Talkin' Water

“It’s one thing for someone to see something and walk away; it’s another thing for them to want to have a conversation. That’s what I want – I want that conversation.”
- Suprena Henderson, age 17, subject of Talkin’ Water

The Story

Talkin' Water is the inspirational story of four African American teenage girls and their journey to make a positive film about post-Katrina New Orleans.

Disillusioned by the media coverage of Hurricane Katrina, Suprena and Sade, from NYC, and Briceshanay and Rodneka, from New Orleans, come together for an intense summer to make their own movie, Not As Seen On TV.

As returning residents share stories and wisdom with the girls in front of the camera, the young filmmakers begin to explore their own thoughts on issues of race, class, government, and what it means to grow up in chaotic times. Touring the worst of the city's devastation leads them to discover both the importance of asking questions and the power of their own voices.

Talkin' Water documents the girls, their filmmaking process, and the views that gradually emerge for them from the experience: that wounds can heal, that hope and community can survive the storm, and that no matter how small we may feel, each of us can make a difference.

The Girls

Briceshanay, Rodneka, Sade, and Suprena are the young stars featured in Talkin' Water, and the co-directors and -producers of their own film, Not As Seen on TV. Their wit, honesty, passion and determination remain an inspiration to the adult filmmakers with whom they have so candidly shared their stories.

Briceshanay (New Orleans)
“No child left behind? What about no city left behind? What about no race better than the other?”

Briceshanay is angry. Hurricane Katrina and the levees breaking turned her world upside down. Briceshanay seizes the opportunity to work on Not As Seen On TV as a chance to deal with her feelings of having to grow up too fast, and to use the arts as a way to heal.

Rodneka (New Orleans)
"It's all in plain-eyes view - you just got to see it. You gotta face it."

Hurricane Katrina left a year-long hole in Rodneka’s life. Many of her friends have never returned to the city. Her childhood home was destroyed. After the hurricane, Rodneka had her first personal experience with the news media, and felt like she was used. Rodneka enters the project skeptical but determined not to let Katrina or the media take away her voice.

Suprena (New York City)
“When you have a camera in your hands you’re more powerful."

Suprena hits the ground running in New Orleans, determined to find answers. After exploring the Lower 9th Ward and seeing the destruction still present one year after the hurricane, she turns to City Hall for answers. As the journey progresses Suprena comes to realize her own power as an individual.

Sade (New York City)
“I’m living in this same country. I’m living in this same world and it hurts me too.”

Sade experienced Hurricane Katrina through her television and is light-hearted about the project at the start of the trip. As work begins on Not As Seen On TV, and Sade experiences post-Katrina New Orleans firsthand, the project changes from an assignment into something much more personal.