danielemmerson.com

Written by Tara Benwell for TEFL.net


Tara: Tell us a bit about your background in the English language teaching industry. What was your involvement in TEFL before making the Learning English Video Project documentaries?

Daniel: I suppose the very root of my background in ELT began when I embarked on the ERASMUS study abroad programme with the British Council. I was studying Media Arts for my B.A. at Plymouth University and I was offered the chance to travel to Poland in order to study for three months during my second year. It was while I was in Poland for that very first time, which was back in 2005, that I started offering one-to-one tuition in English at the University in Katowice. I began to look online for some resources and I stumbled upon TEFL.net, which was my primary gateway to ELT. It was through this website that I began researching the industry and from there I decided it would be interesting to try and make a film about the various courses, methods and practices in the industry.

After completing my Bachelor degree, I moved to Poland and did a CELTA course straight away. I was offered a job at a school in Krakow immediately after finishing the course and I began putting what I had learned into practice. I very quickly began to build up a web of contacts, all of whom came from different social and economic backgrounds, providing further confirmation that the industry would make an excellent subject for a film. It was for that reason that I approached TEFL.net who agreed to sponsor a documentary film for and about TEFL teachers. I filmed in Thailand, Slovakia and Poland, gathering an amazingly eclectic batch of interviews and released the final production, aptly named Talking TEFL, through TEFL.net in early 2008.

Tara: Can you remember the first time you thought about making the Learning English Video Project? What inspired you to develop this idea, and how did Josef Essberger (founder of EnglishClub.com) respond?

Daniel: Soon after the release of Talking TEFL, I met with Josef Essberger and we began discussing what would become the Learning English Video Project. We decided that after making a film for and about TEFL teachers, it would be a good idea to make something for learners as well; preferably something that could then be used by teachers in the classroom later on. The preliminary plans for the project were then put into motion.

Josef was very supportive and enthusiastic about the project. He came up with a great deal of the ideas with regards to content, story and additional resources that could be used to run alongside the films. We spent a few days discussing locations and time frames during the summer of 2008. During that time I was also working as a coordinator at Millfield Enterprises in England, the country’s largest English language summer school, and so I was able to keep my finger on the pulse of the ELT industry at the same time. Josef and I decided on the film locations and the themes of the first five films. I then went to work on collaborating with language schools, teachers and students in the cities that we had chosen.

Tara: You filmed in seven locations: Morocco, the UK, Brazil, China, Spain, the USA and Romania. Tell us about the selection process.

Daniel: It was during those initial conversations that I had with Josef Essberger about the project that we decided it would be a good idea to film at five locations that differed from each other in culture, language and heritage. There were so many countries that we wanted to include in the project but we had to make a firm decision about where we wanted to film. We chose Morocco because it would be quite probable that learners there would be acquiring English after already being able to speak Arabic, French and quite possibly Spanish as well. The UK and the USA were selected because a great number of international students travel to these locations in order to learn English outside of the classroom as well as during lesson time. Spain was chosen in particular to reflect what it might be like learning English in a Western European country and Romania was chosen to document what it might be like learning English in the Eastern side of Europe. Having said that, Belarus was the original destination for the fifth film, but my crew and I had some problems obtaining visas.

Those first five films were produced between September 2008 and June 2009. They were released on EnglishClub.com and were received very well indeed by both learners and teachers alike. So positive was the response in fact that Josef and I decided to extend the project to a seven-part series and that is when we decided to include China and Brazil; two countries that are as different and far apart geographically as they are in language and culture, despite their both being BRICS countries. [Vocab Note: BRICS is an acronym used in economics to group the countries of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa, all of which are regarded as being at a similar stage of economic development.]

Tara: How did you decide on the focus or theme for each film?

Daniel: To begin with, the themes were very dependent on who I was able to collaborate with on location. However, it was Matt Errey (inventor of the popular TEFL board game Word Up) and Josef Essberger who worked with me as production consultants in providing ideas and suggestions for the theme of each film. Both Matt and Josef played essential roles in the success of the project, which would not have been the same without their input and support.

Tara: The films highlight how learning English is becoming a necessity around the world. In which of the countries that you visited do you feel people are embracing this reality the most?

Daniel: When you meet so many dedicated people who are learning and teaching English, it is impossible to say which people are embracing the need to learn that language the most. Personally, I felt that there were people in each of our locations who were exceptionally motivated to learn English, not only because they believe it to be a necessity, but because they are driven and determined to embrace another language for themselves.

Tara: What’s a memorable learning tip you heard from a student while you were filming this project?

Daniel: I recall that there was a young lady in Bucharest named Roxanne who said that she used to apply gaffa tape to her television in order to hide the Romanian subtitles on the Discovery Channel, and that helped her to learn. I suppose that it is one of the most memorable tips because she risked destroying her TV for the sake of learning English. Now that is dedication!

Tara: Most of the speakers in the film do not speak perfect English. What is your response to viewers who are critical of English mistakes that the students or teachers make in the film?

