As part of the third edition of the Media Innovation Lab held in December 2020 under the auspices of USAID's BMAP, on September 20, 2021, a Macedonian team of journalists and digital artists announces the Covidmembrance miniseries.
The project is about a short documentary series dealing with five different topics related to the global pandemic caused by the Covid-19 virus, reflecting the socio-economic situation in North Macedonia. A digital museum in the form of a web platform was created – you can visit it on the following webpage: www.covidmembrance.com.
“New Image” is the first episode which will be released on September 20th (Monday), and for the next five weeks, another episode with a different theme will be posted on the platform every Monday. New Image is an episode that talks about the protective mask, where experts are giving explanations as well as individuals. Why we are wearing the masks, do they really protect us and what is people’s reaction about this topic - wearing protective masks.
In “Fearing other” we will hear the stories of all those professionals who did not stop working during the pandemic, while “From doubters to believers” is an episode based on a personal story about the loss of loved ones through the labyrinths of bureaucracy and the search for money for treatment against Covid-19.
“Covidless” shows the daily lives of people who work from home, and showing students having online class, while the episode “The Next day” is focused on the fight with Covid 19 and the possible consequences.
The miniseries is a complete production by the authors Vlatko Chalovski, Veronika Kamchevska, Darko Komnenovikj and Bojan Kocevski, while the original sound is created by Goran Moskov.
According to them, the stories covered in Covidmembrance aim to show the different aspects caused by the socio-economic, cultural and psychological changes of the Covid-19 pandemic .
As the authors say: "The title of the miniseries - Covidmembrance, we think is innovative and indicative enough for the audience. During this pandemic, we returned several times, as a public, to the Spanish flu that took many lives in the past, but the fact is that we do not have enough documentation. These mini-documentaries that we made with over 30 interviews with professors and citizens allowed us to observe this year's theme of MIL - ethical reporting during the pandemic. In which other circumstances you will have chance to hear about how taxi driver got scared by client sneezing? These are the little things that left a mark and we can return to them in the future."
They are also adding that they are proud that their project is one of the three international projects supported by USAID’S BMAP and now have the chance to start developing the platform thanks to that support.
