Community Media - Interactive World

At the weekend I picked up in a charity ("thrift") shop a short book by world theatre director and experimenter Peter Brook called The Empty Space , first published in 1968, with a Pelican paperback in 1972. There have been several reprints and it's still a thoughtful discussion of the state of theatre. Where he speculates on 'Theatre' I found myself reflecting on 'Cinema.' It's a curious exercise to displace and compare terminologies and discourses. Sometimes it's quite shocking and sobering as a thought experiment. What did the theatre mean to him in 1968, and what does it mean to us in 2011? How have our ideas about the value(s) and function of cinema evolved alongside, or in opposition to 'theatre' ? If you're curious, his four chapters are titled The Deadly Theatre The Holy Theatre The Rough Theatre The Immediate Theatre I also found myself dreaming about a Secret Cinema . Perhaps a lost chapter of the Brook...

Light and Shadow: What will happen to books and reading in the Age of Kindle? I had the opportunity to make use of a friend’s Kindle a fortnight ago. Dear Reader, you may be shocked at my tardiness in coming to the most fashionable gadget in recent years. Indeed, in 2010, I fought off several offers of Kindle Christmas presents from the many friends and family who know very well my addiction to reading books. I was aware of the vast library of free books and that was a temptation: having them in my pocket, rather than stuck on the hard drive, or only available with internet access. What struck me was the sleek design of the Kindle, its comfortable lightness and ease of use; but most impressive its screen technology, unglaring and flicker-free. As my large Victorian terrace house will not accommodate more purchases of books it makes sense to switch at least some of my purchases to electronic copies for certain kinds of work. But I still have reservation and feel that the potential f...

Collaboration, Art, and the Discourses of Participatory Film The discussion of collaborative approaches to making films has moved into prime position during the last year. It’s a very healthy situation for community-led film makers and bodes well for the future role of digital arts and participatory democracy. At last we have some worthy examples of theory, technology and practice working together in a creative fashion. The BBC has recently featured a news item on an innovative collaborative film project to be called My Streets. The project has major establishment backers, and is perhaps another example of popular participation filtered through selective curators. The patchwork is a familiar model for the community portrait. Recurring themes will perhaps oscillate with chance collisions in the manner of collage. We can celebrate the flickering poetry of surprise in the global 24 hour project Life in a Day which saw thousands of collaborators generate a feature length film cura...

Exploring scopophilia, CCTV, celebrity, gaming, inspiring books, global media anxiety and world capitalist domination. Best wishes for 2030 ! 1984    George Orwell films Documentary Big Brother and Margaret Thatcher Rules Britain as Iron Lady. 1984 Did Not Happen , claim. (St Andrews, Avanti! ) 1984    ‘Video Nasty’ Scares hit Britain and Government introduces Video Recording Act. 1985    Lambeth grants £100 to finance world’s first ‘Scopophilia Awareness Day’ (s.a.d.) on  March 5 th . 1985-1995  Lots of new technology and ideas; ethical policy; corporate ethics; corporate cleansing; ethical cleansing; outsourcing. ‘Happy decade’ 1986    Jonny Dolour patents the ‘Entertainment Libido’ E.L. meme . Waves of celebrity fever. 1987 World of Borecraft anti-meme released 1996    YewTube ‘goes Big’ with Broadcast Yourself video-share 1997   September 4 th Big Brother comes to life i...

The Spectre of Community Rebranded as the Big Society, notions of citizenship and community are back in fashion. To borrow and adapt Marx’s Manifesto (1848), the spectre of the community (not communism) is stalking contemporary society. For some commentators it is feared that an army of community organizers are poised for subversive warfare. Alternatively, the force is an awkward spectre awakened from the vestiges of a tired capitalist system. That’s one side of the argument. The other is that a nostalgic return to the community spirit is just a cover for cuts to public services. Furthermore, there are no plans to limit or democratize corporate economic power, or the private enterprise and management structures. Isn't Big Society linked to less global corporate power? Can a big Society really be forged by simply adding together thousands of local activities? The semantic force of community is oddly resurgent , even as we begin to trace its loss: the familiar lament for lost idea...

In low budget and community film making a lot of attention is paid to the participatory process and less to what creates an imaginative product worthy of a wider public. But I believe that creativity and quality are essential. Experience shows that there’s some core advice that could help you to produce a high impact and engaging product.  With that in mind I’ve produced a short list of tips from my project notebooks. in order to help you to create an award-winning short film.  If you have any other tips and advice or stories, why not share your experiences? We followed a 40 20 40 'Guide' for project time and resources: 40% Pre-Production planning / 20% Production Filming / 40% Post-production - editing, reflecting, promoting, screening We are close to the life of the people involved (by us, for us / inside out) We have a lively sense of where we live: place, environment, or locality = our grassroots, our heritage, our futures ...

1. Postfilm is FREE. We are already bombarded by moving images, simulations and surveillance. We resist merely by volunteering our time and our dedication. We subscribe to Creative Commons. No restriction or ownership, please. 2. Postfilm is COMMUNITIES. Working with others we begin to disrupt a mono-cultural “Industry” that serves limited interests and false commercial tastes. By linking with other postfilm communities we combat shallow and deluded capitalist interest groups. 3. Postfilm is OPEN. We will not be asked to produce qualifications or college certificates; or guild, union, association, industry, or any other exclusive membership card. If you have one, throw it away. 4. Postfilm is a range of Co-OPPORTUNITIES for us to think outside the Box (Office) 5. Postfilm is an act of LOVE. We are enriched by a love for what we do and how we share it. 6. Postfilm welcomes MULTI-MEDIA, and TRANSMEDIA. We resist the strait-jackets of specialisation and creative alienation. We play, we...

"Community film" is a variety of practices and approaches that interrogate the dominant use of "film" and "cinema" in association with a global, big budget "industry".   "Community film" draws on the democratic and participatory potential of new technology which has decreased the cost of entry for new film makers, new distributors, and wider, more interactive audiences. Taking the argument further, the traditional power triangle of film maker-distributor-spectator can also be challenged and opened up. As a global movement "community film" preserves the integrity and identity of the local community (and importantly, dialogues between local groups) against the homogenization of the the dominant transnational industries that seek to erase distinctive voices in order to create their commodities and oppressive brands.  "Community film" challenges the notion of "film" as a 90 minute, big bud...