WaterAid on the Big Screen

World Water Day, Saturday 22 March 2008, will see the full length debut of the new film by Ali Hobbs, To Begin. The film will be shown on the BBC Big Screens in Liverpool, Derby and Leeds. The film, directed and produced by Ali Hobbs, is a delicate and personal 30-minute film as told by the women from Jarso in Southern Ethiopia.

66% of the rural population in Jarso are still using unsafe water from rivers and ponds, and it is women and girls who are responsible for fetching the water.

The distance to water sources range from 30 minutes to four hours for a round trip, with an additional average wait of 30 to 50 minutes to fill their container. They must then carry the water home - that's over 20 litres on their back at least once a day.

The film shows the physical difficulty of such a walk, while its narrative is punctuated with the voices of the women talking about the hardships of such a journey.

We learn about the loss of friends and families to water-born disease, family difficulties and how the lack of water creates domestic turmoil. We discover children and even babies who are left alone as their mothers walk to fetch water.

The film shows the women and girls as they are, at times happy and playful yet at other times desperate and very worried for their loved ones. It's a personal and intimate illustration of a woman's struggle for a necessity while keeping her family alive.

As well as being shown on the BBC Big Screens, the film is also featured on The Guardian website, as part of a video feature highlighting World Water Day.

To Begin is Ali's second film to focus on water issues in Africa. Her previous film, The Long Walk, followed a women's grueling trek for water in real time.

An exhibition of photographs taken by Ali Hobbs while in Konso will also be shown in Skipton Town Hall, North Yorkshire. For more information about the film and the photographic exhibition please contact Ali by email ali@alihobbs.com or phone 07967 005476.