Category: Schools

Back to School

It’s taken me months to get round to writing up a page about my work at Robin Hood JI School over the Summer Term.  Luckily some of the reason for this has been that I have busy with running around on several other project, including an extensive project with The Wildlife Trust (more on that later!) and another film project for Solihull Libraries!  However, the main reason is that it involved so many different and exciting strands that I wasn’t too sure where to begin!

You can now find a summary of the project on the Schools Page although it still feels as though I’ve not done it justice.  As a freelance film-maker it was such a fantastic experience to challenged to produce something fun and exciting which would leave staff and pupils with a lasting legacy.  Pupils not only had DVDs to take home, I genuinely believe that they grew in confidence and would now be able to produce their own films.  In fact, a browse round the school’s excellent website this morning revealed that Year 4 have been making their own Origami Videos! Great stuff!

I’m hoping to build on this schools work through taking part in further training.  I’m thrilled to have been shortlisted for the Radiate Training Scheme (fingers crossed for that!) and next week I’ll also be attending the ‘Youth Voice’ seminar at Queensbridge School which looks excellent!

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Library films

Of all the projects I’ve worked on I think the filming I have done for Yardley Libraries has been one of the most enjoyable. I have fond memories of going along to my local community library with my Mum as a kid, and it’s wonderful to see kids getting as much enjoyment as I did when browsing the shelves.

Yardley Libraries are doing some really innovative stuff to ensure that families get the most from their visits. I’ve eventually got round to putting the films of these projects online so why not check them out?

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Yards Ahead 07/08

The past five months have been incredibly busy, mainly editing, so my plans to Blog regularly have fallen by-the-by somewhat! I’m taking the foot off the pedal a little bit after too many weekends and late nights at the computer, so I think that this is probably quite an apt point to report back on some of the projects that are now in the can or are near completion.

Posts on some of my recent projects should follow shortly, but in the meantime here is the lowdown on a recently completed project, ‘Yards Ahead 07/08’ for Yardley Constituency Libraries.

I’ve now updated the site and created a separate Libraries page to include information on all of the work I’ve completed for the rather lovely librarians, so you can find out a bit more about the project there. As always, it’s been a real joy to work alongside such dedicated and enthusiastic library staff, whose commitment has meant that thousands of children and their families have had really exciting library experiences. I’ve received a lovely e-mail from Jo Avery at Glebe Farm Library commenting on how well the film captures the enthusiasm of the children. However, as with all of the work I’ve done with them, walk into a Yardley Library and it’s pretty inescapable!

The film was premiered at a Chief Librarians’ conference in Solihull and was well received. Librarians will now be distributing the 200 DVDs I’ve produced to a wide range of people to try and convince others that this way of working can play a crucial role in ensuring libraries meet the needs of local communities now and in the future.

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