Research and Development

Presentation at the 1st Taiwan International Children's TV and Film Festival (January 9-13, 2004)
By Vahid Vahed

(Global Community Cultural Development and Screen Culture activities utilizing Information Technology)

COMMUNITY CULTURAL DEVELOPMENT
Australia is a mini world that has citizens, which formed communities from diverse cultural backgrounds and is also a fertile testing ground to implement Community Cultural Development initiatives and strategies. Nearly 15 years ago, Australia Council for the Arts initiated a 10 years policy entitled 'Multicultural Arts for Multicultural Australia' in order to establish links between culturally diverse communities. This policy was a way to confirm and preserve the heritage of each culture re-presented in Australia as oppose to White Australia policy practiced since the colonization by Anglo Europeans nearly 200 years ago.

Community Cultural Development is a process to recognize the diversity and complexity of ideas and cultures as an integral part of establishing links between communities and individuals locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. The outcome of Community Cultural Development practices is often hybrid and embedded in the process as an expression and/or exchange of ideas through various artistic and cultural forms, which ultimately creates a universal language.

The communication gap between countries, states, cities, communities and individuals is disappearing since Information Technology is shaping the world to be a closer community devoid of borders. This 21 century technological revelation allows diverse ideas and cultures to transcend their originalities to the rest of the globe by only pressing a button on a laptop, mobile phone or a finger touch computer screen refrigerator's door.

Since New Technology has abolished the concept of space and time in communication process, the Community Cultural Development initiatives and strategies have been implemented globally to establish greater understanding of the world's unique social, cultural, political and economical position. The main facet of New Technology is its cost effectiveness for many economically disadvantaged communities and individuals that have no adequate budget to access information and exchange ideas.

SCREEN CULTURE AND AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT
Since the invention of moving images over 100 years ago, Screen Culture Development strategies have been struggling to reach wider communities globally due to political and economical as well as technological limitations. Screen Culture Development has been implementing strategies to develop diverse audiences to appreciate moving images not only from the Hollywood apparatus but also from the community's social, cultural, artistic and political perspectives through non-Hollywood productions.

Traditionally, Screen Culture activities always utilized film festivals as platform to introduce new ideas from around the world to their respective audience but now with the presence of Television, Satellite and digital Technology, audience is allowed to experience and appreciate moving images from various artistic and technological forms. New Technology and multimedia applications provide an alternative root to create moving images not only by professionals but also by communities and individuals that are interested in this field. Therefore, the moving images industry is shifting from being exclusive to inclusive.

Since Information Technology has become a way of communication in the new millennium, it is also bringing about major changes in the way of seeing the world and ultimately creating new ways of being. These changes can occur during a long-term process beginning with children in school and at home that have access to information and multimedia applications that will empower youngsters to create their own unformulated and unrestricted expressions and representations. As a result of this overwhelming freedom through cyber space, many taboo expressions and discourses are equally represented along with already established ideas. Taboos such as amateur and/or unprofessional image-makers are no longer applicable since the quality of images is often enhanced and manipulated through various Digital FX processes by the 21st century image-makers.

Media literacy practices such as forums and workshops are gateways to develop an understanding to differentiate between the saturation of moving images that are already loaded with preconceived definitions and the images that are demanding the audience to contribute by completing the meaning from their own social, cultural, economical and political periphery.
KIDS IN THE PICTURE
Children and young people are among the groups that are not represented in decision-making process and often dependent on the adults' projection to find their identities. In the past decade, children and youth have been utilizing New Technology towards their own advantage and realizing that the real link with the world without being excluded is the Information Highways offered to explore by this revolutionary technology.

Since many organizations are set up to assist children and youth in making representation before the New Technology era such as CIFEJ are finding it very easy to widen their focus and transcend the aims and objectives of the organization via electronic communication tools. On the other hand, many organizations are formed that focus solely on utilizing New Technology to produce, present, promote and distribute works that are about/for or merely made by children and youth globally. New Technology is providing the knowledge and opportunity for many youngsters to manage and represent their own affairs rather than relying on adults and/or professionals to guide them with the adequate information.

ICYMAN (International Children and Youth Multimedia Access Network) is one of the organizations that is administrated and coordinated by young people under 22 years of age utilizing New Technology to promote and present its aims and objectives to wider constituents globally.

ICYMAN is a community cultural development and screen culture initiative in the Western Sydney region supported by the Australia Council for the Arts, Norwegian Film Institute, SAF (School of Animated Films, Croatia) and CIFEJ (International Centre of Films for Children and Young People, Canada) was launched at the 2nd International Film Festival for Children and Young Adults in Buenos Aries during November 2003.

