The Blake School spent 21 days in Rwanda. Here are some highlights from their time there from student film maker, Rosa Gerdts.

When Cole Kawana traveled to Rwanda he discovered that, in addition to recovering from a devastating genocide, the country also lacked clean water, so he found a way to help his neighbors halfway around the world.

How do you convince someone to kill their neighbor? Noah Bennet and Max Cho’s film answers this chilling question as it delves into the 1994 Rwanda genocide in which one million people were slaughtered, mostly by people they knew, in a period of 100 days.

On a school trip to Rwanda, high school sophomore Mike Maps met Kizito, a child survivor of the 1994 genocide. At age 6, Kizito saw his father killed, his mother raped and his home burned to the ground. As Rwanda rebuilds after the genocide, survivors like Kizito struggle. Kizito and Mike bonded in a special way.

Murambi is a memorial site of a notorious massacre from the 1994 Rwandan genocide in which thousands of preserved human remains are on display. Seventh grade student Milo Hensley shares a short reflection upon this style of commemoration, and questions whether it is respectful and necessary.

Dancer Imani Cook-Gist shares the healing power of music and dance in Rwanda, a country devastated by a 1994 genocide in which one million people were slaughtered in 100 days. Traditional dancers, musicians and the country’s most famous Gospel singer share their experience of joy through music.

Katherine Calvert’s film gives a historic perspective on the horrific crime of rape as a weapon of war and genocide. She grounds her story in the 1994 Rwandan genocide where rape’s lasting impact tears apart its victim as well as the very fabric of society.

As a child, Lauren Rothman starred in a play that children were made to perform during the Holocaust. As a teen, she travels to Rwanda to learn about the 1994 genocide. Her film makes connections between the experiences and asks us to consider what part we play when we are inhumane towards others.

Award-winning filmmaker Nina Miligan explores how the 1994 Rwandan genocide continues to affect children today. She shares stories of young people rebuilding their lives, and interviews President Paul Kagame himself about a country evolving from an unthinkable past.