September • 2019
Tom was super communicative, proactive, and brought a great eye to the project.
Tom L.
Bogotá, Bogota, Colombia
1 review$500 - $1200 / Day
About
Tom Laffay is a visual journalist, DP and director specializing in working on long term projects in Latin America bringing a cinematic look with journalistic rigor. Currently based in Colombia, he has been dedicated to covering the ongoing violence against human rights defenders over the course of the country's troubled peace process since 2016 and frequently shoots for media like ARD Germany, El Espectador and contributes to The Atlantic and The Guardian. Tom is bilingual (English / Spanish) and travels extensively producing short documentary films for New Media Advocacy Project and IUCN in South America, Africa and the US and since 2011 he has worked with La Isla Network to advance improvements in the agricultural labor sector in Central America. Recently he has begun working as a DP on more narrative films for directors Sean Mattison, Emily Wright and Antonio Santini and is interested in pursuing that path. Tom lives in Bogota, Colombia and is available for assignments in the Americas and just about anywhere else.
Top Services
- Corporate Videographer
- 1 review
- Line Producer / On-Location
- 1 review
- Documentary DP
Clients
Top Reviews
Top Projects
5.0 Produced for Purpose
My Mark, My City: Sustainability In Bogota UN Live: Event Coverage for UN Live (of the United Nations) in Bogota
- Corporate Videographer
- Line Producer / On-Location
Produced for Vice News
MERCURY : Chasing the Quicksilver
Mercury is crucial to small-scale gold mining in South America but increasing scrutiny of its health and environmental impact in the Amazon is leading to its prohibition throughout the continent. This investigation delves into the underworld of mercury, following its path from Guyana to neighboring Suriname, exploring the health and environmental consequences, and what the prohibition of mercury would mean for the livelihoods of miners and communities across the Amazon. ‘MERCURY’ is a film by Tom Laffay, produced by InfoAmazonia, a data journalism initiative which reports on the Amazon. It forms part of a wider investigation called ‘Mercury - Chasing the Quicksilver’ led by journalist Bram Ebus. Read more here: https://mercurio.infoamazonia.org/en/
- Documentary DP
- Field Producer
- Creative Director
- Non-Fiction Film Director
- Post-Production Manager
Produced for New Media Advocacy Project
Words That Kill - The Defamation of Human Rights Defenders
Director of photography working with New Media Advocacy Project on an 8 day production of four short documentary films about human rights defenders in Colombia, June 2016.
- Documentary DP
- Field Producer
Produced for The New Yorker
Siona: The Effort to De-mine Sacred Space in the Amazon
Set in the Colombian Amazon, Siona: The Effort to De-mine Sacred Space in the Amazon follows Adiela Mera Paz, a Siona indigenous leader, as she deactivates landmines in her ancestral territory making it possible for her people displaced by armed conflict to return.
- Documentary DP
- Non-Fiction Film Director
Nos Están Matando (They're Killing Us) - The Atlantic
Short film exploring the phenomenon of rampant assassinations of social leaders in Colombia's post peace accord reality. Published simultaneously in English on the Atlantic and in Spanish on El Espectador.
- Documentary DP
- Video Editor - Documentary
- Field Producer
- Reporter / Journalist
With Every Breath - National Geographic Short Film Showcase
A short film that follows Mary Pacheres, a young woman in rural Northern Peru suffering from an unexplained form of Chronic Kidney Disease.
- Fixer
- Documentary DP
- Drone Operator
- Field Producer
Equipment
Video
- Full HD video camera
- Multiple cameras
- DSLR or equivalent
Video
Audio
- External recorder
- Wireless lavalier mic
- Shotgun mic
Audio
All Services
Production Support
- News Shooter / Video Journalist
- Editorial Photographer / Photojournalist
- Documentary DP
- Drone Operator
- Field Producer
- Reporter / Journalist
- Corporate Videographer
- Line Producer / On-Location
- Non-Fiction Film Director
Production Support
Post Production
- Video Editor - News
- Video Editor - Documentary
- Video Editor - Commercial
- Post-Production Manager
Post Production
Miscellaneous
- Fixer
- Translator
- Creative Director
Miscellaneous