Today, our Anthropology Summer School / PISU students had the pleasure of welcoming Dr. Janet Reineck to the Ethnographic Filmmaking course.

Dr. Reineck shared stories and reflections from her long and fascinating journey as an anthropologist, humanitarian worker, and filmmaker. She spoke about her fieldwork during the 1980s and 1990s, her humanitarian engagement before the war, and her experiences in Kosova in the recent years.

In recent years, after moving to Kosova, she has been travelling again to many of the places and communities she first encountered decades ago. With her camera, she is now producing weekly ethnographic chronicles about everyday life, social relations, migration, cultural practices, and the many ways in which people preserve, adapt, and pass on their culture.

She also spoke very openly about what it means to work with a camera in the field: how to participate, collaborate, build trust, listen carefully, and remain sensitive to the people and places being filmed.

The students greatly benefited from her experience, stories, and practical advice. Her visit gave them plenty of inspiration as they prepare to create their own short ethnographic chronicles for the course.

Thank you, Dr. Reineck, for such a generous, lively, and inspiring conversation!