James has worked in locations as diverse as Mali, Yemen, Burkina Faso, Tajikistan, Madagascar and the UAE on projects for various NGO end clients such as UNODC, the Aga Khan Development Network, The Global Fund and Silatech. A highlight was working as a cameraman and the editor on a series of videos on rice production in Madagascar for Linx Productions / AKDN / PSSDRI.

The videos were shot over a period of three weeks using local farmers as actors, with a goal of using a ‘soap’ like format to inspire the local populace to use more productive farming methods. They were shot in the local dialect, James subtitled the rushes into French (which he speaks fluently) on location with the help of a local translator. The edit was completed in London by James, and DVDs were distributed in country by the NGO.

The videos were a success, and were thought to be the first time something of that type had been filmed in the local Malagash dialect.