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Born Into Brothels

From: Lu Olkowski
Length: 00:06:31

Several years ago Zana Briski, a photographer, found herself giving photography lessons to children living in the brothels of Calcutta's red light district. She told Lu Olkowski about the challenges of trying to change people's lives with art. Read the full description.
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Piece Description

This radio piece is the winner of a 2006 Gracie Allen Award "National - Outstanding Feature - Soft News Radio" Originally aired on Studio 360 January 22, 2005. Zana Briski's documentary Born into Brothels won an Oscar in 2005.

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Review of Born Into Brothels

This audio vignette is as moving, and well crafted, as the movie itself - a fitting tribute to the work of both producers! The use of both sound and as well, the girls' voices (? from the soundtrack?), is not contrived or false but fits perfectly. This is a must listen, and you'll probably want to end up using it. Fits for many themes (womens issues, gender, charitable causes).

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Review of Born Into Brothels

In describing the work of visual artist Zana Briski, producer Lu Olkowski creates her own masterful portrait of sound. Briski is the photographer who co-produced the film "Born Into Brothels" and founded Kids with Cameras, a non-profit organization to empower marginalized children through learning the art of photography. In this piece, she works with children living in the brothels of Calcutta's red light district. The nicely mixed piece uses music, colorful ambient sound, well written and delivered narration, interviews with Briski and an art therapist, and even cuts from some of the kids, taken from the film. It is a wonderful experience when a piece about art is art in itself, and I highly recommend this excellent, sound rich piece of radio.

Broadcast History

Originally aired on Studio 360 January 22, 2004.

Transcript

Zana Briski can't tell you why she went to Calcutta or how she ended up teaching photography to the children of prostitutes. She doesn't really know. She's a dreamy kind of person who doesn't really plan very much.

ZB: It was really like being punched in the gut as soon as I walked into the red-light district. But on a deeper level, I really recognized the place

From that moment she wanted to take photos there. It took a year of almost daily visits to the neighborhood, and many conversations over cups of chai, before a brothel owner let Zana live in his house, which is what she really wanted - to immerse herself in the place.

ZB: was really like hell in many ways - there's drunk men everywhere - you can never tell what drunk men are going to do - I mean I felt threatened by them all the time - there are screaming matches - but so much beauty and so much laughter and so muc...
Read the full transcript

Timing and Cues

I left a bit of music at the tail of the piece, so individual stations can fade to fit.

00:00:00 Opening Music (0:08)
00:00:08 Body of Piece (5:52)
00:06:00 Closing Music (0:31)

Musical Works

All music from the soundtrack to the film Born into Brothels, composed by John McDowell.

Related Website

http://www.wnyc.org/studio360/show012205.html