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WHAT IS IT?
REELATE is a web‐based initiative that develops and showcases stories about Canton
artists, activists, leaders, and unique citizens. Through micro‐documentaries, these stories
make connections between people, ideas and actions in the Canton area.
Every six months, 20 storytellers will enter a story‐development process and produce
micro‐documentaries about Canton people which will then be hosted on the reelate.org
website and be pushed out to various social networking sites.
WHAT’S A MICRODOCUMENTARY?
These “micro‐documentaries” are simply short movies (about 5 minutes long) which tell a
story about a person or a project based in Canton.
Depending on the artists developing them, these multi‐media stories might include still
photos, video footage, music, film, voice‐over narratives, interviews, inter‐title cards or
many other mixed‐media representative forms.
In our seminar, we’ll teach a specific form to help storytellers find their voice.
WHY A WEBBASED INITIATIVE?
Too often we don’t know our neighbors, let alone the people who live in the neighborhoods
we commute through. We have shared interests just because we live so near one another.
Wouldn’t it be better to know more about each other?
Our hope is that the connecting power of Web 2.0 will be combined with the powerful
connections stories can forge between people – building people’s interest and investment in
local concerns, local voices and local artists.
WHO WILL MAKE THESE STORIES?
In January, 2009, REELATE will pilot the project. We’ll gather 20 storytellers – students,
professional videographers, local artists and absolute novices – and help them develop
micro‐documentaries through a series of training sessions, individual mentorship and
production support. You can apply to be one of them by applying at our website –
REELATE . ORG
Each half year, a new cohort of storytellers will enter the program, and through the training
seminars, develop new stories to be added to the web.
WHAT IS THE “DEVELOPMENT CYCLE”?
SESSION ONE: PrePlanning the Process: (two hours) Storytellers meet each other and
program coaches. Watch several stories. Tips for committing to the right story. Ethical
issues of storytelling and stories. Overview of the entire process (with example). Tips for
recruiting help (finding music, artists and technicians). Review of Timeline.
2
SESSION TWO: Shaping the Story: (one hour) Storytellers share their stories.
Storyboarding skills taught. Principles of good storytelling. Q & A between storytellers and
coaches.
INDIVIDUAL MENTORSHIP: Each storyteller will be assigned a story‐coach. Story‐coaches
will be experienced media producers who will help the storyteller solve story problems,
technical glitches and serve as a communication conduit to facilitators and grant directors.
Each storyteller will meet with their story‐coach at least once between session one and two.
STORY BUILDING: Each storyteller will collect images and narratives during this period,
shaping and reshaping their stories. Grant directors and story‐coaches will offer production
support during this time, aiding in scheduling, obtaining legal rights (when necessary), and
making connections between artists, technicians, storytellers and story‐subjects.
SESSION THREE: Digitizing Materials: (one hour) Introduction to the technical tools
needed for uploading photos, videos, and audio recordings to computers. Hands on
practice.
SESSION FOUR: Pulling Things Together: (four hours) A brief overview of the editing
process (many will have already started to edit). Intensive editing session including
collaborative involvement from story‐coaches and facilitators.
WHAT IS THE TIMELINE?
December 11 – 5:30 Storyteller Focus Group
January 8 – 5:30 Storyteller Focus Group
January 15 – 5:00pm Storyteller Application Deadline
January 23 – Storytellers Announced
February 5 – 6:00pm SESSION ONE: Preplanning the process
February 6 – April 16 Storytellers & Storycoaches meet
March 3– 6:00pm SESSION TWO: Shaping the Story
April 16 – 6:00pm SESSION THREE: Digitalizing Materials
May 16 – 9:00am SESSION FOUR: Pulling Things Together
May 21 – 7 pm – REELATE celebration / screening.