New Drama to help the Farmers and Rural Communities in Malawi

We've made two films in Malawi now and the response has been overwhelming. We know from NGO workers and community members that our two HIV films are really changing attitudes and helping to create effective debate and social change.

Having approached HIV with both Documentary and Drama our partners tell us the next vital issue that needs to be addressed is the environment, conserving the forests and helping communities to farm effectively using more organic methods and becoming less dependent on chemical fertilisers and pesticides.

Already we have a group of agricultural advisors on board who are all enthused by the possibility of reaching communities in a new way. They range from educators, agricultural practitioners and Malawian farmers themselves. We are in a great position to make a film that ordinary community members will be able to identify with and take pride and ownership in. This in turn can lead to individuals making changes for themselves and their communities.

Being a drama we can involve many themes that are so vital right now; conservation of forests through use of wood-saving ovens; setting up farming cooperatives through micro-finance; young people learning how to work the land after the HIV epidemic has taken so much farmer knowedge from them.

The drama is a truly exciting project but of course the problem right now is the finance behind it. Purple Field can afford some of the costs and we look for partners to join us on our film projects. At this current time enthusiastic partners are plenty but thos with sufficient finance are not. We need help to bring this film alive and start to help continue the great development work that is being done in Malawi and other southern African nations.

Our films can be seen from our website: http://www.purplefieldproductions.org

Note: In the UK "The Archers" was a BBC commissioned six part radio drama to educate farmers after the Second World War. Sixty years on it is one of the most successful radio dramas in the world.