Videos

MRA Productions North America distributes the films and videos of FLTfilms in the NTSC and DVD formats for use in North America. To download the latest flyer, please click here. New Release from:

The Imam and the Pastor
Banking on Change

The Imam and the Pastor

This film depicts the reconciliation between Imam Muhammad Ashafa and Pastor James Wuye, and the peace-making initiatives which have flowed from it. The film, narrated by Rageh Omaar, shows that it is possible for the perpetrators of inter-religious violence to become instigators of peace. It is both a story of forgiveness and a case study of grass-root initiatives to rebuild communities torn apart by conflict.

For further information and to view trailers, click here. PRODUCTION TEAM Executive Producer / Second Camera David Channer Producer / Director Alan Channer Assistant Producer Imad Karam Editor Ian Corcoran Assistant Editor Dana Kahil Trometer Director/Camera - Yelwa Shendam unit Philip Carr, Cloudburst Media Ltd. Technical Consultant Eric Trometer Production Advisors Musa Aliyu Amina Dikedi Canon Ben Enwuchola Dr Christiania Whitehead Mary Winstanley Channer The Imam & the Pastor DVD (40 minutes, in English) FOR NORTH AMERICA ORDER BY: tel: +1 (604) 560 9667 or Email For personal use NTSC $25.00 (excl. p&p) Non profit NTSC $60.00 (excl. p&p) Institutional / Educational use NTSC $200.00 (excl. p&p)

Banking on Change

With a briefcase and a motorcycle, a banker in India gets poor communities on their feet—and, in the process, blurs the lines between finance and community organizing.

Click here to watch the 3 minute video

J. S. Parthiban might be the only banker whose office comes equipped with a kickstand. A native of Tamil Nadu, India's southernmost state, Parthiban makes microloans to local communities, all from the back of his small, black Hero Honda motorcycle.   

Microcredit, an approach to poverty alleviation that's seen significant success in India, Bangladesh, and elsewhere, involves making small loans to people—mainly women—who have no access to traditional credit so they may start local businesses. Microcredit's success is tied, in part, to its emphasis on community, cooperation, and person-to-person relationships, all keys to vibrant local economies.

"When you begin a new venture, don't think only of yourself and your family. It should benefit the community, the village, and the entire surroundings," says Parthiban, whose work shows that community-based banking has little in common with the risky financial speculation that contributed to the current recession. 

To Parthiban, solving problems, including economic ones, is ultimately about cultivating healthy communities. Changing broken systems is important, he agrees, but the real work is with people: "If you help them change their attitude toward life—what they are doing, why they are doing, how they can be—if you can help them find an answer to all these things, I think we have found an answer to all the big headlines in the newspapers."

This article first appeared in Yes! magazine on 18 March 2010.

The DVD can be ordered for $5.00 + p&p from MRA Productions or tel: 604 560 9667.