24 HRS ROMA OF EUROPE

The 24 HRS ROMA of Europe is a long term Trans Media storytelling community art project in participation with Roma living in Europe.

THE NECESSITY

The majority of Roma people (around 12 million) live in Europe. Most Roma today are present in most EU member states only live in sub urban ghettos, camps or settlements. No ethnic group in Europe suffers more of social exclusion, discrimination and great poverty. Despite the fact the Roma population continues to grow and are Europe’s largest ethnic minority, the Roma have been voiceless for centuries. Due to their oral tradition and not written the other does now much about their culture except maybe for music. Their self-esteem is in general low as they always been socially low on the ladder. As a people and as a culture, the Roma have been and continue to be misrepresented, mythologized, stereotyped, scapegoat and persecuted. Actually the conditions for Roma are even worsening in parts of Europe: the Past year we has seen an upsurge in racist attacks - shootings of families, homes set on fire - as well as forced evictions and the building of walls around settlements. But behind their diffuse collective identity there is an incredibly rich and divers culture we never got to know, a whole world of traditions and values, another viewpoint from which we are not used to see our world, its troubles as well as its beauty. Europe can really not afford another lost generation of Roma !!!!

Why Trans Media ?

The art of trans media is the way that a story is leading us trough the transition between different platforms. We believe it evokes emotion and reinforces the user’s experience. Today we need to focus on long-term projects tackling the roots of exclusion and develop artistic and socially relevant new media made by Roma themselves for the emerging digital platforms. We believe that trans media can tell the divers stories of Roma without boundaries or borders, can be artistically relevant as socially by using multiple media platforms becoming a total artwork. By bolting the platforms and divers media together one creates a unified story world of the Roma people in the EU where inside divers stories can exist. Then it becomes a fully integrated experience as to elicit powerful communication, emotional impact, social change, counter stereotypes, develop talent and connect all the Roma in the EU, but also connect them to their “enemy”. One can reach an enormous wide range of people since trans media does not require literacy to convey information. A better understanding of the Roma and their actual world, will develop respect and tolerance and why no joint action. 

Another element of trans media is that one can participate at the basis as a creator but also as audience (users). Originally storytelling was a participatory experience in times where people sat around campfires and told each other stories. At least in the traditional oral Roma culture. Mass media made this much more a one way experience and trans media takes us back to those participatory days. To participate also allows people to stand up and take action and influence the outcome.  

Starting point in the project is the making of short documentaries together with Roma communities in the EU member states. First the Roma will receive a training in new media skills before realizing their short docs. We believe in a Roma community approach instead individual, even if they are sometimes reluctant. Roma want and can integrate if they are given the opportunity and we respect their identity. Most Roma share the same aspirations as the majority of EU citizens: a home, a decent education for their children, jobs that enable them to provide for their families, and to interact with the majority in their society. The audiovisual education and the active participation they will receive and the creativity and talent that will appear are all tools for their social development and empowerment and also a tool for EU-wide networking with the divers other Roma communities in Europe.  

THE STORY WORLD OF ROMA :

Storyline 1 :

There are the short documentaries ( short docs) made by divers Roma communities in EU countries with as narrative theme “show me your Community”. Once the short docs will start to be online users will be able to surf through the site geographically ( as by country or community ), by timeline ( at least 5 years ) by theme or one can follow an emotional path. Users will be able to communicate with each other via a forum & blogs/vlogs.  

Storyline 2 :

A 2 weekly 25 minute visual with background stories with a narrative theme “Show me your Home” will be based on photographs taken by the Roma of valuable objects for them in their house or caravan.( the professional team is same team who are also supervising and coaching the short docs ). The user will be able to click on an object and discover a video background story about the person living in the house and the relation to the object. ( example photographs, official papers, medicines, clothes make-up, an instrument, food or cooking tools, a toy, schoolbooks, etc etc. ) and see a 5 minute background story related to the person The background documentaries will leave open opportunities for the audience to interact.   

Story line 3 :

When you get people to come to a website there is a need to do something, to be interactive. By creating an animated game with one concrete story line on one important actual Roma topic it will arouse fun playing the game, but the game will be related to the short docs and the background stories as to find answers to continue the game. The game could later be developed in an educational cartoon book for Roma kids.

THE MULTIPLE PLATFORMS

Before travelling to the Roma communities a website has to be created (with a mobile extension) in cooperation with an interdisciplinary team (development, graphic design, animation and system builders) and an editorial team of Roma. The aim is to create a quality, creative and visual site without too much text as still many Roma are illiterate. The site will be in both Romani and English.

Platform 1 :  THE WEBSITE :

The Short Docs will be first shown online on the website. The short docs about their own community will be from 3 to 5 minutes and the Roma will tell their own stories showing the diversity how they live in all the different EU countries and how various interpersonal, social, economic, political and cultural factors shape their lives. For us key issues are active participation and education, intercultural dialogue and creating visibility of the Roma people and their culture.

Besides participation we want to have interactive components on the site for Roma and non-Roma and we will as well host direct communication. Within a timetable we will create the possibility to communicate life with the filmmaking Roma participants and the possible characters in their short-docs.

Home Docs. The professional team will contribute by making unique background stories with as theme “Introduce me to your Home” Photographs of valuable or important objects in the homes of Roma, will be made by the Roma themselves. The professional team will realise background stories around the person and the important object for him of her. Users will be able to follow and discuss the work, but also within a framework influence the divers background stories. The adventures of the professional team are also to be followed on social media as Twitter ,Facebook etc.

The Game. As many and our team we are troubled by the rise in violent incidents and extreme racist acts against Roma populations actually in Europe and in order to raise awareness for this terrible reality and analyze the potential threat to social stability and security we want to create a fictional fun and intelligent game on this issue created by a team of Roma artists and game developers.  

