For more than a decade South African photographer Zanele Muholi has documented hate crimes against members of the LGBTI community in South Africa. Though the country ratified the right for gay and lesbian men and women to wed in 2006, the discrimination and violence persist. “What is lacking now, she says, “is the education to undo all of these phobias that violate LGBTI rights.”

Muholi’s personal and heartbreaking involvement in these tragic stories, ultimately led the photographer to embark on a more affirming project: Faces and Phases. Here we see the faces of lesbian and trans men and women as they are in their regular lives.

“It marks a special kind of history of ordinary people,” she says. “Pride should be a 365 day approach to life, to say, ‘This is me. This is me. This is me.’”

As part of her own healing process, Muholi turns the camera on herself for a series of intimate portraits.

Since 1985, the International Center of Photography has recognized outstanding achievements in photography with its prestigious Infinity Awards. The awards ceremony is also ICP’s primary fundraising benefit, with its revenues assisting the center's various programs.

Harbers Studios commissioned MediaStorm, on behalf of ICP, to create a short film about each of the recipients to screen at the awards ceremony and to display online. The films pay tribute to the contributions of each artist to the craft and field of photography and demonstrate ICP's commitment to them.

The challenges on this project were twofold. First, MediaStorm did not originally receive photographs from the hate crimes series.

Second, MediaStorm initially struggled to find the proper music to accompany specific sections of this film.

MediaStorm producer Eric Maierson first edited the film without the missing imagery. He alternated between black and white video backgrounds in order to help pace the project. The MediaStorm team then worked closely with Muholi to ensure the digital delivery of the outstanding images.

Maierson then worked with composer-in-residence Simon Erdmann who created original music specifically suited for Zanele Muholi’s film.

The films were shown on April 11, 2015 at the 2016 International Center of Photography’s Infinity Awards in New York and launched online on April 12, 2016.

The films available here are the full-length pieces. We also created shorter versions to show at the awards ceremony.

This film was a collaboration with Harbers Studio and the International Center of Photography.

Harbers Studios turbocharges the efforts of charitable entrepreneurs by helping them tell their stories. Our goal is to help them articulate and share the value of the work they do so they can inspire others to help them do it. Working with some of the best filmmaking talent in the world, Harbers Studios creates compelling visual narratives that enhance the endeavors of organizations working to make the world a better place.

The International Center of Photography (ICP) is the world’s leading institution dedicated to the practice and understanding of photography and the reproduced image in all its forms. Through exhibitions, educational programs, and community outreach, ICP offers an open forum for dialogue about the role images play in our culture. Since ICP’s founding, they have presented more than 500 exhibitions and offered thousands of classes, providing instruction at every level. ICP is a center where photographers and artists, students and scholars can create and interpret the world of the image within our comprehensive educational facilities and archive.

As a privately funded nonprofit arts and education organization, ICP depends in large part on friends such as you for support. Your generosity is vital to ICP as it continues to grow and succeed in its mission: to present photography's extraordinary power to the public.

There are many ways to give to ICP: Donate to the Annual Fund, create a scholarship, sponsor exhibitions and education programs, contribute to the Collection, or make a planned gift.

Since 1985, the International Center of Photography has recognized outstanding achievements in photography with its prestigious Infinity Awards. The awards ceremony is also ICP’s primary fundraising benefit, with its revenues assisting the center's various programs.

Harbers Studios commissioned MediaStorm, on behalf of ICP, to create a short film about each of the recipients to screen at the awards ceremony and to display online. The films pay tribute to the contributions of each artist to the craft and field of photography and demonstrate ICP's commitment to them.