Mule ladies are women who haul goods into Morocco, sometimes earning as little as three euros per trip. The more good things that happened to me, the more I appreciate the 80 kilos on their backs. Job is to show their stories making the world know what is happening.
Mule ladies are women who haul goods into Morocco, sometimes earning as little as three euros per trip. The more good things that happened to me, the more I appreciate the 80 kilos on their backs. Job is to show their stories making the world know what is happening.
Mule ladies are women who haul goods into Morocco, sometimes earning as little as three euros per trip. The more good things that happened to me, the more I appreciate the 80 kilos on their backs. Job is to show their stories making the world know what is happening.
were not very convinced oI my can presume they are oIten doing chosing only one option, but in the some kind oI illegal work, though end I was lucky and I could do what not always. We met a woman with I liked. a story that is real moving. I say woman because her appearance Do you feel proud of what you was that oI a middle aged woman, have done so far? but she was actually a 23 year old mule lady. I don't think you know That's a good question. The truth is the story oI the mule ladies. They that in the last Iew months I've are women who haul goods like realized I have to accept the past. used clothing, toilet paper and Until now I used to pay more small electronics into Morocco attention to the challenges I Iaced Irom Spain, sometimes earning as and I Ielt more comIortable when little as three euros per trip. You solving problems, perhaps so much can see women aged 80 carrying that I didn't really appreciate the 80 kilos on their backs. The more good things that happened to me. times they can get back and Iorth Then six months ago I began to look across the border the more money back and I thought oI everything they will earn. They try to do these I've been through, challenge aIter trips at least three times a day challenge. I have been advancing in because this is all they have to Ieed the path I liked and I really wanted. their Iamily. Maybe I have been more aware oI the bad things than the good ones. Their stories capture you, they Now, at 32, I realize that the good draw you near them but you that happens to us is more important should try to keep a distance. Our than the bad. job is to showtheir stories making the world knowwhat is happening Did you get support from people there. around you? What impressed you the most? When carrying out a project is clear that in the end we are alone in our Especially the role oI women in search, you have to make your own these Moroccan Iamilies. They are luck. As the saying goes, "if you stop the ones who carry the burden oI seeking, you get nothing"; but it is all. I remember a case where a also true that we need people to woman looked aIter her house, support us, to encourage us. And with her blind daughter, a little how do you get this support? II you brother and her halI sick husband. want t o get ot her peopl e' s She earnt the only money they conIidence in your project, you have made, she also did the cooking, to start trusting yourselI. Then you took the children to school, ... she pass that conIidence on your did everything. And then she was a Iriends, your Iamily, your partner ... person whose culture was more so they can help you. In my case my proIound than that oI thousands oI mother has always been next to me people here. helping me. But in addition to your own people you need a team. I have I was also impressed with the been long Iar Irom home and in each economic diIIerence that we could project I had a team sharing see between both sides oI this everything with me, we were all like Irontier: On this side is Melilla, links in a chain, iI one Iailed, we all with people living like we do here, Iailed. But success was also a and a Iew meters beyond people common achievement. living in tents with no windows in the door, eating anything they We knowyou've worked on many Iind. It is a diIIerence oI 8-0 on the When you were our age, did you projects. Let's talk about the Itziar C. Zubiri, before scale oI quality oI liIe. It's hard. I imagine your life would be as it is documentary ~Walls and other becoming Ceneral also realized that things are not now? successful projects. Tell us either black or white, not Producer at Arena something about it and what you To tell you the the truth, yes (she everything is good or bad. I saw a think when you have a close view Communication worked laughs'). When I was small I used to Spanish policeman who used to on the lives of others. watch a lot oI movies and I always pay the medicines a Moroccan for several media tried to imagine how people did to Iamily needed. He did it and never This documentary is about 4 walls companies, among them tell those stories on TV or at the asked Ior anything in return. made by humans to prevent 1JE, Mediapro and cinema. At Iirst I used to believe migrants' crossing Irom one side to Did you have any problems whatever I was watching, but then I Canal+. Her work has the other. They are between USA when working there? started to go Iurther, to try knowwhy and Mexico, South AIrica and been connected with 1J they did something, how they did it, Zimbabwe, India and Pakistan, and We always try to do everything production and in the last ... Nevertheless, like most oI the Iinally Europe and AIrica. Even iI