Naomi Angel has worked in South Africa, Japan, Australia and Canada as a producer, journalist and marketing officer in the non-profit sector. She holds a BA in Psychology from the University of British Columbia and completed her MA in Media Studies at Concordia University. Her MA thesis focused on race and representation in the media, highlighting mixed-race representation in film. Her more recent research focuses on cultural memory and the processes of memorialization. She is currently a third-year doctoral student in the Department of Media, Culture, and Communication at New York University.
In particular, Naomi is interested in the ways in which Truth Commissions speak to issues of historical responsibility, allowing for memory to rectify some of the intentional absences of history. There have been dozens of Truth Commissions implemented around the world as a way to deal with transitional justice. Naomi plans to closely watch the development of the Canadian Truth And Reconciliation Commission as a contemporary example where discourses of human rights, cultural memory and the project of nation-building are illuminated.
Past Projects:
Project Manager - Independent Production Fund (IPF)
The IPF is a not-for-profit organization that administers funds to support and promote the Canadian television industry.
Managing Editor – Capitalmag.ca
Capitalmag.ca is an online arts and culture magazine focusing on film, politics and art. For each issue, a guest editor is invited in to curate an eclectic selection of articles and art called “Mash.” The magazine is currently on hiatus but back issues can be found at www.capitalmag.ca.
Associate Producer - Brocket 99 – Rockin’ the Country
Brocket 99 – Rockin’ the Country is a feature documentary film that focused on issues of humour, race, Aboriginal history and discrimination in Canada. The film has been screened around the world including: the Need2Know Film Series in Caracas, Venezuala (2006), the First People’s Festival in Montreal (2006), and the Arizona International Film Festival (2007).
Marketing Officer - Fair Trade and Tourism South Africa (FTTSA)
Fair Trade in Tourism South Africa is a non-profit organization that promotes equitable business practices and respect for human rights, diverse cultures and the environment through responsible tourist practices.
January 28, 2009 at 2:42 pm
Dear Ms. Angel,
Thank you for lifting up these issues through your website. While doing research and writing on the South African TRC in 1998-2001 I became increasingly fixed on issues of memory and reconciliation. In particular I was struck by the parallels between the US — especially our own Trail of Tears — and SA’s history going back beyond the Great Trek and Battle of Blood River. In order to get at these issues, however, I felt that the academic and “objective” perspective of most historical and ethical work had profound limits. My struggle with this problem led to writing a work of historical fiction exploring both the globalist dimensions of memory and its embeddedness in ecological struggles for reconciliation. The book, Red Clay, Blood River, appeared last year. (Information available at http://www.redclaybloodriver.com.) South African writers like Antjie Krog and Zakes Mda have influenced such a move. Do you know of others in fiction work who are trying to et at these issues in a deliberate manner? What, indeed, is your view of the role of fiction (or historical fiction) in helping us get at the issues of memory and reconciliation?
Thanks for any help you can give.
William J. Everett
PS. Your site is very elegant, but my old eyes have great difficulty reading white on black. Any change to the usual black on white would be appreciated!
January 31, 2009 at 8:01 pm
Thank you for your comments, Mr. Everett.
Your book sounds very interesting. I think that historical fiction can play a very important role in dealing with issues of reconciliation, transitional justice and memory. It allows for a way to deal with the emotional as well as social, cultural and cognitive responses to past collective traumas. It can also help to draw connections between events that may seem disparate but share unusual similarities. Historical fiction may also allow the general public to become aware of an event that they may not have otherwise. A book called, “Memory” for example, written by Phillipe Gambert deals with some of these issues. The book is based on his childhood in France, growing up with parents who survived the Holocaust. At the back of the book, there is an interesting Q and A with the author where he discusses his approach to writing in relation to both memory and history. I’m guessing you are familiar with J.M. Coetzee’s work as well, but if not, his writing on post-Apartheid South Africa is also pertinent. If I think of any others, I’ll post more information about them.
As for the white text on the black background, I’ll see what I can do. It’s the default setting for this template, so it may be hard to change without changing the overall design.
Thank you again for your post. I look forward to checking out your book.
Naomi Angel
May 1, 2009 at 3:00 am
Great new look! Really clean. Are you presenting your work anytime soon? Are any of your presentation available anywhere online? Youtube?
March 11, 2010 at 7:54 pm
very interesting articles Naomi, I didn’t know you write professionally!