THE ALL ABOUT US FILM FACTORY METHOD

Anna Spohr's films are based on young people’s vision and their way of life. Anna describes these films to contain 'insights from the inside'. The filmmakers show themselves, literally and through the use of symbolic imagery and music. They create individual portraits about their surroundings and their peer group. Stimulated by Anna's affection and unremitting enthusiasm for young people and their cultures, unique pictures are produced that couldn't be brought into vision more realistically by any other form of media. Giving the young filmmakers the freedom to roll the camera themselves, has proven to be an effective method into entering the uncensored world of our youth.

At this very moment, a book about the AllAboutUs film method, i.e. the realization of making films with groups of young people, is being written. Below you can find the synopsis of the book:

Synopsis AllAboutUs Film Book

Over the past few years AllAboutUs has developed a method for making films with young people. The book offers the opportunity to make this successful method available and duplicatable to schools that have the intention to start up a media project and teach their students how to make their own films.

Artistic leader, Anna Spohr, film maker with a passion for the uncensored perception of young people, has been using this method for more than 10 years. A method which encourages young people to find their own story, a method that leads to an authentic and splendid result in very little time. In the book, she mentions examples of successful projects in the Netherlands, the Bronx, England and Latvia; projects with students from all levels and ages between 14 to 21 years. Of course these young people have a say in this book and by having their say, they strengthen the credibility and are able to share personal stories about the adventure involved in creativity.

Young people, in all their diversity, are the largest group of media consumers, often unaware of the content contribution they could make in this media landscape. Through trusting young people and providing them with insights into how the media actually functions, teaching them about editing magic and the basics of drama, we give the next generation the tools for safeguarding autonomy, in a world where young people are mostly subject to media. Personal storytelling is a good first step to gain a grip on the complex process of filmmaking. Through personal stories young people build a close relationship to filmmaking and learn to understand it better. Besides making films it’s very important to actively teach young people how to learn to watch films. This will enable them to become critical media consumers, instead of staying passive couch potatoes.

Very practical steps are outlined in the book with regards to the creative process in order to mobilise a maximum input from a group of students. Structures have been set up that practically fit into double teaching hours in order for deadlines to be met. Conditions set up by the school have to be outlined, and pitfalls are listed for streamlining the creative process. Through coaching young people to go deep into their personal storyline, they become pioneers in their own project and at the same time become conscious about the contribution they make to the image building of young people in general. By breaking conventions and adding their own voice to contribute to tolerance and overcome prejudice, outlining successful cases, including examples of short films, and quotes from young people who’ve gone through a similar process, empowers them.

The book consists of tangible cases that can be transferred by teachers, youth workers, coaches, also outside of the school system.

The book is divided globally into three parts:

  1. Productive: the shooting of film material, organising your material, writing scripts, working specifically with young people through creative exercises fitting to the project, making arrangements and contracts.
  2. Receptive: going through your own rough material, but also actively watching someone else’s material, having discussions about prejudice, talks about the actual film supply and collectively analysing words, images, sounds, perspectives and manipulation through (for instance) music and editing.
  3. Reflective: to get to know your creative abilities, learning to understand the context of the media through exercises and feedback, learning to work with your own material and to better it, how to develop your own film language and how to distinguish something authentic from something fake, finding the axis of: real versus fake.

The book will be published in Dutch and in English. Ryanne Wiener supports the writing process.