Lights, Cameras, Action

Power to Change project participants were invited to be apart of a short film Doc Media Centre has been commissioned to create for the NHS.

Saturday morning three of the youth participants from the Power to Change project, were up, energised, excited and nervous but prepared for their moment in front of the bright lights and cameras for their debut roles on screen, as they stepped into the under belly of the Phoenix cinema Leicester, into the studios where they were greeted by a film crew of five from Doc Media Centre whom after screen testing the youth participants on a previous visit to one of Content Creator group sessions where Doc Media delivered a workshop on Documentary film making, invited the group to be a part of an educational film they making for the NHS.

The three participants were made to feel comfortable and relaxed as it was explained in detail what and how everything works, before being shown a Teleprompter for the first and that is where they will read their lines from, all this seem daunting with the massive stage light right in front of their faces, but they quickly adapted and got into their roles, went over their lines and stepped up to their marks on the floor, with the blue backdrop and main lights off the atmosphere was set as each of our Power to Change participants, that since joining the project have overcome many adversaries in life to display a brilliant performance but expressing confidence of a seasoned professional, hitting all their cues and following the directors instructions perfectly, receiving only praise from the film crew

After two hours of filming the trios job was completed, they seem in awe of the experience and themselves for actually doing it, for some of the participants the thought of standing in front of a camera and reading lines with bright lights and strangers staring intently at them is a terrifying situation. But what the Power to Change project is offering young people is the opportunity to build the confidence and character to tackle these types of fears.

We hear a lot about youth voices but first we must help the youth unlock the confidence to express that voice, so on the Power to Change project Content Creators groups we try to encourage the youth to try new things, to never stop learning new skills and one of the key elements to success is networks and connections with your fellow human beings.

So, to summarise, it was a delightful morning at the Phoenix cinema with the Doc media Centre crew, the youth faced some fears, gained vital knowledge towards their own media development and future plans but also to be involved in such a film that will go on to help so many other young people.. We cannot wait to view the premiere of the film at the NHS Leicester’s AGM later this month.