“The stories that grabbed my attention were those created through unique personal approaches with a clear vision and a rich visual vocabulary,” says Noriko Hayashi, a Panos Pictures photographer who was a Joop Swart participant in 2015, and a judge for this year’s competition.
Established in 1994, the Joop Swart Masterclass aims to reward the most talented emerging visual journalists and is designed to boost diversity in visual journalism and storytelling. This year 219 candidates from all over the world were nominated, and the 12 participants are: Mustafah Abdulaziz (US), Sharon Castellanos (Peru), Sabiha Cimen (Turkey), Samar Hazboun (Palestine), Alexandra Rose Howland (US), Katinka Hustad (Norway), Ksenia Kuleshova (Russia), Philip Montgomery (US), Léonard Pongo (Belgium), Ashfika Rahman (Bangladesh), Tasneem Alsultan (Saudi Arabia), and Cansu Yildiran (Turkey). There are also two runners-up, Alfredo Bosco (Italy) and Marie Hald (Denmark).
“12 is a small number to choose given the amount of talent one sees amongst the nominees of JSM,” says selection committee member Tanvi Mishra, an Indian picture editor. She was joined on the committee by Christopher Morris (US), photographer and co-founder of VII Photo Agency; Anna-Alix Koffi (Ivory Coast/France), creative director-publisher; Maggie Steber (US), photographer at VII; and Alvaro Ybarra Zavala (Colombia/Spain), photographer and filmmaker.
From 23 to 29 September 2018, JSM participants will receive an immersive educational experience overseen by five industry experts at World Press Photo Foundation’s Amsterdam headquarters. The participants will each create a photoessay based around a single theme, which will eventually be edited into a publication and which will form the basis of discussion during the masterclass.
“The 12 selected will have a unique opportunity for their professional career as photographers,” says Zavala, “a very enriching human experience and to whom I wish all the luck of the world.”
For further details on the Joop Swart Masterclass, click here.
