Request for Consultancy Services for Video Documentary for VSF Project Under the DFATD Grant for Upper Nile State, Maban County, South Sudan

Project Title	VSF ‘Emergency Livelihood Asset Protection and Food Security Initiative in Maban, Upper Nile, South Sudan’
Donor	Government of Canada (Dept.  Foreign Affairs, Trade, and Development)
Implementing Partner	VSF-Canada in partnership with VSF Germany
Grant Contract No.	M-013883

                                               

About VWB

Veterinarians without Borders/Vétérinaires sans Frontières – Canada (VSF-Canada) is a charitable organization whose mission is to work for, and with, communities in need to foster the health of animals, people, and the environments that sustain us. Established in 2005, VWB/VSF works consistently with local partners to address the needs of vulnerable communities in developing countries, as well as in remote areas of Canada. VSF-Canada is partnering with VSF-Germany to help women, children and their families among the refugees to protect their livestock assets, increase their access to food, reduction of conflicts and build on their resilience towards disasters.

VSF Germanyis an International NGO supporting humanitarian and development interventions, with extensive experience in East Africa, having implemented since 2001 in the region food security and livelihoods projects – mostly with a focus on livestock related livelihood interventions. With its regional office in Nairobi, Kenya, all field staff for this project is field based in Maban County, Upper Nile State.

Purpose of the Consultancy

VSF is seeking a communications professional (professional photographer and videographer) who has expertise in electronic media and video editing. The purpose of this consultancy service is to undertake theproduction of short documentary film to visually monitor, evaluate and promote the implementation of the VSF Emergency Livelihood Asset Protection and Food Security Initiative project in Maban, Upper Nile, South Sudan.

Introduction and Background

VSF-Canada is implementing through VSF-Germany a one-year humanitarian relief program, funded 90% by the IHA Directorate of the former Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), now ‘Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada (DFATD)’. The project is meant to support the most vulnerable, livestock dependent men and women among the refugees and host communities in Maban County, Upper Nile State, South Sudan. As per original proposal, the project targets directly 110,000 registered refugees within the established camps and 45,000 among the host communities in Maban County. The Project officially started on the 16^th April 2013 and it is scheduled to be completed by the end of August 2014.

Project thematic areas, aims and objectives

The overall objective (Ultimate Outcome) of the project is ensuring that the basic food security needs are met for vulnerable women and men in refugee and host communities in Maban Country, Upper Nile State, South Sudan and their resilience to withstand future shocks is increased.

The specific purposes (Intermediate Outcomes) of the Project are to ensure that vulnerable women and men in refugee and host communities have improved immediate access to food and non-food items through targeted support as well as having increased resilience to future shocks through rebuilding, protecting and strengthening their livelihoods and improved natural resource management

The major programmatic areas and themes related to the project are:

i.         Animal health support;

ii.       Improved household income, nutrition and diet diversification; and

iii.      Natural Resource Management

Overall Purpose and Objectives of the Consultancy

The overall objective of this assignment is to produce two (2) versions of a videodocumentary, explaining the project purpose, highlighting how the approach was conceived, how it has executed, its merits and lessons learned. The main version should be approximately 5 minutes of video, while a shorter version should be only 1-2 minutes.

The Product(s) have the following key objectives:

1.      To tell success stories/best practicesfrom VSF animal health/food securityintervention in fragile environments;

2.      To highlight the interconnected relationship between people and animals;

3.      To serve as a live monitoring document to capture beneficiaries/community members’ perception of the work done and their perspectives, covering also short and gripping personal stories of the Staff working in the field as well as the beneficiaries targeted by the project; and

4.      To promote the initiative and the approach applied by VSF in its present and future food security related emergency projects.

Scope of work of the Consultancy

Scope of Work is to capture voices and images of beneficiaries in Maban Refugee Camps and among the host communities - to show what the real situation is on the ground, what support has been received and what more is needed. Hopefully, the lessons captured will influence current and future programming in South Sudan areas where refugees seek assistance and support.

The scope of work specifically will entail the following key points:

a. Tell success stories.

Selected success stories should beidentified and captured, in which the followings should be mentioned/answered but notlimited to context and beneficiaries’ livelihoods

b. Monitoring document

The Product(s) should serve as a monitoring documentarythat captures the different/difficult steps to achieve success, and shows the audience how the project brings positive change to the lives of the refugees and how challenges are overcome.

c. Promote approaches of VSF

The Product(s) should be able to engage the audiencethrough interesting stories and at the same time, highlight the approaches applied, making it convincing enough to be an advocacy tool to otherstakeholders, either for replication or policy improvement purposes.

Principles and Guidelines

The Consultant will:

·         Work in close collaboration with VSF from the planning stage to ensure thatmessages for and from The Product(s) are well understood, taken and implementedproperly.

·         Liaise with the VSF program officer and designated individuals of VSF-G implementing project on all content in order to ensure accuracy and endorsement.

·         Produce films based mostly on interventions/interviews with beneficiaries including poor people and minority ethnic groups andwomen, and partly with implementing and co-operating partners, and VSF.

