Matt Hockey and Jessie Casson with their three children from left, Otis, 9, Dylan, 13, and Iris, 7. The family will travel through South America on a documentary project. Photo / Anna MacLeod
Matt Hockey and Jessie Casson with their three children from left, Otis, 9, Dylan, 13, and Iris, 7. The family will travel through South America on a documentary project. Photo / Anna MacLeod
Since the time Jessie Casson captured the portraits of 26 teenage South Americans in their native countries, she has wondered whether their dreams were fulfilled.
Now the Auckland photographer and film-maker will take her family on a special intrepid journey over the next four months to find out what becameof those teenagers.
"It's kind of exciting and terrifying at the same time," Casson says. "It's going to be a roller-coaster ride."
Together with husband, Matt Hockey, and their three children, Dylan, 13, Otis, 9, and Iris, 7, the family will document the trip through Mexico, Argentina, Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Guatemala, and Belize.
Rosa from Isla Tequile, Peru. In 2003 her dream was to do knitting and grow good potatoes and maize. Jessie Casson hopes to ask Rosa how her life turned out. Photo / Jessie Casson
They will film and be filmed reuniting with as many of the 26 subjects as they can find and post the documentary in short stories on social media for anyone to follow along.
Casson and Hockey, originally from England, first travelled through South America in 2003 where Casson photographed and filmed the 26 teens as part of a project and the couple's year-long honeymoon.
They eventually arrived in New Zealand with two backpacks and never left.
"We've done quite a bit of travelling already with the kids. And Dylan is coming to an age where he can't really be taken out of school so this is our last opportunity.
"I'm curious about the human condition. I'm interested in what's happened to these people and whether their dreams have gone through and whether their perspective has changed as they've gone from teenager to adulthood."
Casson also wants the experience to show her children what life looks like outside of New Zealand.
"New Zealand is a very safe haven. And I kind of want to hold their hand and show them what adventure looks like. And create memories as a family because we could stay here for four months and you don't remember anything."
Instead, they will be spending Christmas in Mexico at a local family's home, bonding over memories she hoped would last a lifetime.
"It's very hard to imagine as a child what life looks like outside of your own reality but they talk about it a lot."
Noel from Tupiza, Bolivia, a horse-trekking guide in 2003. His dream was to work with horses for the rest of his life but his father wanted him to be a teacher. Photo / Jessie Casson
There will be challenges and obstacles to overcome but at the same time there will be rewarding experiences that Casson hopes her children will learn from.
Though the children will be out of school for four months Casson says they will still do basic reading, writing and maths while travelling.
They will travel with a dedicated camera operator, who also, helpfully, speaks Spanish and Casson is confident the family would be safe.
"When I travelled there the first time I remember thinking I feel very safe and I would love to bring a family back here if we ever had one."
She has also spoken to tourists who have recently returned from South America and reported no issues.
"I like to push myself out of my comfort zone and I hope our trek will inspire other people to do that, and you don't have to go halfway across the world to do that - you can do that in your own suburb."
Osman of Nicaragua. In 2003 he wanted to be a professional American footballer. He realised his dream and was semi-professional until injury forced retirement. Photo / Jessie Casson
The family leaves in two weeks and will stay in hostels, backpacker accommodation and homestays throughout the trip, visiting cities and remote towns.
Casson has already tracked down 11 of the 26 teenagers, some of whom she only had a first name for.
She said one of the subjects cried when she sent him the photograph taken of him in 2003 because he did not own any photos of himself from that age.
Casson says the unknown is daunting but she is focused on being able to tell as many as possible of the teenagers' stories about how their lives have turned out.
