Where There’s Smoke
The phone rang just after 11pm. It was James. “Come to Fei Fei,” he said. “Something’s happening here.” “What?” “Just come.” And so, because documentary filmmakers are inherent busybodies, I headed down to the noodle shop near where we live. I wasn’t prepared for what I saw. Two fire engines blocked the road outside the...
The Maid’s Room
My brother and I spent a recent weekend house hunting with my parents. We had fun poking our noses into other people’s homes, making up stories about their lives, and swapping design ideas. My little nephew especially, has enjoyed the whole exercise. We’ve all loved listening to his suggestions as to where Mah-mah and Yeh-yeh...
Problem-solving, MOM-style
It’s an open secret. The global trade in low-level labour is a dirty one. And Singapore is a willing participant. We import tens of thousands of migrant workers each year ostensibly because no other Singaporean will do the jobs they do, for the kind of pay they’re willing to accept. But the truth is that...
So How Much Did you Pay Your Agent?
Of late we’ve developed a strange habit. We can’t meet a Bangladeshi migrant labourer without asking him a somewhat intrusive question. How much did you pay your agent? Is it kinda rude? Maybe. Call it an occupational hazard then. We must have sprung that question on hundreds of workers when we were making “Human Trade”...
Before… And… After
Remember that hovel in District 9? For months, dozens of Chinese migrant workers lived in filth in the middle of Singapore’s poshest neighbourhood. And then, one very brave man decided to say something. His little video triggered outrage on the internet. It even led to a petition for better living conditions for ALL migrant workers...
J Is For Justice… And Journalist… And Just Go Away
We were watching Waltz With Bashir when the message arrived. It was Mohsin, the journalist who had worked with us on The Human Trade and Migrant Dreams. He had been beaten up by four manpower agents (one of them, Rahim, appears about 7 minutes into The Human Trade). Could we please come now? We ran...
Happy World Habitat Day – Let’s Visit A Hovel In District 9
Location, they say, is everything. And in Singapore, living in District 9 means you’ve got it all – posh condo, swanky car, cushy job. You know, all the good things life has to offer. The guy who made the video below should know. He left China for a job here. And his boss was kind...
Goodbye, Abu Sama
Those of you who’ve watched Migrant Dreams might remember Abu Sama. He’s the little guy who ran away from his company after being slapped on the ear by his supervisor. The wound – a perforation in his eardrum – took months to heal. He was frightened and overwhelmed when we first met. Scruffy, nursing a...
To The People Who Care
So we finished Migrant Dreams and The Human Trade and thought we’d hibernate for a bit. Rest. Recharge. Get a full night’s sleep. But sleep’s been tough. Post-production stress, maybe. The relentless pace of the past few months finally catching up on us. But it’s not just the work. It’s the fact that the problems...
The Human Trade
When were were making Migrant Dreams, one question that kept popping up was just why so many workers had to pay so much money for their jobs. The Human Trade documents our quest for an answer.
Migrant Dreams – Ismail’s Story
Migrant Dreams, the first of our two documentaries about the plight of Bangladeshi migrant workers in Singapore and Malaysia premiered on Al Jazeera English today. Some of you might have already read about Mohamad Ismail here, here and here. Our film documents Ismail’s last days in Singapore and follows his journey home. I wish we...
What thelittlepinkcamera Saw
You’ve probably never heard of Sutha’s. Why would you? It’s just a little restaurant in Little India that serves, well, Indian food. The offerings are run-of-the-mill, the service, so-so. But for thousands of desperate migrant workers in Singapore, the restaurant represents a bit of hope. This is where TWC2 runs its free meal service, where...
