Offscreen Expedition 2007

The Offscreen Team

Stephen Stapleton, BA, PGCE, 30, is an artist, traveller and educator. He founded the Offscreen Education Programme in 2004 following a one year creative expedition through the Middle East in 2002-2003. He has a PGCE in Art and Design Education from the Institute of Education and currently works part time at the British Museum, coordinating an artist in schools programme for the Arab World Education Department. His role as an expedition artist has taken him to Northern Ethiopia and The Great Plains of North America and led to exhibitions in Amsterdam, Tehran, Muscat, Amman, Oslo, London and New York.

Jamie Buchanan-Dunlop, MA (Oxon), PGCE, FRGS, 30, coordinates Offscreen’s schools programme and is an expeditioner and educator. He has worked on Education and Community Development projects in the Himalaya and currently teaches Citizenship and Geography at a secondary school in Eltham. Jamie is director of iNOMAD, an organisation dedicated to the communication of discovery. He has led expeditions to the Himalayan regions of India, Pakistan and Tibet as well as the Atlas Mountains of Morocco.

Marjan Shirzad, BA, MA, 30, Expedition Logistics Coordinator at Offscreen Education. In 2006, she filmed the Digital Explorer’s youth expedition in Morocco, which used satellite technology to communicate from the Atlas Mountains back to schools in the UK. Raised in Tehran, Paris and New York, Marjan has a degree in Asian Studies-Middle East Concentration from the University of Virginia and an MA in Visual Anthropology from Goldsmiths College, University of London.

Raheel Mohammed, BA, 30, is the Communities and Media officer. Trained as a journalist with a degree in English, Raheel has worked for a number of organisations including Time Out and the BBC, as well as writing on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. He has worked with and continues to be involved with organisations engaged in social policy and multi-faith research and conflict resolution such as the Young Foundation where he is a Research Associate, the Lokahi Foundation and Peace Direct.

Photini Philippidou, BA, is a news journalist and features writer working across a range of regional and national press. She has a BA in English Literature, a post-graduate teaching degree and an NCTJ in journalism. She has worked as diplomatic aid for The Cyprus High Commission as well as for various NGO’s. She currently works as freelance writer for Time Out.

Barny Crocker, 31, expedition filmmaker. He works as a camera assistant on feature films. He became involved with Offscreen in 2005 when he and Stephen made a film at Dagenham Park School in East London. In 2006 he made a film of the Offscreen Nordic challenge, which raised money for the 2007 Student Expedition to Oman and Dubai. He likes gymnastics and falconry.

John D Wells, BA, MSc, 30, has been providing web development services and IT consultation to Offscreen Education since early 2006. Working alongside web designer Ciara Meaney, he built both the Offscreen Programme and Expedition 2007 websites. Originally from the United States, he currently resides in London as an IT Manager for Underscore Design, an established creative agency in the heart of the city.

Ciara Meaney, Ciara Meaney is an Irish graphic designer whose passion is web design. Winning a national competition for SWATCH Watches in 1996 started her on the path to graphic design. She completed a bachelors degree in visual communication in 2001. She began her career in dublin with ebow a design agency working there for 3 years. In 2005 she moved to London and is currently a senior interactive designer for TMW an advertising agency.

Dergham Owainat, BA, 34, is Offscreen director in the Middle East. He is based in Dubai and Beirut and develops Offscreen’s links accross the region. Dergham is a pioneer in cross-cultural projects. He has worked for the United Nations and EMI records where he managed Arab music legend Kadim Al Sahir and Cheb Mami and has executive produced over 50 albums. He is currently working on Offscreen’s 2007 student expedition and collaborating with Offscreen on a new multi-media project www.1000one.org.

Henry Hemming, writer and artist, led the original Off Screen expedition. His first written book, “Misadventure in the Middle East”, a personal account of that same journey, is coming out in March 2007 and is published by Nicholas Brealey Publishing.

Al Braithwaite, MA (Oxon), co-led the original Offscreen expedition and supports the education programme as a web designer and artist. He is currently working on a collaborative art project with Henry Hemming.

Georgie Weedon is a member of the original Offscreen expedition. She joined Al Jazeera in 2004, as the third member of the English language channel launch team where she conceived and developed the flagship daily documentary format Witness. In 2006 she produced and directed the documentary Return to Somalia with Rageh Omaar. She currently acquires documentaries for Al Jazeera English.