PROJECT: BLACK HISTORY TELLERS
CATEGORY: HI M8
SPONSORED: QUEEN’S UNIVERSITY, BBC CHILDREN IN NEED
Overview
Queens University launched the Black History Tellers project to educate young Black people about cinematography and filmmaking. It was intentionally designed to instill cinematographic concepts in the minds of the young people who took part, to maximize their potential as filmmakers.
Methodology
The participants actively participated in all aspects of the production, including setting, filming, and cinematographic concepts. The organizers used a more do-it-yourself approach. The young people from Diverse Youth Ni were divided into many categories, such as producers, directors, runners, cameramen, and women, and they were all very much involved.
The two youngsters (Mustapha and Safia) mounted the two cameras, which were cleverly designed to mimic a podcast and see from various viewpoints.
Michelle Eguaogie and Tatsu did a great job handling the director roles, and Samuel Olatoboson was frequently seen working behind the scenes as the producer, ensuring that everything went according to plan.
Outcome
The podcast, “Challenges Young Black people are faced with while growing up in a white-dominated community,” was completed after four weeks of intensive preparation. Beautifully constructed and well-polished, with thought-provoking conversations from the podcasters themselves, led by the eloquent and intelligent Blessing Niche and the host of other speakers who shared their experiences as young Black children growing up in a predominantly White environment.
The program’s goal was to portray the perspective of young black people growing up in communities predominately populated by white people, and the startling outcome was achieved. One of the articulate podcasters, Gwyne, was mixed-race (her mother was from Zimbabwe, her father was from the United States).
Michelle Ekwueme, a different podcaster who joined the show halfway through, was also well-known.
