Freelancers are often the unsung heroes of news organisations, and the annual Rory Peck Awards ceremony is a welcome chance to recognise the contribution that they make to the stories that end up on our screens.
At last night’s Sony sponsored ceremony at the BFI in London the audience was treated to excerpts from shortlisted works on the big screen, as well as some background about how the nominees worked. There were lot of very sobering stories from both sides of the camera. Waad Al-Kateab, for example, is telling stories from Aleppo while pregnant and also looking after her daughter: exactly the sort of individual the Trust was set up to help. And Paul Salahadin Refsdal showed an extract of his film Dugma: The Button, showing a suicide bomber preparing for his mission, that held the screening room rapt and shocked in equal measure.
Four categories were awarded on the night. The Rory Peck Award for News went to Will Vassilopoulos for Fear and Desperation: Refugees and Migrants pour into Greece, commissioned by AFP. The film shows migrants and refugees arriving on the island of Lesbos in overcrowded boats and rubber dinghies, and follows them from their rescue in open water in the middle of the night to the Idomeni camp on Greece’s northern border with Macedonia.
The Rory Peck Award for News Features was won by Marco Salustro for Libya’s Migrant Trade: Europe or Die, commissioned and broadcast by VICE News. Shot in June 2015, Marco’s film reveals the terrible conditions inside unofficial detention camps run by local militias in Tripoli, and the abuse and mistreatment of hundreds of migrants by people who claim to be helping them.
The Sony Impact Award for Current Affairs was awarded to Marcel Mettelsiefen for Children on the Frontline: The Escape, his second film following the family of a rebel commander in Aleppo. Marcel follows the story the three young sisters, their brother and mother after the capture of their father by Isis, as they leave their home to start new lives as refugees in Goslar, Germany.
And finally the Martin Adler Prize, which recognises an outstanding contribution made by a freelance journalist, was presented to journalist, fixer, guide and translator Angel Istek Alcu, the first woman to receive the prize. Angel lives and works in Diyarbikar in the Kurdish south-east area of Turkey and has built a reputation as a brave, trusted and knowledgable contact for people looking to tell stories in a region that can be very difficult for outsiders to operate in.
Congratulations to all the winners and finalists and thanks to the Rory Peck Trust for a thought-provoking evening.
The Trust is based in London but offers support and training to freelancers and their families all over the world. If you think you or someone you work with might need a helping hand you can learn more on their website. Alternatively you can make a donation to the Trust here.
