VERONIQUE ENGEL

Film Director

Wata Dawtas

DOCUMENTARY

Wata Dawtas

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IN POST-PRODUCTION 

Wata Dawtas (Water Daughters) 
Feature doc - 70 minutes
Grants: Fulbright Scholarship, Prins Bernhard Cultuurfonds, VandenEnde Foundation, SocDoc Thesis Grant, SVA Alumni Award. 

My role: Director, DOP, Producer & Editor

Ketana (10), relentlessly bullied because of a physical disability and devastated by the absence of her mother, longs for love and acceptance. Jamaica’s first 5-band synchronized swimming team is her salvation. High atop the hills of picturesque Port Antonio, led by their Olympic gold-winning Russian coach Olga, the young Jamaican girls swim for stakes higher than medals - their lives. 

2017 - 2020

DOCUMENTARY

DOCUMENTARY

DOCUMENTARY

What drives me in documentary filmmaking is my desire to connect with people, explore their worlds and create intimate, visually beautiful records of worlds that others might see as insignificant, but I see as extraordinary. The choice between fiction and non-fiction filmmaking for me is easy. Non-fiction storytelling allows me to immerse myself in people’s realities, which are in my opinion infinitely more interesting than any story I could possibly write. 

It also provides a vehicle for exploring social issues and enacting real change in society. I enjoy living and working closely with my subjects over several years, learning in-depth about their identities, their interests, and what motivates them. The challenge of reflecting these things and any transformations they might go through on screen is something I relish.