Auntie Meta Spotlight: Reshma Kirpalani

Update: You can watch the series here

I promised my newsletter subscribers that I'd be featuring people who are doing incredible things on my blog. They got a sneak peek of our first Auntie Meta Spotlight. This is the full interview with visual journalist Reshma Kirpalani about a new video series launching this week on the coronavirus pandemic.

The project

Auntie Meta: So you have a five-part video series coming out for the Miami Herald called "Inside the COVID Unit" on Thursday. In it, you follow doctors inside and outside a hospital in Miami-Dade just as it’s starting to become clear just how serious the coronavirus is and the toll it might take. How did this project come about?

Reshma: Right before the national shutdown, I was working on a project where I did interviews with sick veterans in the panhandle of Florida. I knew more businesses were shutting down and travel was being restricted due to the virus but on my last day of shooting I tried to go to a Starbucks and found it had closed. There was no dining in and that’s when it really hit me, “oh, this is serious.” Because, you know, it’s a Starbucks. Also, when you’re working on a documentary you need coffee to keep you going. So, this closing got me thinking that possibly one of our Florida newsrooms might need help, so I contacted my supervisor and it turned out the Miami Herald did need help covering some COVID-19 stories.

From there, Reshma was asked if she would help cover some stories and if she had any ideas for others, but she had no sources to start with. Though she’d graduated from the University of Miami she hadn’t reported there before. She’d spent most of her visual journalism career in Austin, Texas and was living in Washington, D.C at the time. Reshma found herself working on a variety of angles: protests against coronavirus restrictions, cruise ship deaths, the small business battles over what was essential vs. non-essential, etc. But it was a feature she did about a woman fighting duel battles of the coronavirus pandemic and the opioid epidemic that she submitted to Jackson Health when she requested access to that hospital system.

How she gained access

Though you were hearing on national television that it was straining hospitals and sources, “you weren't really seeing it at that point,” says Reshma. With some social media sleuthing she was able to reach the head of communications of Jackson South Medical Center, show her previous work and gain access to doctors, nurses and families in April 2020 - a critical point in the pandemic.

Reshma: This smaller community hospital wasn't being overwhelmed the way some others were at the time but it did get stretched much like others later, and we had to extend the project.

I was lucky that the doctor, Andrew, I first approached understood the story I was trying to tell, and he was great about being open. And he was funny. He'd just become the medical director of the ICU a month before I started filming, and found himself leading a newly formed team through an unprecedented health crisis.

He was also the one who actually told me about another person who is featured in the series. That person became the heart of the story really. He goes through the ringer. And without giving anything away, he was the right person to tell that story.

Dealing with the tough stuff

Auntie Meta: So with all of this, the stress levels of everyone had to be high. They were going through an unprecedented situation. How did you compassionately ask someone to talk to you when they've experienced all of this?

Reshma: It was extremely difficult but I think at the outset you have to find people who understand what you're trying to do, and who are on board with that process. In any documentary filming you'll have moments where people are fatigued and don't want to talk or share that day.

But you also have to remember that respect is a huge thing. And that even though you're a journalist capturing these moments you have to bring your humanity to every story you tell. You can't leave that behind.

It's fine line because you're a journalist and there are boundaries you need to maintain but when they're going through a hard time you empathize genuinely.

I was aware they were saving lives and I'd be asking them to let me ask them questions on Zoom when they were tired. And that I was going to have to ask them about these painful things. But they showed up. I lucked out.

The long haul

And what was supposed to be a two month project stretched into a year.

Auntie Meta: What do you hope that people get out of this?

Reshma: My entire goal going in was to create understanding and give information about what was happening in the area, and really, also what was really happening during the pandemic.

When I first focused on Jackson South instead of Main people were surprised because I wanted to tell what COVID really looked like and they thought I'd go for a bigger hospital. I knew you could still see that from a smaller hospital, and what it was like for them to battle a virus they knew nothing about... I really wanted people to know that hospitals didn't have to be overrun like we were seeing at that point in New York to be affecting people's lives on a daily basis.

Auntie Meta: And of course, you did start seeing some of that...

Reshma: Yeah, the story grew longer and longer... I didn't think Miami was going to become the next epicenter like it did in the summer. The hospitals were truly overwhelmed.

It was interesting to go through the learning process with them. I'm learning things as they are learning things... I had to stay on top of the updates in the world while I'm documenting this, and I'm wearing a mask and gloves the whole time. Many of these people had never seen my full face before in person.. Andrew got to see my face through a Zoom interview. I'm not sure Julio or Ms. Washington have ever seen my face, and it's hard enough to gain trust WHEN people can see your face.

But luckily, we still got to see what it looked like in the unit, their houses, and inside their hearts. Each had their own reasons to stick with it, and wanting to show it was real.

One thing I hope people come away with how resilient these health care workers are and how we all are.

How she's coping (after 16 hour filming days and editing 8 months of footage in 3 months):

Reshma: The days were so long but one of the things that really kept me going was, I’d think about how exhausted [the subjects of the documentary] must be. There was no one who wasn’t tired. I knew that if they could push through all they were facing, I needed to push myself to complete this project.

Auntie Meta: How’d you get through it? How’d you decompress and maintain your sanity?

Reshma: Now that I’m editing I do go out walking. When I was filming I’d come in, I’ve been living with my sister, throw my clothes in the laundry, take a shower, log footage and then pass out. But I’d also say that staying in contact with my friends and my support system really got me through it. I was changing cities too, going from D.C. to Miami and had to work out remotely moving all my stuff into storage in Maryland. So I was stressed about that as well as all the usual coronavirus concerns. Oh, and I watch murder mystery TV shows with my sister, so that’s been fun.

What lies ahead

Auntie Meta: So what’s the first thing you’re going to do after this project is wrapped up? Reshma: Possibly just take a couple of weeks to sleep. *laughs* I don’t want to make any big moves while I’m sleep deprived.

Reshma is parting ways with McClatchy next month but will continue to devote time to visual projects.

Reshma: I loved reporting in Miami! I liked the communities and the people I met while filming. It was so nice to be back in South Florida after all these years. I missed palm trees! The sunset! Also, the sunlight is amazing for shooting and for living!

Auntie Meta: So you think you’ll move to Miami?

Reshma: I’m fortunate I got to do the job of my dreams. I never thought I’d love Miami as much as I did Austin. But, hey, it’s pandemic times. Who knows what’s going to happen?!

you can now view the series here