Blog 10: Feedback on the Module and Group Collaboration

The last and final week of submission we showed our work to our tutor Boyd and asked for his feedback before submitting. He gave us some valuable feedback and we made the necessary changes as pointed out by him in our website.

About the Module and Group Collaboration

This module was very interesting as learned a lot of wonderful things and worked on it. My group members especially were very supportive and had the same drive in giving our best by working together collaboratively. Though we had different SDG’s and problems in mind during the beginning of the module we found a common ground everyone agreed upon and started doing our research on it. During class we shared our ideas among us and gave each other the equal space and opportunity to put forward their ideas. During the process of collating our artefacts we learned to give and take our observations avoiding any kind of disagreement. Communication was our major key in successfully completing this module as a group, we voiced out our opinions and were open to suggestions and feedback without any hesitation.

This module helped us focus on a current problem and be aware of our surroundings teaching us on how technology can be used to initiate and bring a change in our society starting from a local community. Instead of focusing on the public by focusing on one particular community in our case the international student community we were able to identify a problem, analyse it more deeply, come up with possible solutions and policy changing measures. The major challenge we faced was time management as we had other modules to focus on as well, but we managed to arrange meetings where everyone was available and discussed through group chat on WhatsApp catching up on each other. We were happy with the final outcome of our work as we had achieved what we aimed for ready to submit. 

Altogether it was a worthy and meaningful experience of working in this module with my amazing team having a great rapport, understanding and respect for each other from the beginning till the end. Also both of our tutors Ben and Boyd were supportive and helpful giving us valuable feedbacks and suggestions when needed, making the the class participate in various activities and games thus, making this module a fun, interesting and exciting learning experience. 

Blog 9: Final Production Week

This week was all about filming the LARP activity, documenting and editing the documentary. For the LARP we had everything ready, we decided to conduct in on 9^th November in Ellen Terry Building. The activity was based on Model UN, where we divided our audience into international student union and the UK government. A scenario was given to them on which they had to debate and defend their team and come up with a resolution, we had a trial run within ourselves first all of which is recorded and documented in our documentary.

The scenario was – the UK government is planning on removing the 20hr work limit for all students as they are allowed only to focus on their studies until graduation. We decided to divide the audience equally by chit method, where everyone must pick a chit which are namely international student and the UK government and must defend their side with valuable pointers.

POSTER CAMPGAIN

 

We circulated our posters in the Coventry university campus and then started with editing our documentary. We began the process of designing our website adding all the contents needed to make it more detailed of the work we did and our vision of what we wanted to achieve. By the end of the week everything was done, the documentary was put together and came out well, our posters received a great reception and the LARP activity came by as we wanted it to. Finally, all of this including the written content was published in our website with the links to all our blogs and a final check on the accessibility of our website was done before submission. We ran through all the contents individually and as a group to make final corrections if needed.

LARP ACTIVITY

FINAL PLNNING AND PRODUCTION

 

 

Blog 8: AR Activism

Augmented reality (AR) is an interacting experience of a real-life environment in which real-world items are enriched by virtual perceptual data, sometimes across multiple sensory modalities, including auditory, olfactory, visual, haptic, and somatosensory. AR is a strategy that meets three simple goals: a combination of real and virtual worlds, real-time communication, and accurate 3D capture of virtual and actual items (Bhosale et al., 2021). The article ‘Understanding AR Activism….’  was a good read, offering a lot of insights by connecting AR - an area I had little knowledge about and activism as one term.

Firstly, the amount of reception AR has gained in the recent times and the fact that it also used for something like activism is commendable. The term ‘activist tech’ is interesting as it indicates how technology can be used to bring a change and make people aware of the problems in the society. Both AR creators and activists are brought together sharing a similar vision of making people change their perspectives and AR does this by physically changing the surroundings that people view by augmenting them. Instead of explaining it to the public it helps them to experience it making them understand the situation in a more realistic way.

Secondly, focusing on the participants and questions of the interviews, it was very brief, helping the reader understand the creative perspectives, the thought process and the output of an event by hearing it from the creators themselves. The use of simple vocabulary rather than using complicated terms is notable because anyone with no prior knowledge about AR can read and understand this article easily. The term ‘benefit activism’ is the use of AR to tell expressive and emotional stories through immersive experience to make the audience empathize with our story. I feel this a need of the hour because with so much war and chaos going on across the world among the nations most of the people have become insensitive and choose to ignore the issues when they have the power to change and stand against it.

