Valentina (“Vale”) was my roommate during HEFAT training in Mexico City, and I had such a great time meeting her. We shared a lot of experiences and professional tips. She is now working as a freelance videographer in El Salvador.

She is a very funny and intelligent woman – it seems to me that she is also very supportive and understanding of other women. As we all know, in journalism, it can be difficult to find colleagues with as much charisma as Valentina, due to the strong competition we face every day. Vale is a woman who will never leave you alone. She will help you, she will listen to you, and above all, she will be super professional with her work.

I did a small interview with her, and this is what she told me.

G: Why did you pursue a career in journalism?

V: “I used to work for the Obama administration in Washington, and when I started working at the White House part of my portfolio was Central America. I always questioned if the information we were getting from the Government was accurate or not. So I promised myself that once the administration was over, I was going to move to El Salvador to see for myself why was so many people are joining the gangs and leaving their country. When Donald Trump became president, I packed my bags and moved to El Salvador.”

G: Why did you choose to focus on videography?

V: “Because I believe in the power of images to tell stories, plus video is a medium that truly reaches all people and does not discriminate. Plus, there are not enough women in video, and I wanted to enter into a field where I knew I was going to be a minority.”

– Greta Rico, Adelante Honduras Fellow, 2019