Video.

Risky Business: Cerro Rico

Business Insider

Known as “The Mountain That Eats Men”, Bolivia’s Cerro Rico once filled the coffers of the Spanish Empire with silver, so much so that the city of Potosí was once as celebrated as Paris and London. I traveled to this famous mine to film the day-to-day life of one of the thousands of indigenous miners who struggle to survive scraping the last of this now-collapsing mountain’s minerals to earn an eager income.

Parker’s Trail Season 6

Discovery Channel/RAW TV/Tambo Film

As a cast member of the wildly popular reality show Gold Rush, Parker Schnabel is one of the world’s most famous gold miners. As the series local producer, I location scouted, developed stories, and managed a massive 6-week production for Parker’s own reality series, visiting and working in various gold mines across Bolivia.

Welcome to Earth – Uyuni Salt Flats

National Geographic/Tambo Film

With an international crew deploying high-tech production equipment for astrophotography and capturing celestial hyperlapse images, I was the local producer/fixer for a week of nighttime shoots in Bolivia’s Salar de Uyuni. Representing my partners at Tambo Film in Lima, Peru, I made sure all permits, logistics, and accommodations were in order and assisted in the very complex - and very cold - production process.

So Expensive: Quinoa Real

Business Insider

Quinoa has won the world over as one of the most widely consumed “superfoods” stocking high-end grocery shelves all over the world. I traveled across the altiplano near the Salar de Uyuni to show the reality of this commodity boom in Bolivia, the birthplace and heartland of the sought after Quinoa Real.

El Señor de Las Papas

AJ+ Español

I was sent to a remote corner of Peru’s Sacred Valley to capture the story of Julio Hancco Mamani, a Quechua farmer who grows 400 native varieties of potatoes. Telling the story of his life’s work, and spending time with his amazing family, will have a long-lasting impression on me, and will always be a reminder of why I do the work I do.

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Sequía, Helada y Cambio Climático

Agence France-Presse

Bolivia is facing various crisis as a result of global climate change, as extreme and unpredictable weather patterns have affected agricultural production across this country. I produced, reported, and shot this news story where farmers on the Altiplano explain their experiences of crop failure, and the desperate search for solutions.

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The Vanishing Aymara Potato Tradition

OZY

For centuries, farmers in Bolivia have used a natural freeze-drying process to make chuño, a dehydrated potato that allows them to store this important food staple for years and years, protecting against years of bad harvests. As the producer, director, and cinematographer of this documentary, I told the story of Humberto Limachi, a farmer who explains how climate change is preventing him from carrying on with this ancient tradition, threatening the food security of his family and his community.

Bolivia’s Psychedelic Dream Homes

New York Times Daily 360

I produced this piece about the innovative work of Freddy Mamani and his famous New Andean Architecture, a style that is becoming more and more prevalent in the city of El Alto. Working alongside NYC-based cinematographer Aaron Fedor, I also provided 360-degree footage for the piece, featured in the New York Times’ Daily 360 segment. 

The lessons for Canada from the Pope’s apology in Bolivia

CBC/The National

I was contacted by producers from The National, the flagship nightly new program of the Canadian Broadcasting Company, to produce the Bolivian side of a story regarding the Pope’s complicated relationships with indigenous communities. I sourced subjects and locations on behalf of the CBC and made sure they had the interviews and images they needed to tell their story.

Nación Marica

AJ+ Español

As part of a broader series of videos by journalists from all over Latin America, I filmed this story about two young Bolivian homosexuals who are claiming their complex identities as sources of pride.

Colombia: Rebuilding lives and businesses in post-conflict rural areas

International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD)

I traveled to Colombia’s Norte de Santander region, where violent political groups and drug traffickers too often put the lives of local farmers at risk. Accompanied by agricultural officials, I was there to document efforts to provide stable, healthy livelihoods for farmers in this conflict-ridden area. I produced, directed, shot, wrote, and edited this and other videos about these efforts.

La coca mata a las abejas de Bolivia

EuroNews / Agence France-Presse

My news report on the effects of pesticide use on local bee populations in Bolivian coca country garnered national and international attention. Even local coca farmers recognized the problem, and publicly promised to address the issue.

The Refugee Journey

Zakat Foundation

Working with Minneapolis-based filmmaker Cully Gallagher, I traveled to Kenya as the DP for a variety of documentary projects, including this educational video on refugees. I shot all the segments and interviews in Africa, including in hidden safehouses in Nairobi and the Kakuma Refugee Camp.

Este Boliviano Construye Robots Con Basura

AJ+ Español

I produced and shot this award-winning video on Esteban Quispe, the genius from the Bolivian countryside who builds robots out of trash. The first video published about Esteban outside of Bolivia, both Spanish and English versions have gone viral, to date collectively boasting more than 22 million views.

Integración Local de Refugiados en Bolivia

UNHCR - The UN Refugee Agency

I worked with the UNHCR-ACNUR office in Buenos Aires to shoot a series of profiles of refugees living in Bolivia.

Center for Ecological Agriculture (CEA)

Mano a Mano

I shot and edited this video about Mano a Mano’s Center for Ecological Agriculture and it’s work in developing much-needed skills for Bolivian farmers facing climate change.

UAC-CP graduate Emilio Mamani Villca: Coffee consultant

Carmen Pampa Fund

Unidad Académica Campesina-Carmen Pampa is a rural university in the coca growing region of Nor Yungas. It is also where I first fell in love with Bolivia as a volunteer in 2008. I do multimedia projects with the Carmen Pampa Fund, Minnesota-based organisation that supports the school.

Windows Azure: The Tribune Company

Viewstream

I produced, directed and wrote this award-winning video for Viewstream, a leading digital agency in San Francisco, CA. It is just one of many projects I coordinated with Microsoft, one of Viewstream’s flagship clients.

©2024 WILLIAM WROBLEWSKI 

All Rights Reserved 

  william@williamwroblewski.com 

 La Paz,  Bolivia