Maral Shafafy | Prince William Scholarship

Maral Shafafy | Prince William Scholarship

Maral Shafafy, 29 years old, from South London is awarded the Prince William scholarship of £10,450 towards her MA in TV Journalism at Goldsmiths, University of London. Maral is being mentored by John Domokos.

Being self-taught, I really look forward to receiving guidance through the mentorship scheme

Maral has been developing a voice in journalism and women’s rights for the last 5 years. After graduating from her bachelor’s degree in Law with French, she moved to Buenos Aires where she reported on the first ever women’s strike for gender justice and conducted ethnographic research in the informal settlements of the city. While writing her master’s thesis in International Development Studies, she discovered film-making almost by accident after a group of grass-roots activists asked her to document their struggle to eradicate gender violence in their community. Since then, she's created short documentaries and multimedia articles in Lesvos and London. Her discovery of film-making and photography continues to the present day. Inspired by the grass-roots and gritty work of John Domokos and Rineke Dijkestra, she wants to become a video journalist and documentary film-maker with an honest and raw approach and to change the boundaries of the way we see journalism and art. 

Maral said: "I’m really proud to receive the recognition of an institution as prestigious as BAFTA. This scholarship gives me the opportunity to finally gain the training I’ve been yearning to hone my craft as a video journalist and documentary film-maker. Being self-taught, I really look forward to receiving guidance through the mentorship scheme to help me develop as a professional."