Platform 2 :  WALKING SCREENS

Next to the online platform we wish to create more visibility and to connect the EU citizen in the street with the short docs and clips made by Roma. They will be screened on quality displays + sound attached to backpacks. Volunteers who will be previously briefed  ( to start 2011 is the European year of volunteers) will walk around in the European capitals and in the diverse Roma sub-urban communities with these images on their back to be seen and interact, create interesting discussions and inform EU citizens about the website. Beside the walking screens we will create events in the European cities we work as to screenings in the European cities showing the short docs in public spaces with as support local activities of Roma artists.  Our big public event screen is attached to the mobile unit.    

Platform 3 :  LOCAL and NATIONAL MEDIA and FESTIVALS

The Rotterdam Film Festival showed interest for the project to program part of the short docs and the game in 2013. Next to festivals one can think of screenings on local or national television which as it is a web project would  be interesting to think of new diffusion models with EU TV stations which are not based on exclusivity but non exclusive. It would be interesting to organize an international European screening night with the short docs and with the divers EU broadcasters yearly on the 8^th of April international Roma day. One can think as well about public screenings in public transport, schools or museums.

Platform 4 :  MOBILE APPLICATION FOR THE GAME. 

HOW TO TRAVEL TO THE ROMA COMMUNITIES  

A mobile home production unit “Roma Caravan” will travel a minimum of 5 years in EU countries and stay in sub-urban and urban Roma communities for about 6 weeks. (Countries are for sure the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Macedonia, Kosovo, Serbia, Italy, Spain, The UK and France). During the 6 weeks the participants will have 1 week of training and realize a minimum of 4 short-docs from 3 to 5 minutes during the 5 weeks left in Romani or national language to be translated and subtitled first in English, checked by a Roma editor as to racist language etc. and to be first broadcasted online on the website.

After travelling with the mobile unit as for example 1 year a minimum of around 40 short docs will be realized. The mobile unit will be equipped with cameras, 2 edit units, a small sound studio, production facilities and a projector/beamer to be able to organize events/projections in the communities, schools, cultural centres, and EU cities. We will use a Canon 5D cameras that record directly to cards. There is no videotape or film. We immediately backup the cards onto hard drives and the cards are then sent back to the floor where they are used again.

THE TRAINING

We will give Roma citizens media education ( so important in our time and for the future ) as how to use modern video technology and story telling to create the images of their life and culture.It will be accessible for illiterate as well.To give the participants training is to insure the creative quality of the short-docs, to build their self-confidence and self-esteem and to learn the skills to act for change also on a longer term. Our partner All About Us Film Factory will do the initiate training.

We believe we provide the Roma with self-esteem and respect, working experience and concrete results as for the short docs. They learn on a basic level scripting, camera, sound, editing, interview techniques and producing. We enable them to enrich and put into practice the knowledge they have acquired during the training sessions by making the short docs. To assure this continuation we want to create small studio infra structures in the Roma communities with access to at least 2 computers, a local field producer/video trainer to be hired on a long-term contract to assure the continuation.   

On the long run we hope the trans media project will help to establish small but long term infrastructures and Roma will set up multilateral cooperation projects aiming also to create a  Roma EU web channel TV. 

FUTURE 

After one year there will be a minimum of 40 Short Docs, a minimum of at  an photoreportage made by the Roma on their homes and 26 weekly 25 minutes background Docs and a Roma game. We will seek to interest broadcasters but our first aim is to put the content in the public domain for a certain period so Roma, NGO’s other communities or organizations will be able to create events around the films. Of course every year we will create a DVD with the short docs, background interviews and making off scenes of that year.    

As 24 HRS of Roma is a long term project (minimum 5 years) we have to start the project slowly from the bottom up and will start in Belgium and France ( possible the Netherlands ) and develop it in a constructive time span into a creative European Roma Trans Media Platform.

                        as a Roma friend expressed his view on our project :

                        “You are creating a virtual home for us Roma people”.

Copyright: Anouk Sluizer - May 2010

(Dutch tax and SACD France)

Anouk Sluizer

Zwanenplein 105

1021 CK Amsterdam

Tel: + 31 20 331 86 29

Mob: + 31(0)6 205 280 98  

E-mail: sluiz088@kpnmail.nl

The project was selected at EsoDoc 2009 (Euro Media Program) and followed the training New Media and Social & Human issues.

FINANCING  

For 24 HRS of Roma as it is a long term Trans Media project we have to combine divers Funds and cross financing.

November 2010.

Culture Participation Fund and Media Fund in the Netherlands

EU Media Fund cross media department.

February 2011

Active Civil Society at EU / Strand 3  

March 2011

Roma Education Fund and Soros foundation

October 2011

EU Culture program and ERDF via European Social Fund.

For now our actual partners are partners in crime and no co-financiers or co-producers. Once the project will be starting there are also Funding possibilities via and with our partners on national, regional and local level.

PARTNERS SEPTEMBER 2010 :

Drunken Angel Entertainment, post-production

Transblue, mobile phone server

Euro Keys, European Public affairs

Rotterdam Film Festival

Sunshine Projects

Connecting Cities

Belgium : 24 Hrs Roma / Dirk Celis 

Netherlands:  Doc Eye Film / Joost Verheij and Frank van Reemst

Slovakia:  Mecem /Kristina Magdalenova

Romania: Blue Film / Anca Muresan             

Italy : Sutveiss  

Contact with possible partners are made in:

Macedonia, Hungary, Czech Republic, Spain, Germany and England.

Available :

-HOW TO REACH YOUR AUDIENCE  ?

(On Social Media Marketing)

-STEP BY STEP FUNDING PLAN