Valletta 2018 Foundation and Malta Film Commission. Charlie is putting together a documentary film project on the Maltese immigration experience around the world. The project will form part of Malta’s European Capital of Culture program in 2018 , You can view more about Latitude 36 and the Valletta 2018 program by clicking this LINK.
The project ultimately aims to showcase the wide variety of people and experiences that exist within the Maltese community in a global sense. How did we get here? Why did people stay? What are their thoughts on being Maltese in a different country? What has their experience been like? How do we connect with our Maltese culture?
For the past nine months, Mark Trzeciak and myself have been meeting with Charlie to help shape the scope of the project, apply for grants to fund the project, and generally assist in any way possible while also making sure to give the Maltese community in Detroit a clear voice in the project.
Now, it is your turn to help drive the project!
For the project to be a success, we need your input. People willing to share their stories to an international audience. From Charlie herself, she says,
“I’m looking for 1st and 2nd generation Maltese to take part in this project. I’d love to hear your own personal stories, or those of your relatives, about migrating to the USA. I’m also interested in your relationship to Malta. I will be traveling with my cinematographer and am looking for people to interview.
Besides talking to you, the project also needs some material. I am looking for personal pictures, photographs, or home movies…ones that can tell us about your life in and outside of Malta. I am really looking forward to visiting Detroit!”
For some of you, this will sound like a repetitive task. As many of you are aware, Mark and I have worked for the past few years to slowly collect stories and photographs that highlight our community’s history (and many of them have been added to this website…sorry…there is still a backlog of stories and photographs!). Charlie’s project blends right into what we are attempting to do here, capture our community’s history! We hope you find the time and energy to take part in this wonderful project.
If you are interested, there will be several opportunities to share your story!
Being in London, Charlie has had several opportunities to document the Maltese-London story during events like those pictured below!
If, by chance, you are planning a trip to Malta this summer we can potentially arraign a meet-up with Charlie and her film crew while you are in Malta. Otherwise, Charlie and her crew will be coming to Detroit for the Festa tal-Vitorja in September. Though the dates aren’t completely official yet, you can plan on the crew being in the Motor City from late August/early September through September 11th (Stay tuned for more finalized dates).
After the visit to Detroit, the crew will move on to Toronto and New York City for the rest of the month. If you know of family or friends in either of those two cities that would be interested in contributing to the project, please help us out and pass along their names and contact!
If you are interested in participating or would like to hear more about the project, you can email Charlie directly at contact@latitude36.org or you can visit www.latitude36.org and join them on Facebook.
You can also contact the Maltese Club directly to indicate your willingness to participate in the project. Our email address is mabsi.detroit@gmail.com or through our Facebook page. As the dates draw closer we will work with everyone to set up interview days and times.
Charlie Cauchi has been working on this current project for a year now and so far, has interviewed people in the UK where she is currently based. Cauchi splits her time between Malta and London as her family still resides in Malta. Her parents are Maltese and they emigrated to the UK in the 1970s, this personal history has become the driving force behind the current project. She ultimately decided that rather than have a very British-centric view of Maltese migration, it would be wonderful to meet with Maltese people in different parts of the world and that is why the project is now moving to other destinations over 2017. Professionally, she has worked in the audio-visual industries in the Malta and the UK. She holds a BA and MA in Film Studies and is a doctoral candidate within the School of Languages, Linguistics, and Film at Queen Mary University of London.