Daniel: Even though I consider myself to be quite good behind the camera, I am simply terrible (as you might have seen from the LEVP video blogs) when I am in front of it. Being in front of the camera is a strange experience and I have nothing but the utmost respect for all of the people who took part in the project because of the courage it must have taken to be interviewed on film in a foreign language. It is inevitable that people make mistakes on camera, I make mistakes on camera, and I think that everyone who allowed me to interview them for the project should be proud of themselves.

Tara: Absolutely. What advice would you have for teachers or schools that want to try documenting their own students’ learning journeys?

Daniel: I think it is an excellent idea. There are so many creative and interesting ways students can go about documenting their own progress and I wholeheartedly encourage them to experiment. Having said that, I would suggest that in order to get the best results, it needs to be something that the students are on board with as well. I can’t see it working if it is something the teachers decide to force upon their students.

Tara: I know that you have received many invitations and requests from teachers and learners to film in their countries, even though the project has come to an end. But if you could film in one more location on this subject, where would it be and why?

Daniel: I did indeed receive many invitations from teachers and learners all over the world, and I was most grateful for each and every offer. That is what makes this an extremely difficult question to answer. Every country is unique and has something fascinating about it that would be incredible to explore on film. However, if I was forced to answer, I would say Kenya. I think it would be a superb opportunity to be able to take the Learning English Video Project to a country that has over 65 recognized languages in addition to such a phenomenally diverse landscape and culture.

Tara: Thank you Daniel. It has been wonderful getting to know you through this project over the past few years. Best of luck with your next project, whatever and wherever it may be!

Daniel Emmerson 2012 

Back in 2006 when I was working for Future Planet, I crafted a collaborative documentary film on quite possibly one of the most interesting people I have ever met. The film was collaborative in the sense that Future Planet had been working on making a production on this subject for quite some time; it was in March 2006 however that I went about securing the final interviews and began piecing the film together with Tez Rowlands, an editor at both T4 and Future Planet.

Bruce Bedlam is an English inventor, theorist and puzzle designer. His products have ranged from making bombs for the MoD to 3D geometric games and puzzles under the product label ‘Bedlam Cubes’. This short film is a testament to his work and to the struggles that he faces, not only as an inventor, but for gaining recognition as one of the dominant theorists concerning the existence and construction of Stone Henge.

The Veddas

by Daniel Emmerson

(continued)

An apparent formation occurred just after the leech incident. The Shaman’s son marched up front, cutting down rogue branches and scouting the land for snakes. The largest Vedda, a chubby tribesman with a huge beard and sagging nipples, followed behind him. I was next, and the small boy followed with his father, a thin, brutish fellow with long black straggly hair. Each tribesmen wore a dress constructed of bark, leaves and very little else against their naturally bronze skin. We moved hastily through furrows of long grass and reached an area of thick jungle where the Shaman’s son signalled for us to be very quiet. My camera continued to whir.       

Before the night sky closed in, we located a wooden shelter. My feet were cut and raw, my leg hair mangled in a sloppy glooped mixture and I understood none of the dialogue that surrounded me. The Veddas spoke in whisper, pointing and gesturing at the dazzling stars above our heads. The brutish fellow joked with me and his son, playing games with his hands, something like pat-a-cake-pat-a-cake. His palms slapped together rhythmically and I began to doze. The panoply of stars overhead was nothing short of exquisite and I felt guilty for being so tired. It wasn’t long before I drifted into a deep and soothing sleep.

Thud. Thud. Thud. My eyes opened. Thud. Wail. Thud. The wooden shelter was moving. Thud. Wail. Thud. It was still dark. Thud. I was alone. Thud. Wail. Thud. I sifted around the floor of the shelter and found my camera; I stuffed it quickly into my bag. Thud. Thud. Thud. Before I knew what was happening, the brutish Vedda stormed into the shelter. He grabbed me by the arm in a tenacious grip, dragged me towards the entrance and pulled. The moment my bare, blooded feet touched the ground, the apparent source of the thudding became clear. A huge wild elephant was walking in our direction at some speed.

I froze, stricken with panic before being flung at full strength by the Vedda, his eyes remained calm but I could make out beads of sweat upon his brow in the moonlight. We began to move. I was hurled through the air with the Vedda in front of me, pulling as though I weighed little more than a helium balloon. My feet snagged and cracked against the ground. Thud. Thud. Thud. The elephant was not far behind us. Wail. The Vedda turned his head towards me, he flung his right arm forward and pushed me, pointing straight ahead. Wail. His son was still back at the shelter.

I had to make a decision and I had no more than a few split seconds to do so. Either I turn back with the Vedda and help him, or I run in the direction in which he pointed. The elephant stopped still and I caught sight of the chubby tribesman in the distance. I made my decision and ran towards him, leaving the brutish Vedda in almost certain peril, for he was now long gone in the direction from which we had come. As I ran, gashed left foot over right, I thought about how cowardly I was. I could have helped couldn’t I? Despite their being a linguistic communication barrier and me being in the state I was in, I could have surely done something… so why did I continue to run in the opposite direction? It took me no more than a few minutes to catch up with the rest of the tribe, there was no turning back. I felt bruised, battered and broken, a useless pseudo member of the collective.

