A group of young people from Townhill Community School participated in a series of Film-Making Workshops led by artist David Marchant, as part of the new LOCWS Creative Participation Programme. The 4-day workshop enabled participants to design, develop and create their own film which involved creative writing, character design, green screen techniques, animation, video and sound recording, and editing. Participants were encouraged to develop their own ideas from the outset and were guided through the process of scripting, designing, and shooting their films.
The workshops took place between August 4th-7th 2015, filming was captured in the local area and at the site of Townhill Community School. The children responded very positively and were engaged with new techniques and creative skills, they tried things for the first time and overcame lots of new challenges.
“The film-making workshops went very well. There was a lot of activity packed into four days. Seven children from Townhill Community School participated in character design, animation, creative writing, video recording, sound recording and editing. The group provided positive feedback, they were all pleased with the activities and are looking forward to seeing the final result once the editing has been completed.”
– Gemma Bevan Learning Communities Project Officer, Communities First West Cluster, Aug 2015.
The LOCWS Creative Participation Programme provides exciting creative skills development courses for residents of Communities First areas in Swansea. The programme aims to help people to develop employment skills and find work, by improving positivity and confidence about seeking work. Participating in a personal and social development activity also aims to promote engagement within the community and improve creative skills.
The workshop was also filmed separately to form part of a documentary film that is being made to capture the stories and development of the participants, showing how they have engaged with the workshops and what they learn and achieve as they develop their own film. With a focus on their participation in the project, the documentary aims to highlight the potential benefits of partnership working within the new Swansea Creative Learning Partnership programme and how it can help individuals benefit from exposure to the creative industries and cultural sector.
“It is extremely encouraging to see such concrete examples of good work emerging from the partnership. This kind of outcome – around soft skills but also outputs such as accreditation – is, I believe, very much what will make the Pioneer Area programme a success”
– Tom Cosson, CyMAL Project Manager, Welsh Government, Aug 2015.
The project has been designed within the context of Arts, Culture and Heritage, and with this being a significant contributing tool to tackling poverty. LOCWS International is a member of the Swansea Creative Learning Partnership, which brings together Arts, Culture and Heritage organisations with Communities First and other organisations that contribute towards alleviating the effects of poverty.
Save the date: See the outcomes of this project in the next Outreach and Education Exhibition (Oct 10 – Nov 8 2015)
Exhibition venue: The National Waterfront Museum, Oystermouth Rd, Swansea. Event Listing
For more information please contact: rebecca@locwsinternational.com