In February 2004, ICYMAN will be launching a virtual database to commence networking between children, youth and relevant organizations locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. ICYMAN focuses on Information Technology and multimedia activities to connect children, youth and relevant organizations globally, and also be utilized as a virtual platform for cultural, artistic and personal development and expressions.

This is an opportunity to present young people from culturally diverse backgrounds in the Western Sydney region as one of the forefronts in networking and implementing new ways of expressions. The gathered information will be available on the project's website for community access, as well as being compiled in a comprehensive booklet by 2005. Also, the multimedia works produced by children and youth in the year 2004-5 will be presented and promoted not only during the 7th and 8th Editions Auburn International Film and Video Festival for Children and Young Adults but in many other national and international film, video and multimedia festivals.

By the year 2005, ICYMAN will become a key organization for cultural and artistic development of children and young people in Western Sydney region with a global perspective, through initiating, devising and presenting projects utilizing New Technology, and audience development strategies. As well as establishing links with communities, children, youth, multimedia centres, festivals, arts and cultural organizations locally, nationally and internationally.

Aims and objectives:

1. To lobby and advocate on behalf of children and youth in Western Sydney to gain access to Information Technology, Multimedia, Film and Video and Electronic art as the 21st Century forms of expression.

2. To initiate and establish an infrastructure entitled ICYMAN 'International Children and Youth Multimedia Access Network', that functions as a platform to address children and youth issues globally, administrated by culturally diverse children and youth of Western Sydney.

3. To initiate and develop CCD and Screen Culture activities through exchange programs locally, regionally, nationally and internationally to reach a greater understanding of the intertexuality and complexities in the social, cultural and political make up of each area, region or country.

Conceptual Workshop
Participants: Children 10-12 years old

Conceptual and practical workshop with primary students to view and vote for best works made by children and youth from Auburn International Film and Video Festival for Children and Young Adults 'winners compilation 2003', as well as writing and presenting own written stories during the workshop and voting for the best script. The duration of the workshop will not exceed 2 hours and 30 minutes.

Child Produced 4-14 years old

A Good Heart Ashden Walker, Live Action 4'30" Australia 2003 (Winner 1st Place)
"An African girl struggles to fit in to her new school in northern part of Queensland, Australia. In a race at school, a white boy who does not like her pushes her off and prevents her from winning. As the result of this incident the teacher will give warning to the boy to not do it again and behave with proper manners and respect for others."

ANTS Children aged 8-13, Animation 2'29" Croatia 2003 (3rd Place)
"Elementary drawing animation of a Story about a Lazy Ant who does not want to do his work like others."

CHOMP William Allsop / Channel Free, Experimental 4' Australia 2002
"An experimental film about a young boy studying at home but instead he begins to draw random lines, which are from Television. But the illuminating television light distorts the image and can only hear unrelated abstract sound."

Flying Pancakes Children aged 7-12, Animation 2'06" Croatia 2003
"Elementary drawing animation about a pancake who decides to make jokes with people and throws itself around in most inconvenient ways obstructing people who are working in the market."

Bully Duster Trinity Catholic Collage, Live Action 5' Australia 2003
"Miss Dust is a new teacher at school and zaps every student with her cane who cannot solve a mathematical problem. Until a bright student solves the problem and she gets zapped and disappears. Then she finds herself in a Rose Garden where she is so happy smelling the flowers and sniffing fresh air."

Sugar and Spice Katerina Lonergan / Channel Free, Experimental 4' Australia 2003
"Life as an adolescent is not all sugar and spice…a freeze frame in the inertia of life at school. An experimental film showing four girls in the school yard, walking in the bush and studying hard for exam."

Winston Gene Alberts / Channel Free, Experimental 4' Australia 2003 (2nd Place)
"To conform to the average life of a male, is to conform to the average thinking in the mind."

September 2003

Who is behind the lens now?
Madalene Chu Interviews Vahid Vahid from CINEWEST and Ariyan Daly from ICYMAN about their international adventures in the intersecting worlds of CCD and the film industry.

Supported with a Fellowship from the Australia Council for the Arts and funding from the NSW Film and Television office, Vahid Vahed has established CINEWEST, a Screen culture and ccd organisation based in Western Sydney. The organisation has grown from his previous work at the Auburn Community Development Network, and continues to grow the Auburn International Film and Video Festival for Children and Young Adults as its flagship event. Vahid also has an international profile as a promoter of film by children and youth, and as the Vice-President of UNESCO's CIFEJ, (International Centre of Films for Children and Young People).