·         The Product(s) available in English and Arabic (South Sudanese) version, if feasible (or with sub-title for one of the two) in broadcast quality DVD and in other appropriate formats that enables the films to be uploaded to VSF’s, donor’s and implementing partners’ websites, YouTube, or other social media platforms.

·         Translate the voice recordings in Arabic/South Sudanese into English, usingboth a voice over (overriding narrative) and English subtitles

·         Prepare printed transcripts of the narratives of the 2 videos.

·         Submit all raw materials collected during the filming for any possible future production initiated by VSF

Target audience

·         General public accessing the web, with focus on public audiences in Eastern Africa and in Canada.

·         Development partners including Donors, NGOs and organizations working in livelihood improvement in general and in livestock health and food security/emergency support

·         Other partners/stakeholders such as government agencies including public service delivery and public administration agencies

Deliverables

1. Five (5) and Two (2) minute videos in HD:

·         5 and 2 minutes HD clips in Sudanese with English subtitles in DVD formats

·         Video shooting and editing – interviews/box pops of approx. 10 beneficiary households

·         Draft script development, narration and translation

·         Digital formats of each version of finalized film for online use

·         Provide at least 10 copies of the Product(s) on professional labelled and packed DVD. The label design must be approved by VSF.

·         All B roll footage

2. High quality/High resolution photographs:

·         High-quality and high-resolution, edited and captioned pictures from VSF project delivered on CD

·         Pictures of 10 selected beneficiaries including the following information: name, age, where they live, and what they do on a daily basis

·         Pictures of the landscape, infrastructure and surroundings

Qualifications and competencies required

·         The Consultant (individual(s), organization, or a TV production company) should have extensive experience in producing public information video films or TV programs, experience in editing documentaries, videos and radio productions.

·         Preferably, experience producing short videos for NGOs or for organizations with a focus on international development (preferably in Eastern Africa)

·         Excellent videography and photography skills

·         Relevant experience in video production/editing ideally developing human interest stories for video

·         Excellent technical capacities to ensure smooth and high quality production (videoproduction staff, owner of its own video production equipment/studio etc.).

·         Excellent planning and organizational skills.

·         Working experience in South Sudan and insecure environments is desirable.

The consultant will be expected to present samples of their previous work of a similar nature with their technical proposals.

Reporting

·         The consultant will work closely with the VSF-Canada Project Officer and VSF-G Project Manager.

·         All reports and draft documents/resources will be submitted to the VSF-Canada Project Officer and VSF-G Project Manager within dates stipulated in the work-plan.

·         The consultant will avail a first cut of the documentary on DVD for comments by VSF-Canada and its implementing partners.

·         The Finalized draft documentary for VSF-Canada for clearance, shall be delivered at most 5 working days from receipt of initial VSF comments.

Plan of work and Security issues

·         It is anticipated that the consultancy will be undertaken in full agreement with VSF-Canada and its implementing partner, VSF-G. The consultancy time-frame will have to be agreed in line with the ongoing security conditions and updates from the field, in order to guarantee the highest level of security for both Project field staff and consultant team.

·         The consultancy will be carried out tentatively between June and July 2014.

·         The short-listed Consultants areexpected to present a detailed work plan toVSF, which, should the Consultant win the bid, will be discussed with VSF and refined to form part of the contract.

·         The Consultant should propose the exact number of field trips for filming and period for filming.

·         All filming should take place in South Sudan locations only.

Duration

The consultancy will entail approximately 4 days of fieldwork days of photography and shooting, (excluding preparation, travels and editing days, to be agreed wit the consultant). All travel, accommodation and meal expenses will be covered by VSF at rates listed in contract.

Location of the Evaluation

The survey will take place in the project's target area in Maban County, Upper Nile State, South Sudan

Ownership

The edited documentary films as well as all footage filmed for this assignment is the soleproperty of VSF-Canada. The selected Consultant’s name and logo shall only be acknowledged inthe closing credit.

Assistance to the Consultant by the Contracting Authority (VWB)

The Contracting Authority, with support from the implementing agency VSF-G, will make available the following information and facilities to the Consultant:

·         Relevant reports, documents, maps, data at contracting authorities disposal, namely:

-        The approved project proposal document

-        Project Reports, including financial information

-        Baseline Survey Report

·         Office space, furniture, access to printing facilities in the field;

·         The use of partner project vehicles and drivers during field work in South Sudan;

·         Arranging for various meetings in the field (Consultant to make advance request);

·         Counterpart staff for necessary support in the field;

Guidelines for submission of proposals

Interested candidates for this role are required to submit an application that includes:

·         CV and two references

·         Samples of recent work: Online portfolios and links to video work are preferred.

·         Technical proposal on how they intent to carry out the assignment

·         Timetable that shows the number of days needed and activities and cost per day (Time for filming and Financial proposals)

At least three (3) short-listed candidates will be invited to present their ideas to VWB/VSF

Deadline for Applications:

8^th July 2014

Notes:

·         Please DO NOT send original documents and/or heavy attachments beside the CVs

·         Additional information will be required only in case of pre-selection and short-listing.

·         Only those short-listed will be contacted for an Interview

How to apply:

CVs & Cover Letters only to be sent to mauro@vetswithoutborders.ca

Due to the urgency of the assignment, the applications will be assessed as they are received.