legal, properly, without cheating, children I also went through a period few years most of it has you live a very long time in these but sometimes you have to take in liIe when I wanted to be a countries it is hard to understand some decisions that are a bit in the been related to the hairdresser, a teacher ... but I soon I what happens there. We have limit. You don't like it, but without realized that what I liked most was to mountain. We can recall already travelled to Melilla and doing it you can not move tell stories. No matter what I did I Morocco. The case oI the Ience Iorward, you get stuck. In one oI "Pura Jida/1he Ridge" always had a story to tell. I must also between Melilla and Morocco is the trips, when we were trying to and "Desafio 14 + 1: tell you that, thanks to my mother, I well known thanks to media cross the border oI Melilla to loved going to the movies. I Everest sin O2". inIormation these last Iew weeks: Morocco, we had problems discovered at a young age that Ior me how they try to jump the Ience, because we didn't have the visas Aow she is working in her the best way to tell stories was barbed wire, the use oI ball guns, ... Ior the equipment. Each team most ambitious project: through moving images. Actually, all the drama we're seeing these member carried 10 kilos or more when I had to choose what to study at "Walls". It has taken her days on the media. Many things between cameras and accessories. university I just chose one career: happen in these borders, you meet Since we could not stay there to four continents in the Media Communication. Besides, I many people going Irom one place Iorever, we decided to take some world so far. knew I wanted to work in Iilm or to another without knowing who risks. We hired a muslim kind oI "Even if you don't reach your goaI, what you Iearn aIong the way is priceIess, and nobody wiII ever take it from you!" holy woman who took all the job has placed me in the world oI the those who are protagonists oI ~Pura eIIort with my English. The truth is equipment in her car. She had made mountain. I'm Irom Erro and, as Vida/ The Ridge. I encourage you that iI I had not known English I the pilgrimage to La Mecca and anybody else Irom Navarre, I had to see it iI you can. Every person could not have done "Pura wore special clothing which done a bit oI climbing, but nothing who appears in that documentary is Vida/The Ridge", I could not be conIerred her a special status, it serious. Suddenly my work has an example oI humanity, oI any doing "Walls" now, nor would have made her being recognized as such. placed me in this world. Those human value you can tell. Tell me I done many oI the stories I've done Nobody dared to stop her. We put all climbs to Annapurna or Everest one: Honesty?, generosity? ... until now. our equipment in the trunk oI her car base camps, over 6,000mts altitude, whatever you say, they live it. For And back to your childhood, as and the Moroccan police didn't stop were real challenges! Although me they are people who made me some of us, you also studied at her when crossing the border. The perhaps some oI you do not see it reconcile with humanity, they made Lorenzo Goi coa. Do you truth is that shooting in Morocco that way (she smiles)! At that height me think that there are still good rememberthose days ? was diIIicult as a consequence oI the oxygen in the air is halI what we people, people who do things doing some things bad when we have here. I did not know how my without any personal interest, Ha ha ... the truth is that I'm Irom programmed it. When you have all body would respond, but I did know people who risk their lives just to try Villava and I got lost an hour ago the permissions all goes well, you're how my mind was going to work: II to save the liIe oI a Iriend. To me when I was trying to reach your relaxed and everything runs I make a decision I don't give up there is nothing greater than that! school. This building is new, isnt it? smoothly, or almost. But when this easily, I keep on going until I get it! NowI would sign to have not twenty When I was your age I used to pass is not the case, you always have At Iirst I thought I was not going be but one Iriend oI mine who did it Ior by this place, then there was one some hard times there. So I always able to Iollow the rest oI the group, me! They are people who are totally small pig Iarm. I remember when I try to schedule everything in they would have to wait Ior me. But balanced, pure people. You see them heard their grunting, their 'oink, advance to avoid problems. Oh, that didn't happen. Surprisingly my and you realize they are real people, oink. There was a wall and a pigsty wait', do you want to know how we adaptation to the extreme conditions people that transmit you their love kind oI smell. I must say that my took the equipment back?. We in the mountain were very good. As Ior nature, their closeness to nature time at Lorenzo Goicoa was great. I carried as much as we could on us the days went by I was Ieeling better values. I thank my job because it has remember my mother always made under our clothes, we looked like and better, especially iI I compare made me be in contact with all these me lettuce sandwich, so I was the shopliIters. Then the cameras were myselI with the rest oI the team. I people. I call myselI a lover oI green sandwich girl. That turned the taken back in the Vespino oI a very remember I got to the start oI the people, them and anybody who breaks into something