Identity project

Identity builds on the region-wide Renaissance East Midlands project Dress Codes from the 2004-2006 business plan. Dress Codes established a concrete framework for partnership working between the five Renaissance partner services and their communities and culminated in a shared celebration event, Youth Culture Day in July 2006. For ‘Identity’ each lead service (Leicester, Leicestershire, Derby, Nottingham and  Lincolnshire) is developing a range of informal learning programmes engaging young people aged 11-24 years.

The Identity programme targets young people from priority groups (low social income, ethnic diversity and young people with disabilities) and aims to meet their needs through the exploration and development of museum collections, generating inspiration for region-wide innovative projects based on the theme of identity.

The programme will be delivered from September 2006 to March 2008 with a second celebration event, Youth Culture Day, in Spring 2008.

Broken Journey and Photo Cyclist Nottingham's film journeys

Fifteen young people, two film makers, Nottingham City Museums & Galleries Service and City Arts spent six months creating two short films set against the backdrop of a busy city.

The project engaged young people from across Nottingham in every aspect of film-making: storyboarding, lighting, sound, directing, acting, camera work and editing. The stories depicted in the two ten minute films have drawn on the direct experiences of the young people involved, many of whom are refugees and relatively new to Nottingham. The participants have learnt about film-making from two local filmmakers, Jes Hill (Folk Industries) and Siya San Saravan, a refugee from Kurdistan, and have been taught about film lighting, acting and costume from other professionals in the field.  Supported by staff from City Arts apt – Youth Programme, many of the young people have undertaken a ‘Young Peoples Arts Award’ qualification in the arts using their experience of working on this project. 
 
All the young people working on the project enjoyed the process and took away new skills: “The project gave us ideas and gave us understanding. The project was brilliant and magnificent … During the project we also had a great time and we also get to know each other, get to know different people, different backgrounds and things ….” 

“It was a great experience the overall thing, really enjoyed ourselves.  We are going to miss the people that we worked with, they was quite great. [First Light] really helped me look at films in a different way. Now that I’m watching films, I know a bit about what it’s about, I don’t just look at it like ‘oh it’s cool’, but I know exactly what the shots are and that. I’m actually heading to carry on as a career into being a director and also hopefully into a producer if I do make it, but I’ll always remember you as First Light movies, ‘cause you’re really great so thank you and keep up with the good work.”

“I’d just like to say thanks about giving the opportunity, you know.  Yeh, the project was good, I enjoyed myself and I learned some new skills.  So now I know what I’m going to do for the future.  I want to work on my own film project.“

The films:
BROKEN JOURNEY: When trust is all you have, trust yourself
Azad and Zanab are two friends who share the grim experience of being refugees in the UK. The struggle to find acceptance and improve their lives places a strain on their relationship. As Azad becomes embroiled in petty crime, Zanab suffers abuse at a café where she works. Only when a haunting vision of his escape returns to him at a pivotal moment does Azad make a decision that will steer his life in another direction.

THE PHOTO-CYCLIST: sometimes it takes more than language to communicate how you feel
Whilst attempting to learn English, Leo takes photographs and writes in his notebook about anything he notices while on his paper round. Through the attitudes of other young people and his growing affection for a strange girl at a window he discovers that there are other ways to communicate.

The two short films were previewed at the Broadway Cinema in July and both films will be screened as part of Broadway’s Bang Film Festival in October 2007. 

The project was possible thanks to funding and support from First Light Movies (Lottery funding through UK Film Council), Renaissance East Midlands and the Learning Skills Council.

Rootage in Leicester

Leicester City Council Arts and Museums Service has been working with ‘Rootage’, a group of African Caribbean young people from the Highfields area of Leicester, for the past ten months. Using museum objects and visits to the ‘Black British Style’ and ‘Style Up’ exhibitions at Leicester’s New Walk Museum for inspiration, the group has explored their identity and heritage through Carnival, both in Leicester and in its roots in Africa and the Caribbean.

The group created an exhibition of their work inspired by the project Leicester’s Guildhall Museum for two weeks during June. This included a huge silk painted banner celebrating the meaning of Carnival, block printed textiles inspired by African Mud cloths and decorated bowls based on gourd bowls and woven market baskets from Ghana, as well as amazing Carnival costumes created for previous Leicester Caribbean Carnivals.

On Saturday 23 June there was a showcase celebration event with performances, dance, Carnival costumes, Caribbean food, music and creative activities. The Guildhall was transformed by the vibrant and lively atmosphere of Carnival.  The event was well supported by members of Leicester’s African Caribbean population and casual visitors who were delighted by their unexpected treat. One member of the ‘Rootage’ group summed up her feelings of the day: “I can’t believe how cool all the stuff we made looks here and I never thought we’d have a chance to dance on the stage in an old building like this!”

The group is now busy working on its float and costumes for the 2007 Leicester Caribbean Carnival on 4 August. After which they are planning to explore the legacy of slavery through museum visits to Bristol and Liverpool, and to learn African dance techniques, which they hope may lead to performances during Black History Season 2007.