Mike talks to a genuine undercover journalist from Burma... awesome!

With BURMA VJ open to audiences in the UK, we were lucky enough to manage to talk to the man who organised the VJs in Burma. Code-named 'Joshua', he is no ordinary filmmaker but a covert journalist who aims to capture the truth of life in his country and spread the word to people around the world. Here is what he had to say... OWF: How did you start doing what you were doing in Burma?

J: I decided to be a videojournalist because I wanted to do something, and I see it as the most effective way to work for democratic change in Burma. So I tried to be one. Before that I tried with print media in Burma and it didn't work, so it is the best thing for me to do to fight for the freedom of Burma.

OWF: It sounds nothing like journalism here in that you're so tied to the political situation. Would you consider your firm of journalism to be a kind of activism?

J: Well, in a country like Burma you can never be a pure journalist. if you want to be a real journalist who reports the truth you also need to be an activist, at least a little. Because, you know, there is so little you can get from making news in Burma and at the same time you are risking so much. So there has to be some motivation. You can spread propaganda for the government, that's all you can legally do as a journalist in Burma. If you want to present the truth, and real events happening on the ground, you also have to be an activist. We also consider the objectivities, but there are some times when you cannot be neutral. If you are neutral you are with the oppressive government or the dictators.

OWF: As this was happening I gather you were aware of the potential for a film being made form this footage. Was that a big thing for you, as a way of creating something to keep Burma in the public consciousness?

J: Well, we have made news with all the footage used in the film already. The film is completely different. The news gives you the information, but the documentary gives you the ideas and makes you think. In terms of news, people see it and know it, but after they maybe switch off the TV and have dinner. But documentaries are completely different, they inspire you, they can explain more, so you can think about the event more and if the film can motivate people enough then they may do something. At least like the Co-Operative who are now making a campaign for our video journalists who are in prison, and look for more ways to support our activities. So there is a very different impact between the news and the documentary.

OWF: Is also, on a personal level, different having the spotlight shifted from the news footage to yourselves as journalists?

J: I am the main character in the film, but I'm not talking about myself or my personal life. I'm talking about journalism and journalists inside Burma, I'm talking about the monks and about the students. So I just feel like I'm representing all the people who are in Burma. Of course we started doing it as a profile of journalists in Burma, but later everything changed and I was happy that we can talk about everything during the Saffron uprising because the film was not only about me but about how daily life is in Burma. So I don't feel like the subject, Burma and Burmese people are the subject.

OWF: Was it hard revisiting some scenes during reconstructions?

J: The most important thing about the reconstructions was covering the identity of the people involved in the events. I have to deal with a lot of security issues and talk about some hiding places and things, so it was difficult. We have to keep some things in low profile. At the same time we have to stick to the facts, we don't want people to think we are making things up. So it was really challenging.

OWF: One part of the film I found interesting was when you were filming a group of monks and one said to the VJ 'don't film here, you're just going to make things more difficult', was there ever a concern that your filming would make things harder?

J: As journalists we understand that we need to promote the event more, but at the same time everybody in Burma has their own fear because they cannot trust anyone because of the informers and military intelligence. But we had to explain them that this is the time to speak up, they will already be filmed by the intelligence forces as they have better technology and can film from cars or roofs, so they have taken the risk already and can face torture or imprisonment by taking to the streets. So they have nothing to worry about with our filming, and we had to explain that media is needed to promote the issue and campaign for these activities. We believe that if we co-operate we can send it out to the international community. But also, before the Saffron uprising we were silent, nobody would talk to the camera, they dare not, but after that they are more outspoken and whenever they fear something bad they try and find a journalist to talk to. So that is a change we have helped with now, and later there will be more.

OWF: Do you think that a dialogue with other countries is an important part of what the VJs can achieve?

J: What we are trying to achieve is to pass the message from Burmese communities to international. As long as people have more information about the change in Burma, that's OK with us. We're just trying for them, because we believe that everybody in Burma is ready for change and they will take control back whenever they have the change. What we need now is moral support from the international community when there is something. Or even when it is quiet. Because there was news coverage about Burma during the uprising and during the cyclone, but after that it will be quiet because of demonstrations in Iran, bombs in Pakistan or something. The thing we are trying to do as video journalists is to show that the Burmese people are still here and the occupation is still going on.

OWF: Were you surprised how much people have supported the film?

J: I didn't expect this much interest from the audience, and now we're receiving a really good response: we could see the support from the international community and at the same time it is motivating our people to go on, because sometimes we feel that we are alone in this struggle. At the same time I want to giver that message to Burmese people who are in Burma. I want them to feel that they are not fighting alone, all of the international community are supporting their fight against the oppressive military regime. So I think we have achieved something.