In the era of print media, newspapers, journals, and books were extensively used by activists then to express their thoughts and anger with an aim to instigate social, economic, or political change. Then when television was introduced, it was also used as a tool to spread awareness as audio- visual medium like television and films could reach to wider audience than books. After that the internet and social media platforms were more effective. Now AI, AR, VR are all used to spread activism that applies to all human senses mering the real and unreal into one entity. All these technological advancements have both boon and bane, they can help an individual explore their creative side as well as take it away from them. But if used in the right manner for a right cause like the examples and creators mentioned in the article it can most definitely be beneficial and bring about the change that is needed in the world.

GROUP WORK

In our class during 8^th week, we learnt how to use AR tools in creating our campaigns which was fun and insightful. As a group we tried different tools in the app and had a trial run with the tutors. 

Apart from that, we met outside class to update each other on the progress we have made on the artefacts and finalised the rules, event and scenario for our LARP activity.

SNIPPETS FROM OUR CLASS ACTIVITY

REFERENCES

 Bhosale, S. S., Patil, R. B., & Karjulkar, J. (2021). Augmented reality. ResearchGate. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352477822_Augmented_Reality

 

Silva, R. M. L., Cruz, E. P., Rosner, D. K., Kelly, D., Monroy-Hernández, A., & Liu, F. (2022c). Understanding AR Activism: An Interview Study with Creators of Augmented Reality Experiences for Social Change. CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. https://doi.org/10.1145/3491102.3517605

 

 

Blog 7: Group Progress & Production

Week 7 was dedicated to reading and production. We decided to have a meeting to track our progress and further plan on the things we need to focus on regarding the artefacts. Our initial plan for the three artefacts was a video documentary, a guerrilla projection campaign, and an ad busting poster. During a class activity we were asked to come up with a simple LARP game which helped us to come up with two suggestions out of which we chose to continue with the one based on Model UN. As all the group members liked that idea for LARP we decided to include it in our artefacts. We already had a plan for the documentary and poster campaign, we were in the process of brainstorming ideas for the Guerrilla projection and were struck on how to plan and execute it, so we decided to drop the projection mapping from the artefacts instead we added the LARP activity as our third artefact. The reason for this is that we already had a rough outline for it and only needed to expand on the outline by framing the rules, implementing, and documenting it. We set the weekend as our deadline to finish the LARP activity by fully developing it.

Poster Campaign

After finalising to go ahead with the LARP activity we started to work on our poster. The aim of our poster campaign was to make people aware of the employment issues faced by international students in the UK. We wanted to keep our poster very simple and straightforward to get across our message to our audience. In today's world digitalized world and everything circulating online posters and pamphlets do not have the momentum they used to have unless they are attractive to capture the attention of the audience. Our target audience were the international audience primarily; hence the plan was to come up with something attractive to grab their attention to come and have a look at our poster.

The sign ‘Hiring now’ is something most of the international students and graduates are looking for continuously all the time for survival in an unknown nation. Being international students ourselves it was easier for us to come up with certain ideas that could resonate with our audience that lead up to put up the ‘Hiring Now’ now sign to indicate how most of the job agencies put those wordings in large bold letters to attract the students for part time and graduates for full time job but in reality  though they get the job the shifts are scarcely available making them ‘ employed but jobless’ which is another form of unemployment. Through the poster we wanted to establish a statement thus we started to come up with suggestions for captions and came up with few of them. We finalised on the statement that ‘Decent work is the need of the hour’ posing a question of agreement to our audience and planned to invite them by adding the details of the LARP activity we will be conducting after developing on the outline and plan of action. Instead of separately inviting the audience for the LARP by including it in the poster we thought that we could get their attention on both our artefacts in one stroke.

Video Documentary

For the video documentary we had started filming ourselves whenever we had our meeting outside class and filmed the in-class activities we did during our lectures. The aim of our documentary was to record how we collaborated with each other from deciding on our SDG, gathering the artefacts, researching, and finally implementing it.

 

Blog 6: Model UN and LARPING

LARP is an abbreviation for Live Action Role-Playing. It is an interactive activity in which viewers physically portray imaginary characters. The fundamental purpose of LARPing is to immerse players in a collaborative narrative experience, enabling them to discover and engage with a fictional world as their respective characters.

