Week 3: Transformational Storytelling
All
Claire Marshall: Welcome to week 3
(4 mins)
Counterpoints:
Colonisation > Commons
Competition > Collaboration
Commodification/ Consumerism > Complexity / Citizens
Centralisation > Community
Continual growth > Contentment / Constant Change
Prof Chris Riedy: Transformational Storytelling
(20 mins)
Links to find out more:
Professor Chris Riedy
Chris Riedy is Professor of Sustainability Transformations at the Institute for Sustainable Futures, University of Technology Sydney. Chris is a transdisciplinary action researcher with a focus on sustainability transformations. He uses sociological and political theory, narrative theory and futures thinking to design, facilitate and evaluate practical experiments in transformative change towards sustainable futures.
Action:
Chris has the following advice for building transformative stories, have a think about how you can incorporate these into your storytelling:
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Defining a clear, modest and evaluable vision of success for their storytelling
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Building a theory of change for how their story will reach a specific audience they are asking to change
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Getting to know the memes, story tropes and archetypes that appeal to a particular audience and using these to craft more compelling stories
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Using memes that help discourses to emerge and strengthen that support the transformative changes we need
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Capturing attention by using trusted messengers and characters, evoking social norms, making stories salient, concrete and tangible, and connecting with audience emotions
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Giving the audience a clear path to action, and facilitating the meaning-making processes that help them to build agency.
Ljudan Michaelis-Thorpe: The Transformational Voice
(20 mins)
Ljudan Michaelis-Thorpe
Ljudan Michaelis-Thorpe is a proud Bidjara and Dhunghutti woman from Australia. She created Women in Screen Enterprise (WISE) to produce a slate of powerful screen content with strong female driven and First Nations oriented narratives. The social enterprise arm of this production house is designed to promote and create opportunities for women from diverse backgrounds to find creative pathways into the screen industry through a supportive and caring environment.
Action:
1. Reset your electromagnetic field by bouncing barefoot on grass, sand or soil.
2. Write down one beautiful thing you love to do in your normal day. Share that with another person. Invite them to try it.
Climate
Katie Patrick: Why Optimism and Creativity will save the planet.
(18 mins)
Jodi Boylan: Transforming Stories
(21 mins)
Jodi Boylan
A seasoned producer and director with extensive experience show running, writing and directing award winning programs specialising in the factual, documentary, lifestyle, reality & entertainment genres. Skilled story-teller, people manager, broadcast and digital content creator.
Action:
Pick a film or tv series that exists and create a 'climate transformed' episode description/log line to share in the lab.
Here's an example.
Genre: Political Drama
Logline: A huge protest against an oil pipeline is raging outside the White House. When a famous indigenous youth activist, Melanie, recieves mutliple death threats, Olivia wants to help but has a conflict of interest: Melanie has uncovered that President Grant's campaign donors are major funders of fossil fuel pipelines.
the campfire
As we get into the thick of the content, it might be useful for us to think about what we are sharing at the campfire. As you know we are not 'pitching projects' but rather sharing ideas for change, frameworks, new ways of doing things.
The Good Energy Playbook is an excellent example of the kinds of things we could do..
Equity
Ade Djajamihardja : Transforming the stories of self
(21 mins)
Ade Djajamaiharddja
Indonesian Australian Ade Djajamihardja is the co-founder of A2K Media alongside his wife, Kate Stephens. A2K shifted into a disability led production company after Ade survived 2 strokes. Ade strives for not just integrity of product, but also integrity of process. Ade and Kate work in the most holistic and inclusive way possible, by respecting people’s access requirements and providing cultural safety. Their screen industry-specific Disability Justice training and advocacy empowers screen practitioners to challenge the status quo and has been taught at the Australian Film and Television Radio School (AFTRS). Ade also loves to use humour where he can, because after all, humour is the ultimate universal connector. A2K are developing a disability led comedy series, Tales from the Crips.
Action:
Ade said that when he was spending so much time in hospital, he learned that the battle is won and lost in your mind. When has future imagining helped you overcome something in your life?
List 5 things that you are truly grateful for. List 5 things that made you laugh.
Bonus
We have had some great resources shared by the participants. Please feel free to send in anything you think will be valuable for the group and I will share it here.
Ronnie shared this great reflective letter writing tool.
https://emergencemagazine.org/essay/the-serviceberry/ (and anything else by RWK)
https://generativeleaders.co/episode/stories-are-the-fuel-to-ignite-change (Swans! Hunters! Flying conservationist!)
https://www.lifeworld.earth/episodes-blog/fungigiulianafurci (and this podcast more generally - lovely example of the assumptive approach)
https://seedaschool.substack.com/p/our-only-job-is-tending-to-our-imagination (i love the term ‘anti-disciplinary’, and Ayana’s commitment to art in resistance)