THE TAXI TAKES is a unique global filmmaking experiment that follows the stories of six taxi drivers in post-conflict societies, told by six different filmmakers local to the driver's country. These six stories will be woven together into one collaborative feature documentary that presents diverse voices, and honest interactions that blur political and religious boundaries. By exploring the world through grassroots perspectives, THE TAXI TAKES celebrates the resilience of the human spirit. One taxi ride at a time.
LEARN MORE >Today is definitely a day to have fun! Combining the Irish festival of revelry, Saint Patrick's Day, with the Indian festival of color, Holi, on the same day is epic. So, I thought this would be a great day to show gratitude for those who enabled this project to blossom and thrive so far. To start with, thanks to all… View Full Post
In September 2013 this project reached a milestone. We successfully completed a film festival comprised of taxi videos from all around the globe. Submissions came in from Cairo (Egypt), Kabul (Afghanistan), Tehran (Iran) and Pune and Mumbai (India). Our partners STEP Trust arranged screenings in Kashmir, New Delhi, Chandigarh and Manipur starting on 21st September 2013 in Pulwama, Kashmir… View Full Post
Vandana is a filmmaker based out of Denver, Colorado. Vandana is the creator of The Taxi Takes on Terror, a web video project based on conversations inside taxis between drivers and passengers in Mumbai, India. The films have been screened at several International film festivals, received wide acclaim by the press, and also won the Festival Art deco de Cinema's Best Documentary prize in 2011.
The core idea behind this project is that honest conversations inside taxis - between drivers and their passengers - can be a powerful way to foster greater understanding between people from different backgrounds. The stories that unfold inside taxis are poignant moments of humanity between strangers which mainstream media does not focus on but we think have the power to shift mindsets and hearts. So watching a taxi video from another part of the world can virtually allow you to travel and learn something new about a complete stranger which can be an inspiring and eye-opening experience. People all across the globe have candid interactions inside public taxis and we want to hear them! So we're crowd sourcing, engaging with citizens of the world to create a global interactive collection of taxi videos right here and we need your help.
While our feature film production chugs along, you too can get involved by filming and sending us your own ‘taxi take’. It's really simple: Next time you're riding in a taxi, ask the driver if you can record him/her. Use your smartphone, camcorder, DSLR or anything that has video-recording capability, and have a conversation!
This project has evolved through several incarnations in the past. THE TAXI TAKES ON TERROR, a short web-video project by Vandana was her masters program in Integrated Media Arts at Hunter College, NYC. Vandana started by recording her conversations with South Asian taxi drivers in New York City post 9/11, opening up provocative discussions on terrorism and racial discrimination . In 2008 Mumbai, India was struck by a terrorist attack. Vandana initiated, filmed and moderated talks between drivers and passengers in Mumbai 3 months after the attack. Her work culminated in several short films focusing on different aspects of modern terror. ‘Women and Islam’ is one of the short films which received wide acclaim.
