Meri Markham takes us on a journey with Jenifer Baing Waiko. Her father is from Markham valley and her mother is from New Zealand. The film describes Jenifer’s return to her community as a woman that has been educated oversees but has not forgotten her roots and making a commitment to her people in Markham. Meri Markham follows her journey to stand for the 2012 Markham Open election.

Director Klinit Barry

Klinit comes from a background in administration. She is currently the Administrative Officer for Centre for Social and Creative Media at the University of Goroka. Her interest in filmmaking began during a Yumi Piksa workshop at the University of Goroka in 2009. She later joined a team in 2010 on the set of the Kommuniti Tok Piksa project working as the Project Administrator and community liaison person. Klinit also trained as an editor/director during this project. The Meri Markham film is the first film she directed herself.

Director’s Statement

It was really a great challenge and a good experience for me. I learnt a lot whilst directing the movie in terms of planning the shoot, interviews and monitoring the whole production. It was important for me to tell Jennifer’s story well because as a young emerging young leader she is still exploring numerous directions in which she can help her people and she is clearly passionate about her people and her land. Despite being well educated overseas with numerous job experiences in PNG and abroad, she returns to her village and dedicates herself to improving the livelihoods of her people with the knowledge she has. I enjoyed this experience as a Director and I hope this film inspires young educated Papua New Guinean women to embrace their heritage.