2011 WINNER - SONY PROFESSIONAL IMPACT AWARD 

JEZZA NEUMANN (British)
for
Zimbabwe's Forgotten Children
Shot in Zimbabwe, 2009
Funded by BBC, DRG and True Vision Productions
Broadcast by SIC Noticias, Portugal

Scroll down to see an extract from Jezza's entry

This film shows the harsh reality of life for three children - Grace, Esther and Obert - struggling to survive in Robert Mugabe's Zimbabwe.

We see Grace searching in rubbish dumps to find bones to sell; Esther who must care for her baby sister and her mother who is dying of AIDS; and Obert who pans for gold to make money to feed himself and his grandmother knowing he can never earn enough for the education he craves. Although the film was shot mainly undercover Jezza and his team were questioned by security forces twelve times during the shoot.

Viewer response to the film led to enough funds being raised to secure the future of the three children and to a campaign for more widely-available primary education in Zimbabwe.

The judges praised the quality of the camerawork given the difficulties of operating inside Zimbabwe. One said: "The continuity and emotional impact of the narrative in this film is astonishing." 

BIOGRAPHY
Born in Melbourne and schooled in the UK, Jezza Neumann went to a college of Higher Education to study Business studies. He started in the television industry as a runner.  With a passion for stills photography it was a natural transition for him to progress into camera work and after honing his camera skills filming various pilots for development pitches he finally got his break. His first broadcast filming was on Eyes of a Child for BBC. Since then he has filmed on numerous award-winning domestic and overseas productions. In 2008 was nominated for a BAFTA for his camerawork on China’s Stolen Children and received a Rory Peck nomination for his camerawork on Undercover in Tibet.