Full Duck Productions

Martinique Coastline

With Producer Ann Armstrong Scarboro of Mosaic Media Arts, Full Duck Productions has directed and edited the documentary series, "Ethnic Expressions from the Mosaic of the Americas." These dynamic interviews with writers and artists whose roots lie in the Caribbean present their vision, passion and art, along with historical background and visual illustration. The documentary videos are suitable for upper-secondary or college classes in ethnic literature, multiculturalism, history, French language, Caribbean studies, and creative writing. They address topics of slavery, cultural alienation and regeneration, Creole culture, French policies in the colonies, Caribbean politics, Caribbean literature and art, and the role of the artist. Some titles available in French and English or with Teacher's Guide. More titles to come. A video based on an interview with Edwidge Danticat will be released in 2005.

Challenge: Provide the technical expertise to create a series of videos produced by Mosaic Media Arts. Consult with Mosaic on the planning and script, provide all the equipment and crew to acquire audio and video, direct the shoots, complete all the post-production editing and work, consult with Mosaic about duplication and marketing. Finally, design and print advertisements, flyers, video labels and inserts. Shoot interviews in United States and Caribbean locations.

Solution: Full Duck Productions worked closely with Mosaic Media Arts, who provided the concepts, contacts and logistics for all the videos, on every aspect of the series. Full Duck made sure that the shoots were planned as tightly as possible, especially for the ones out-of-town, with redundant equipment and a schedule allowing for shooting cutaways and supporting images. In post-production, Full Duck helped select additional images as needed to supplement the script. Full Duck performed all the editing in the Full Duck production studio. Full Duck extracted stills from original video material to create all the promotional materials for each video.

The concept of the Ethnic Expressions from the Mosaic of the Americas series is to interview writers and artists with roots in the Caribbean on subjects of slavery, cultural alienation, cultural regeneration, culture and language, French policies in the colonies, Caribbean politics, Caribbean poetry and literature, poetic vision and insight and the problems of artistic expression. The videos bring the personalities, passion, and motivations of the persons interviewed alive through visual images of the places they discuss and art expressing the emotions accompanying their statements. The titles in the series are suitable for upper-secondary and college classes in ethnic literature, multiculturalism, French language, women’s studies, Caribbean studies, creative writing and history. All videos contain readings by the interviewees of their own work. Some are available with Teacher’s Guides. The following are the current titles of videos in the Ethnic Expressions Series:

Aimé Césaire, Poet and Statesman (English voice over French or French)
World-renowned French Caribbean poet and political activist from Martinique, whose seminal masterpiece is Notebook of a Return to the Native Land, speaks about his early years, the importance of the French Caribbean landscape in his work, and his battle against the assimilation of the people by France. SEE MORE DETAILS AND ORDER

Maryse Condé Speaks from the Heart (English voice over French, English subtitles over French or French)
Widely-read and gifted writer of novels, plays and essays speaks with wisdom, introspection and a sense of irony about her experiences with racism, her childhood, honesty, women and the craft of writing. SEE MORE DETAILS AND ORDER

Raphaël Confiant Speaks (French only)
Prolific French Caribbean writer, publishing in both French and Creole, speaks on topics of Creole culture, history of literary movements and preoccupations of contemporary writers. SEE MORE DETAILS AND ORDER

Jocelyn Valverde, French Caribbean Poet (English voice over French)
French Caribbean poet who focuses on the history of slavery, French Caribbean culture, the creative process and the importance of nature and spirituality. SEE MORE DETAILS AND ORDER

Edwidge Danticat, Haitian Author (English only)
Haitian author, most recently of The Dew Breaker, winner of the 2005 Story Prize and up for the 2005 National Book Critics Circle Award; her other novels are Breath, Eyes, Memory; Krik? Krak!, a National Book Award finalist; and The Farming of Bones, an American Book Award winner. SEE MORE DETAILS AND ORDER