More than 50 young people and children of a variety of minority ethnic backgrounds were involved in this exciting film making project conceived as a creative learning experience. We also aimed to raise aspirations and improve the academic achievement of the young people through a series of writing tasks attached to the project.
Several young people including 38 children, collected and wrote up a total of 46 stories from their varied cultural backgrounds. ‘Dhag Dheer’, a well known Somali horror story was chosen to be adapted into a film under the guidance of professional script writers. A team of experienced film makers guided the young people with no previous experience of film making who were excited to show their work ‘on the screen’. The group gained practical experience in; production, location and props, directing, camera, editing, music, sound effects, casting, acting, marketing and publicity. Main parts were allocated to several people from different cultures, including a 6 year old Somali boy as well as professional actors and one Sudanese TV presenter. Children from the Whitehall Primary School were offered parts in the campfire scenes of the film. Over several months different ‘departments’ collaborated to produce this film.
We are all very proud of this film – it is the first Somali film made the Uk and was showcased at the Watershed in Bristol.