A Model United Nations (MUN) LARP (Live Action Role-Playing) would involve people acting as delegates from different nations and engaging in simulated diplomatic negotiations and debates. MUN is an educational simulation in which students often role-play as representatives to the United Nations and imitate UN committees. The usual structure of a MUN LARP could be modified to incorporate more immersive and interactive aspects (McIntosh,2001)

LARP ACTIVITY 1

For the LARP activity our group came up with two ideas. The first idea is ‘Youth Empowerment’ where the audience is divided into three groups (1) Start up/ local business owners (2) Corporate Employees (3) Labour workers. A scenario will be given to them on topics like employment crisis, inflation, wage problem, missing skill sets etc. Each of the three groups will be asked to come up with solutions or a plan of action to solve the crisis.

For example: The scenario is mass inflation going on in the country so what kind of financial plan can be implemented to control the crisis?

Some of the possible measures the groups may come up with are.

·       Cost Control - Examine your expenses and search for ways to cut costs without sacrificing the quality of your products or services. Investigate bulk purchasing, negotiate better terms with vendors, and optimise your supply chain.

·       Investing Smartly: Investing in technology or process changes that can boost efficiency and lower costs in the long run.

·       Keep an eye on customer behaviour: Analysing how inflation affects the purchasing habits of the clients. Some people may be prepared to pay a higher price for comfort or quality, whilst others may become more budget sensitive.

ACTIVITY 2

The second activity suggested was based on Model UN where the audience are expected to role play representing four countries namely India, Nigeria, Canada, and United Kingdom.  A scenario will be given to them where they will have to debate and come up with a resolution on which each country agrees upon. 

The scenario is based on SDG 8 which is ‘Decent work and economic growth’, UK and Canada are two developed countries where the international student intake is the highest and are currently facing employment issues along with immigration. Whereas Nigeria and India are two developing countries from where majority of the student population are leaving these countries to study and settle in abroad as the economic situation in the developing countries has not improved compared to the developed countries because the youth are not getting decent jobs which is the major reason for them to move to countries like the UK and Canada for education and job purposes. The participants representing each country must defend stating valuable points, in the end, considering each other’s point and they will have to come up with a plan or policy to deal with the employment issue in their own country.

The aim of both these activities is to come up with ideas and policy changing measures where everyone agrees with, is plausible and possible to implement by analysing through SDG 8 and targeting our audience – the international students.

 

 REFERENCES

LARPBook. (2019, December 30). Tools - LARPBook. https://larpbook.com/tools/

McIntosh, D. (2001). The Uses and Limits of the Model United Nations in an International Relations Classroom. International Studies Perspectives, 2, 269–280.

 

 

Blog 5: Activism through Digital Media and Group Collaboration

 

As I was reading the article ‘YouTube as an alternative media for digital activism in documentary film creative industry’ by Marina Rospitasari, there were a few meaningful points and insights that I wanted to analyse and share in this blog. The very first point in the fact that how digital media especially social media platforms have been used today excessively to spread digital activism and spread awareness rather than the traditional methods like protesting on the streets and poster campaigns which are still practiced but are also incorporated into digital activism. The author in this article focuses mainly on YouTube and documentary films – two audio visual mediums when collaborating with each other can bring a desired effect on the audience.

Secondly, digital media is a form of participatory media, where users from any part of the world can interact with and participate through their mobile phones or laptops. Social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube were great sources and mediums to spread activism and bring social change in past few years. It is a great medium that can be used to raise the voices of oppressed and marginalized, the author has given an example from Indonesia. Similarly, I would like to give an example from my country India about the Dalit community as I mentioned in my pervious blogs. Social media platforms especially YouTube was used by the singers and rappers from the marginalised groups as they wrote songs and released them and used narrative methods to explain their plight and spread awareness on their situation. Apart from that, films were also a wonderful medium that raised the subaltern concerns in India, from documentaries to independent films though they do not receive the response like commercial films they are still recognized by the audience and the filmmakers continue to raise political and social awareness by making these films and documentaries.

GROUP COLLABORATION

As a group while we were discussing these points, we also gained an idea on the ways we can shape our documentary and posters. We discussed on how we can film the documentary, where to start, what do we needed to keep in mind and the editing process. We decided on filming the process we undertook while working on the posters, projection mapping campaigns, our discussions, and other individual and group activities. Through that we also wanted to showcase our collaboration with each other while we had similar ideas and also if we had any disagreements or challenges during the process and how we overcame it unanimously. The meeting dates outside of class was also fixed and the work was divided among the team on what each person must do, the work was given according to their specialty like someone was good with writing so ideas for coming up with caption for the poster was given to them, someone was good with videos and editing they took the responsibility for documentary. We divided our parts in such a way that even if a member was not able to attend the meeting, they could update on the progress through group chat in WhatsApp. Thus, all these things were finalized to begin our work, and deadlines were set for our next meeting in the coming weeks.

