Ep 29: An Experiment — Using Documentaries to Go Deep Into an Unreached, Unengaged People Group
Episode Description
A few years ago I met a red-haired American named Sarah at the Perspectives 50th anniversary in Chicago, with a baby strapped to her chest. We connected instantly. Turns out she was living in India, married to a Bengali filmmaker with tattoo sleeves who does raids to rescue trafficked children and spends the rest of his time filming secular documentaries in vulnerable communities across India.
In this episode, I'm telling you about an experiment I just ran using one of his newest documentaries. It's called How We Are Tempered and this episode is called Pneumatophores. It takes you inside a Bengali Muslim community in South 24 Parganas, West Bengal, a place with almost no long-term cross-cultural workers and less than 0.1% believers among 3 million people.
I watched all four hours of it in one sitting, and it changed how I think about getting to know a people group before you go. Instead of stats or a one-page profile, this is ethnographic storytelling. You watch real people, in their own homes and community, telling their own story in their own words.
I walk through what I loved about it, including an unforgettable interview with a gunan, a local witch doctor, and what I think we can learn about entering a community with welcome, understanding root causes of systemic issues, and seeing how worldview shapes behavior long before we ever try to bring change.
I also tell you about the Deep Dive Round Table experience I built around this documentary, so you can watch it yourself, gather your team or small group, and work through discussion questions and strategic prayer together.
Resources Mentioned
- The documentary and Deep Dive Round Table experience at jeanniemarieacademy.com/24parganas
- My Afterwards video with my own thoughts and observations after watching, unlocked on that same page
- Create a Deep Dive Round Table. Watch it, gather people, and let's think, pray, and strategize together about what it would take to bring the Kingdom to this district.
What's Next
Next week: Lessons from the life of Joseph, how he engaged with another culture in surprising and insightful ways
Connect with Jeannie Marie
Website: www.jeanniemarieacademy.com
Instagram: @jeanniemmarie
Email: [email protected]
