Great to see Love Letters to the Future nominated for this year’s SXSW Interactive Awards: One of the notes sealed inside the time capsule is: “Please, you have to keep doing what we could not finish” by Manuela, Argentina http://www.loveletterstothefuture.com/ Another notable nomination is: http://sketch.odopod.com This is an addictive and therapeutic web sketcher with a lovely feel and texture to the brushes and pens. And I guess you can use the images you create to illustrate a digital story.
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India-UK grants
Here’s some news of funding that may benefit digital storytellers in the UK. A pilot grant scheme for Connections though Culture: India – UK is now open and arts producers or representatives from an arts organisations in the UK are eligible to apply. Connections through Culture is the British Council’s new programme for collaborative exchanges between the UK and India in the arts, aimed at generating long-term partnerships between arts organisations and producers in the UK and their counterparts in India. The funding may be for bespoke visits, development support and showcasing collaborative work. Information about the scheme and how to apply is here in English and in Welsh. There’s…
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Cyfle recruiting multiplatform creative trainees
Two of the people I worked with while digital storytelling with the Capture Wales team had joined the BBC via Cyfle training courses. Cyfle is now looking for eight people to take part in their Multiplatform Production Scheme for TV Creatives course in Cardiff, Wales, leading to a Post Graduate Certificate – Professional Practice in the Creative Industries. This isn’t a free course; it costs £1,000. It’s a four-month course with industry placement guaranteed. As Cyfle say in their email: “This is an intensive, hands-on, immersion into the Multiplatform World. In the intensely competitive world of The Media, this course will give you the skills to put you at the…
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Breaking Barriers Digital Storytelling screening in South Wales
‘Same Place; Different Routes’ digital stories are being screened by Breaking Barriers at Llanhilleth Institute on Thursday 28th January 2010 at 7pm. ‘Same Place; Different Routes’ has three strands examining the experiences of: recent migrants to Wales and people who moved here some years ago, different generations living together in the Valleys people with a range of mental health issues. Also being screened on the night are stories made as part of the centenary celebrations at Christchurch Aberbeeg and from Breaking Barriers’ recent Training the Trainers courses. Ruth Garnault of Breaking Barriers says: “We believe that everybody has a story to tell and these stories are touching, funny and moving. …
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Call for submissions: short films by women filmmakers
Thanks to Sarah Goodey who sent me news of this call for submissions: “In celebration of International Women’s Day, Women’s Arts Association is hosting an evening of short films by contemporary female filmmakers. This will be held in Pontardawe Arts Centre on Saturday 6th March 7-9pm. We are planning a short Q&A session after the screening of films. “Please let me know if you would like to submit one of your films for screening, and whether you would be able to attend the evening – Saturday 6th March. If you’d like to talk further about this, please feel free to phone me on 02920 487850 or email me on admin@womensarts.co.uk.…
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Christmas Wren Hunting in Wales – Hela Dryw
Hela Dryw – Hunting the Wren is a Welsh Christmas tradition enacted on Twelfth Night. Villagers hunted and killed the wren and carried its body in a decorated ‘house’. They called from door to door and people paid money to peep at the dead bird: The wren is no longer killed today for Hela Dryw (or Hela’r Dryw as it’s sometimes called). Using a Nokia N93, I filmed this re-enactment at the National Welsh Folk Museum’s Nadolig festival last week.
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Community Voices digital media grants
Digital storytellers will be interested to hear that one £500 award per week is available between now and March 2010. That’s what Community Voices has to offer those in England using digital media to help empower disadvantaged communities: “Media Trust is always looking to celebrate the varied and inspiring ways you are using digital media to help empower disadvantaged communities. And now Community Voices has 20 x £500 awards to give away before the end of March 2010 – that’s one every week. If you’re helping to give your community a voice through digital media we’d like to hear from you, and so would many other communities seeking help. Projects…
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BBC – understand, participate in and influence
Inform, educate and entertain was the old Reithian view of the BBC. Whilst continuing to be a worthwhile mission, it does sound a little ‘paternal’ or top-down for today’s world. It was refreshing to hear a new personal view of what the BBC needs to do today from Seetha Kumar – online access champion and controller BBC Online – in a presentation at BBC Wales I attended yesterday. In response to a question, she repeated this paragraph from her presentation to the Skills for Life conference on 3 November: “The Reithian tradition of inform, educate and entertain is as true today as it was over 80 years ago. In the…
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PS
This is a site by BBC Wales with personal stories by 14-25 year olds. In PS, you can submit and watch videos categorized Health, Entertainment, Education, Religion, News & Politics, Environment, Love & Sex, Animals, Race & Culture, Crime & Violence, Business & Economy, Sports, Life, Drugs & Alcohol, Science & Technology, Community & Society and Other. There’s an embeddable widget on the site with the latest comments and stories, so I thought I’d embed it here on the Aberth Digital Storytelling blog.
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Participatory Video Facebook group
George Metaxiotis sent me an invite from Greece today to join the PV:RF Participatory Video Facebook group. It’s described as “a networking forum for anyone involved in participatory video research – especially community based research.” So I wanted to share the link with you here: http://tr.im/FcCq The group’s only three months old but it already looks like a good way to link up with PV projects around the world. E.g. Chris Blythe posted a wall message about his ‘Inspired Productions’ in New Zealand/Aotearoa: “We’re developing our work to include drama and music media. Current project is supporting refugee youth from Burma and Bhutan to produce content for our national museum, Te…