 REFERENCES

Rospitasari, M. (2021). Youtube as alternative media for digital activism in documentary film creative industry. Jurnal Studi Komunikasi, 5(3), 665–692. https://doi.org/10.25139/jsk.v5i3.3779

 

Blog 4: Guerrilla Projection Mapping, Image Theatre and Group Progress

 

Guerrilla Projection Mapping

Guerrilla projection mapping is an innovative and unorthodox kind of projection mapping that frequently involves the use of projectors to display dynamic graphics or animations on various surfaces in public locations without formal licence or permits. It is often an underground or unofficial art form, and it is sometimes considered a kind of street art or activism.

I find this idea of projection mapping fascinating for several reasons. Some of them are as follows:

·       Flexibility: It can be used anywhere making use of little products to big buildings

·       Interactive: Creates an immersive experience for the audience, fostering emotional connections through magnificent displays and visual narratives.

·       Cheap and Reliable: To deliver our message, we only need one projector. It also takes into account the particular shape and texture of items or building facades to create stunning pictures that blend in perfectly with their environment.

·       Unconventional and Innovative:  It goes beyond traditional advertising strategies by combining creative expression with limitless design and content possibilities.

·       Revolutionary: Effective results with minimum resource investment through collaboration. Helps to spread awareness and make the vision a reality.

 Some of the Guerrilla Projection Mapping I found interesting

                                                image cc: motion mapping

                                                  image cc : motion mapping

                                            Image cc: Amnesty international guerrilla campaign

Image Theatre

Image Theatre, a type of drama and improvisational theatre, was invented by Augusto Boal, a Brazilian theatre practitioner. Boal was a key figure in the development of Theatre of the Oppressed, a broader theatrical and political organisation that attempts to engage audiences in conversations about social and political concerns. Image Theatre is one of the tactics employed in Theatre of the Oppressed.

Image Theatre participants create a series of still pictures or tableaux that reflect a specific idea, concept, or scenario. These visuals are typically physical representations of abstract or concrete ideas. The use of the body, facial emotions, and spatial interactions in the image transmit meaning to the viewer. It heightens awareness of how we all interpret what we see and how we all (as individuals or civilizations) tend to believe our perception is "right" or "objective." Furthermore, working with visuals avoids favouring individuals who are more linguistically skilled or native speakers of the language being utilised. The purpose of Theatre of the Oppressed, unlike traditional theatre, is not to attain equilibrium. The narrative cannot resolve the difficulties; they must be settled in real life (Burns,2007).

 

What I understood from both Guerrilla Projection Mapping and Image Theatre is that they are both unconventional yet powerful tools in conveying strong messages across the community if rightly used. They are a kind of protests that do not use actual voice to voice out their concerns rather use visual mediums to communicate with the audience and spread awareness as most of the times visual images can be captivating and to the point rather than giving an explanation which is sometimes ignored or unheard.

 

Group Work

As a group we worked on projection mapping images brainstorming ideas and inspirations on how we can get our message across our target audience. 

 

                                                     

This image was created with the aim to reach out to our target Altogether it was a worthy and meaningful experience of working in this module with my amazing team having a great rapport, understanding and respect for each other from the beginning till the end.
on the plight of International students and graduates in the UK, who do not have decent job opportunities after their studies, often discriminated due to other factors main reason being foreigners even while having the required skills and qualifications. If this situation continues to extend it could leave them with the only option of returning to their own country with all the debts to deal with and stress of unemployment. 

REFERENCES

Amnesty International Guerrilla Marketing Campaign. (n.d.).

https://altterrain.com/guerilla-marketing-building-projection-advertising-washington-dc-campaign/

Burns, M. A. (2007). Theatre of the Oppressed. ResearchGate. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/285925110_Theatre_of_the_Oppressed

Farmer, D. (2019, September 18). Image Theatre - drama resource. Drama Resource. https://dramaresource.com/image-theatre/

Photo Gallery | Some of our WOWs | Motion mapping. (2022, August 8). Motion Mapping. https://motionmapping.co.uk/ourwork/gallery/page/2/?gallery_cat=guerilla_projection

Toolbox — beautiful trouble. (n.d.). Beautiful Trouble. https://beautifultrouble.org/toolbox/tool/guerrilla-projection