Perspective on journalism: Hossam Aboul-Magd
Courtesy: Hossam Aboul-Magd, used with permission.
Hossam Aboul-Magd is an award-winning filmmaker, director and director of photography based in Washington, D.C. Aboul-Magd has made films for National Geographic, Discovery, History, BBC, and CNN, among others. He started his own production company, Soura Films, in 2007 producing documentaries and TV shows in the United States, Europe, Africa and Asia.
April interviewed Aboul-Magd in 2018 about a variety of topics including:
How he got started
Lessons he’s learned
Memorable story (and an ethical lesson)
Journalism as history
On assignment (post 9/11)
Pro tips (including knowing your gear, thinking differently and video storytelling)
““I see a lot of other people in the business, but they haven’t really studied camerawork or editing. It’s something you can pick up easily these days, especially with the technology, but I was lucky enough that I was taught properly.””
Here, Aboul-Magd describes how he got started in journalism.
Hossam Aboul-Magd filming the Great Sphinx in Egypt. Courtesy: Hossam Aboul-Magd, used with permission.
““. . . [T]he story comes first. No matter what your job is, whether you’re behind the camera, whether you are the editor, correspondent, producer, the story is the most important part of the job.”
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Aboul-Magd shares a few of the most important things he's learned about working as a journalist.
““I’ll never forget that half hour. I’ve filmed all over the world, [in] more than 50 countries, tons of news stories and documentaries. But somehow that half hour, it was so emotional.””
In this clip he describes a memorable story that reminded him of his personal ethical code. A preview of the documentary is below.
““You’re telling history.””
Next, Aboul-Magd talks about journalism’s role in recording history.
““After 9/11 flying was a nightmare because every flight they would come up to me and say, ‘sir, you have been randomly selected.’”
”He said ‘listen, for the rest of your life, with this name, we’re going to have to randomly [select you.]’” ”
Aboul-Magd shares his experiences as an Arab man working on assignment around the world after 9/11. You will hear him mention Pelican cases, which are used for shipping and carrying sensitive and expensive gear.
““It’s very important to know how to edit, because you can shoot as many hours as you want and go back to the edit room and you have nothing. You don’t have a sequence.””
In the following clips, Aboul-Magd shares some professional tips on video storytelling, knowing your gear and thinking differently.