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Life Onboard |
LAST UPDATE
August 18, 2008
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| site design imagesparkle.com |
| July 12, 2007 |
Keiko Tsuno – ‘Someone Who Can Continue’ |
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Keiko Tsuno says her biggest achievement has been helping children find their place in society and a passion to be proud of. Photo by Stacy Hughes |
Two words describe Keiko Tsuno : ‘effortlessly inspirational’. An acclaimed video journalist, her demure humility and sincerity adds strength to her string of achievements. On board between Iceland and New York, she shared her adventures, her challenges, her advice and her warm heart.
After studying oil painting in Japan, 23 year old Ms Tsuno left for New York in 1967, hoping to be inspired by the modern art scene in vogue at the time. She bought a Sony AV 1800 Black and White, the world’s first portable video camera, with no intention other than to create art.
While living in downtown New York, she met her husband Jon Alpert, who was then a university student. Working as a taxi driver, he was also very active in the anti-Vietnam War movement and the Taxi Driver’s Labour Union.
Mr Alpert's interest in documentaries started by chance, when he decided to help make a piece about the perils of New York taxi drivers in 1970. The couple documented a demonstration, the dangers of the job from inside the taxis and interviewed union members. Ms Tsuno filmed, while Mr Alpert conducted the interviews. The final 20 minute piece, which was shown at a church in Manhattan, was a huge success amongst the taxi drivers, who felt empowered to change their working conditions.
The pair immediately recognized the power of film to bring positive change to the world, and thus began the era of their video journalism. They created their art on the streets, by watching people’s reactions to find out what was interesting. As no precedent existed, they had the freedom to experiment and develop their own styles and set the foundations of American independent media.
Since then, Ms Tsuno and Mr Alpert have overseen the production of over 100 documentaries of social concern and are the co-directors and founders of the Downtown Community Television Centre (DCTV). |
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| DCTV is run from a landmark Tribeca firehouse |
What sets DCTV apart from other such production companies is the education and mentor programs for youth from disadvantaged socio-economic backgrounds. By teaching such youth the art of video journalism for the past 30 years, the couple have provided a positive and creative outlet for youth to address the critical issues that affect them and their communities. Most of the DCTV teachers also help the youth with their homework and any administration.
DCTV also runs a comprehensive broadcast TV-training program for disabled people and is the first disability web channel in the US, winning over 14 national and international film awards. |
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| The 62nd Voyage Video Team visited DCTV while in New York |
Ms Tsuno and Mr Alpert’s kindness has been equally matched with their journalistic successes. In 1972, DCTV shot the first American television coverage inside communist Cuba in ten years. It painted reality as it then was and shattered the American public’s media-influenced fear of their neighbouring country. Seven years later, when Fidel Castro came to the United States to address the United Nations, Ms Tsuno’s team was the only non-Cuban crew allowed access to the leader.
Their second scoop was in 1977, two years after the end of the Vietnam War. While in the U.S., the Vietnamese foreign minister heard of the documentary they had made on Chinese immigrants in America and contacted the studios to request a viewing. Soon after, he invited them to be the first American TV crew to film in Viet Nam since the end of the war.
A guiding inspiration in Ms Tsuno’s life has been her Art professor’s words of wisdom. While a student, she had wondered how to measure talent and so posed this question to him. His reply, “someone who can continue”, struck a chord, and has helped her through many trials over the years. “I have met many men and women on many occasions, who are much more talented than me, but they have disappeared, just because they did not continue,” she said with frustration and sadness.
There is no doubt DCTV will continue to help many more hundreds of youth, and
continue to produce documentaries which help us understand the reality we live in.
The inspirational couple behind this vision will also continue with their selfless
dedication for justice, as long as there is another person to save and another truth to be
told. |
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| DCTV’s investigative reporting, editing, and camera work have earned an impressive portfolio of awards and scoops. |
Keiko Tsuno Profile
Keiko Tsuno Video journalist, co-founder & co-director of DCTV
Keiko Tsuno has been producing and directing documentaries since 1969. Between 1974 and 1979, together with her husband Jon Alpert, Ms Tsuno co-produced five one-hour documentaries for public television. In 1976, she won the Columbia DuPont Award and the Christopher Award for Chinatown: Immigrants in America, and her 1977 won an award for Vietnam: Picking Up the Pieces. In 1980, she received the National Emmy Award for Best Editing and the Grand Prix at the Tokyo Video Festival for Third Avenue: Only the Strong Survive. Ms Tsuno started to produce documentaries by herself for PBS after motherhood. She is a documentarian, camera operator and editor for all her works. Originally from Tokyo, she recently published a book in Japan, Changing the World Through Video, recounting her last thirty years experience in filmmaking. Ms Tsuno is the Co-founder and Co-Director of the Downtown Community Television Center (DCTV), America's largest and most honored non-profit community media center.
DCTV Homepage: www.dctvny.org |
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