entertaining nice Moroccan moor we had known expedi t i on wi t h an oxygen brings whithin them these values. I and Iun (she laughs). There was there. As you can see above all you saturation oI 94.4, so the doctor used know that iI I stay here more time something I have always considered have to be creative in the solutions to say in a Iun way: 'These people with you I'll Iinish Ialling in love a luxury, that during PE classes we (she smiles) . from Erro are ama:ing!. During with you too. You know why?, could run on the premises oI my stay at the Everest base camp I because we all have something deep Peritos. We were real lucky' Then I Afilm that has impressed us was reached a saturation oI 52, and I inside that is like a light, and though had a number oI colleagues who ~Everest 14+1" and we wanted to was still working almost normally. some oI you may say: 'Hey, I am were with me Irom three or Iour ask you some questions. What was Here I would have been sent to a very la:y" ... NO, I'm sure that you until eighteen. Imagine, with the the worst moment you spent hospital. I think that once I make up are not lazy to many things, sure you same people Ior Iourteen years! there? my mind on a goal I can't rest until I put all the eggs in one basket when Then liIe makes you lose contact reach it. Also the team I coordinated doing what interests you, what with them, but whenever I meet any The worst time didn't have much to were very proIessional. I think all oI motivates you. Everyone has a lot oI oI them it is easy to quickly relive do with the Iilm itselI, only because us can Ieel proud oI what we did. values, iI you believe it you will those moments. I remember the we were there on the mountain at the illuminate others with your light. classroom environment ( ... ), I got time. We went with Edurne Pasaban When you saw the documentary Trust yourselI, have conIidence on along with everybody. Since on an expedition oI about thirty finished, what part did you like yourselI and the rest will end up childhood I learned to get along with people. We were going to be two best? loving you (she laughs) . all the people. I think I have always months or so in the Everest, the idea For me chapter 10, the last one. In it tried to see the good in everyone was to reach the top. We recorded Changing the subject a bit, we are we summarize all the work and its around me, and this has allowed me everything that happened on the doing this interview in English. diIIiculties: you have to plan to know people better, to empathize road, at the base camp, ... When she How has it helped you the everything, start the journey there, with everyone. attempted the summit Ior the Iirst knowledge of this language? walk Ior days to reach the base time on day 38 there was much 1ournalists: Maria Ramire:, Laura camp, the attempts to reach the It has helped me a lot, even though I wind. People who tried the climb Rui:, Asier Gracia, Diego Lasa and summit, ... and Iinally, iI you are have not studied it since I leIt high that day were without oxygen and Janessa Olarte lucky, the summit! Initially our idea school (she smiles widely). My Iirst they Iailed because they could not was "come on, lets go there, we proIessional contact with English breathe. They could not reach the record it and everybody feels was when I was working in a sports top and decided to quit. At one point happy. But the best thing was that program Ior Canal. There I had to we heard a group, with 10 Spaniards that was not what happened. I do the coverage oI the NBA, NFL among them, had problems. Juanito realized that the most important part and some other American leagues. Oyarzabal was one oI them. They was the way itselI, more than the Also I had to cover the news Irom had tried to reach the summit oI the summit. I learnt to value how you Wimbledom. Apparently I didn't do Lotse, but they couldn't and had to Iace all the problems you meet, it so bad because they kept hiring withdraw. We got the sad news that more than whether you succeed or me. Then I realized I had to make an while they were descending one oI not. In Iact, in that series, we didn't them was gone and he was probably complete the climb, but I think it did dead. We began to learn that one was not matter. We considered it a great missing, other blind, some other success. We learned a lot, not only with lung problems ... all the Lotse did we all come back, we also team were scattered and lost on the returned as Iriends and whole, what mountain. Our team went to work to more could we ask? Eventually you help as Iar as possible in the rescue realize that reaching your goal is operation. We were awake more great, but also that iI you do not than 48 hours trying to help by succeed that is no reason to say that contacting helicopters, giving everything has gone wrong. I think directions, ... The good news is that that what you learn along the way is two Iriends oI Edurne Iound the boy priceless, and nobody will ever take who was thought dead. They saved it Irom you! him and he is now alive. That was the worst time, we did our best to Which of your productions would save those people. you choose?, which is your favorite? Do you feel proud of what you did on that project? And, how come Look, rather than a production what that most of your productions I would choose are the people I have deal with the mountain? known and the people I have worked with. I Ieel especially in love with all Yes, the result was really nice. My aa