MC: How does your experience as the Australian representative of CIFEJ and UNESCO allow you to interact with other film festivals on an international scale?
VV: UNESCO and UNICEF conceived CIFEJ in 1955, which allows every country recognized by United Nations to have representation on it. For nearly fifty years CIFEJ objectives has been lobbying and advocating children's issues through audio and visual art forms, as well as providing a platform for an international community of children, youth and relevant organizations. CIFEJ originally had Australian representatives but not in recent years! In 2001, CINEWEST became a member and I was nominated as a board director, and subsequently elected as the Vice President. All CIFEJ members have similar concerns regarding children and youth issues, and they all share global strategies to address isolated experiences in different parts of the world.

MC: What are the differences and similarities between the Australian children and youth film festival and children film festivals around the world?
VV: Unfortunately, as our network expands across the world, we realize that unlike the Auburn International Film and Video Festival for Children and Young Adults, children are not included in decision making about their own welfare culturally, artistically or politically, and often have no status socially. Due to the nature of our event, which has embedded community cultural development processes, we are able to experiment with form and content according to the needs of our communities. In many international children's film festivals it is impossible to change format and content drastically. We invite students from primary and high schools in Western Sydney to judge all selected works in 5 categories, which means that the kids judge works by their own colleagues as well as works by adults about or for them and the winners will be announced by the judges during the last day of the festival. We are the only international film festival in the world that has children and youth Jury only.

Historically, adults making films for children often interpret children's film festivals as for children audiences. Most adult filmmakers purely use the kids for their own vision or script. The way children are presented, or the state of the child, is never from the child's perspective, it is always being determined by the adult and projected on to the kids. And the kids basically play along. In the past 2 decades, this agenda has been challenged by ccd and Screen Culture organizations around the world that work solely with children, youth and the communities. In Australia we're changing that, most obviously through the development of film and film festivals by children. Auburn International Film and Video Festival for Children and Young Adults is also at the forefront of advocating child and youth produced works to be an integral part of prestigious international film festivals for adults as well as children's film festivals globally.

MC: How is information exchange between film festival organizers around the world takes place?
VV: New Technology has been the only tool for us to communicate with the world outside of Australia since the conception of CINEWEST and Auburn International Film and Video Festival for Children and Young Adults in 1998. Most of the time, ccd projects or organizations are not funded adequately to suit their capacity for expansion or long-term activities, and that's when online technology can play the greatest role through cost effective on-line advertising and communications. Since 2000, we have not sent any hard copy entry forms to anyone due to lack of finances and by 2002, we have received more than 350 works from 41 countries through electronic communications and accessing information utilizing our website. That web-presence put us on the world map and colleagues around the world who are active in the same field quickly recognized our efforts, and began correspondence in order to share resources and information. This has led to some physical visits and exchanges in presentation and promotion of the works produced by children and youth. I was invited to Argentine and India to promote children and youth produced films from Western Sydney and also do a script development workshop with the kids. I was constantly being interviewed because it was a new thing for every one to have child-produced films for an international market!

MC: Do the goals and motivations behind running children film festivals vary from country to country, festival to festival or are they similar?
VV: They vary due to the economic and political circumstances of each country that is hosting an international children's film festival! There are many festivals around the world that focus on representing and promoting their country and culture globally and are funded astronomically by their respective governments. As for many others like our festival, the communities are the main source of support and the Government will assist, largely through maintaining the infrastructure to continue developmental processes.

MC: Do film festivals around the world face similar issues around funding, terminology, policy and practice?
VV: No they don't. As I mentioned above many festivals are set up by their Governments and will obtain adequate funding to promote their countries. Many credible children's festivals like ‚32nd Roshd International Film Festival for Children and Young Adults‚ in Tehran-Iran or 28th Golden Elephant International Children's Film Festival in Hyderabad-India or the very recent International Film Festival for Children and Young People (2003) in Buenos Aries-Argentina are Government supported international 'representatives'. They have enough funding to invite and host foreign guests as well as showcasing mainly feature films. The disadvantage of representing Governments rather than communities was evident in the Argentinean festival, which did not take place in 2002 because of the political turmoil in that country. For many festivals that have just enough funding to organize screenings and publish catalogues it becomes a struggle to predict or anticipate certain outcomes in a short term and formula way, as their goals will be achieved in the long-term through hybrid strategies.