“I’m sorry” was all I could mutter to the Vedda who caught me as I tumbled towards the soil below.

To celebrate my documentary film ‘The Veddas’ being made available online for the first time, I have decided to re-post a short story I wrote for High Contrast Review.

THE VEDDAS

by Daniel Emmerson

The young boy grappled patiently with the hem of my trouser leg. The sweltering heat was forever present as my milky shins greeted the light of day behind their mask of rugged denim. It was then that I realised what all the shouting had been about.

I was sitting on a rock in the middle of the Mahayangana jungle, Sri Lanka, surrounded by tribesmen as a brave young boy peeled land leeches from my skin. His head bobbed up and down as to inspect the condition of my ravaged limbs before he went to pluck the insidious annelids head first with his fingernails. Spiked leech tongues disgorged into my thighs and calves as they sucked incalculable amounts of blood from my legs. I felt a surge of weakness. It wasn’t until we had started walking through the long grass that I began to feel a tingling beneath my trouser legs. I imagined it to be sweat as we were no longer wading through the protective shade provided by the plentiful Ceylon Ironwoods and Indian Rose Chestnuts. The tribesmen started to shout and ushered me to a large rock once they realised we were trekking in leech territory. The young boy tugged, ripping the jagged tongue of the first leech from just below my knee cap, blood trickled afterward.

I pulled my video camera from the bag strapped to my shoulder and hit record in time to capture the second and third leeches as they were pulled from my flesh. This was by no means the tone of my documentary film but I thought it might prove interesting footage later on. My bag was worn and stuffed with mini DV tapes, cables and sound recording gear. This was my first solo documentary film adventure and an attempt to gain insight into the lives of the Vedda tribe in Sri Lanka. Thus far it was proving extremely successful and I planned on acquiring as much footage as possible, with or without invertebrate parasites.

Once the final bloodsucker had been disposed of, I was advised to remove my shoes and socks, or at least that is how I interpreted the Sinhalese syllables and abrupt pointing. One of the tribesmen rolled up my trouser legs to the knee and coated my skin in a sticky sweet sepia paste. It smelt of rich tobacco. I tied my shoelaces together and onto my bag as we made our way deeper into the jungle. The tribe spoke a dialect of Sinhalese, so in order to communicate my feelings, ideas and gratitude to the tribesmen, I required the use of two translators; one from the tribal dialect to Sinhalese, the second from Sinhalese to English. Both translators had decided to skip this particular escapade into the deep jungle as we needed to be few in number, we were looking for wild elephants and needed to be as quiet as possible.

- (to be continued)

‘Inside the UK’

- from my documentary film series ‘The Learning English Video Project’

Encounters in the UK is the 7th and final film in this documentary mini-series. It tells the story of four girls from different countries who travel to Cambridge in England to study English and stay with local families in what is called a “homestay” arrangement. In the film, we also meet several of the host families as well as a consultant who helps match homestay students to families. For the four girls the homestay arrangement is a positive experience. As one of the homestay hosts explains: “It’s going to be a great experience, not only in terms of learning English, but in learning about life.”

‘Thoughts from Brazil’

- from my documentary film series ‘The Learning English Video Project’

Thoughts from Brazil looks at modern trends in learning English, especially for children and teens. This instalment will be of particular interest to all those who long for a learning experience that is more interactive and communicative. Teens and young adults will find new ideas for combining personal interests such as music, gaming and social media with self-study. As Daniel Emmerson talks to learners and teachers of English in Sao Paulo, Brazil, he discovers that many of them have found for themselves the principle of learning by doing and have readily adapted it to the Internet era.

‘Insights from China’

- from my documentary film series ‘The Learning English Video Project’

Based in the busy, cosmopolitan city of Shanghai, Daniel Emmerson’s latest film Insights from China takes us inside the worlds of English language learning and teaching and the airline industry in China. “Insights from China” focuses largely on the staff and management of a Chinese airline company that has recently committed to learning English. Spring Airlines is the first low-cost airline in China. Determined to become a successful international airline, the company has insisted that all of its workers learn to speak fluent English. The CEO of Spring Airlines, Zhang Xiuzhi, has set the bar high. She began learning English “from scratch” 18 months prior to her interview for this film. Like the majority of other language learners, the main stumbling block for the CEO is finding enough time to study. Zhang takes English homework to bed at night and even studies in her car.

‘Conversations in Spain’

-from my documentary film series ‘The Learning English Video Project.

This film starts with a school director whose British father opened the first English language school in Granada in 1954. In this candid interview, the director explains why the first students were predominantly women. The second conversation features an Italian architect visiting Madrid on business. This advanced English learner shares his English learning journey, and reassures other learners that “nobody’s there to judge you or to make fun of you if you make a mess.” The film wraps up with a conversation with a native Spanish resident of Madrid who teaches English. She sheds light on the structure-based English education system in Spain and expresses her frustration that 13 years studying English does not qualify her as an “expert”.