As one of its cultural development strategies, CINEWEST supports individuals and community groups involved in ccd and screen culture activities in Western Sydney, to become independent, and eventually mange their own affairs. CINEWEST auspices ICYMAN, a fledgling international network of children and young adults aged 6-22 who are interested in artistic expression through new technologies, multimedia, film and video productions. Based in Western Sydney, it aims to transcend Australian contemporary culture and identity through a global focus, while providing children and youth of Western Sydney, from a variety of different ethnic, religious and cultural backgrounds, opportunities to explore, develop and create. A living example of community participation, direction and control, ICYMAN's project coordinator and publicist, is the 16 years old Ariyan Daly.

MC: How did you become involved and appointed as project coordinator and promoter of ICYMAN?
AD: I have been involved in making film and theatre since I was 5 years old, as a performer and later as a creator of various video productions. I had a short video showcased at the 1st Auburn International Film and Video Festival for Children and Young Adults in 1998 when I was 10 years old. I have been involved with the festival and CINEWEST as a volunteer on many projects since then. ICYMAN is intended to be managed by young people and I was an appropriate candidate to take on the position for time being because of my age and previous involvement with the community and multimedia projects.

MC: How is ICYMAN coming into being?
AD: I need to basically promote the organization and coordinate projects as well as seeking children, youth and relevant organizations and individuals from around the world to become members for the next 2 years. ICYMAN accepts full memberships only from children and youth 4-22 years old but others who have similar aims and objectives, such as organizations and adult individuals, can become supporting members.

The response to my first introductory letter using the CINEWEST email-list has been phenomenal, as we have received many membership requests from around the world and a special invitation for me and two other ICYMAN Steering Committee Members (Ramtean Roozbahani 18 years old and Bradley Barnden 21 years old) to attend INFAC (International Filmmaking and Acting Camp) organized by the Seoul International Youth Film Festival held during August 11-17, 2003. This was a great opportunity for us to promote ICYMAN among 140 young people from 20 countries attending the workshops and also learning about how‚ a similar event could be staged next year in Australia.

CINEWEST Ltd auspices ICYMAN until it becomes a legal entity, which will be by the year 2006. I certainly hope that we will remain partners in initiating, supporting and developing CCD and Screen Culture initiatives locally, regionally, nationally and internationally. We will also share resources that will assist in establishing links quicker to achieve our similar aims and objectives.

MC:. How does ICYMAN plan to work on local, regional, national and international scales?
AD: Through a number of projects, initially;

1. Establishing a database of children and youth that are interested or active in the production of multimedia i.e. film, video, audio and new technology, and supporters - relevant organizations and/or adult individuals who are active in the development or producing programs for children and youth locally, regionally, nationally and internationally.

2.Establishing an interactive website to be utilized as a common platform for children and youth to express and communicate with each other through text, moving images, audio and visual displays.

3.Establishing a distribution unit ICYMAD (International Children and Youth Multimedia Access Distribution)‚ to present, promote and disperse the works received by children and youth universally.

4.Establish an international Jury for International Children and Youth Film Festivals, as well as forming various international steering committees to initiate and implement projects globally.

5.Develop strategies and present new initiatives to relevant organizations, governmental bodies and educational institutions regarding multimedia access to address children and youth issues globally.

6.Develop strategies and implement cultural and artistic exchange programs for children, youth with relevant organizations/partners locally, regionally, nationally and internationally.

7.Organize a series of screen culture events and activities conceived, organized and presented by children and youth globally such as ICYMAC (International Children and Youth Multimedia Access Camp)‚ in partnership with Sydney Olympic Park Authority, the Australia Council for the Arts and other relevant organizations during September 25-30, 2004.

MC: How can such a small and new organisation hope to promote and establish itself on an international level?
AD: ICYMAN is a regional organization with an international perspective and the Internet plays a significant role in promoting and developing ideas that derive from not only local young minds but from around the world. Without access to New Technology, the expertise of CINEWEST, and adequate funds, achieving our aims and objective would be virtually impossible.

MC: What methods are you using to promote ICYMAN amongst youth in Western Sydney?
AD: We are hoping to reach the communities through the already existing networks such as CINEWEST and CCDNSW, as well as advertising in local and ethno-specific media outlets and websites. We will encourage young people to become members in order to take advantage of the projects ICYMAN will undertake in the future. We are offering free membership until 2005 and will encourage schools and higher educational institutions in the Western Sydney region to become supporting members to further promote ICYMAN.

_______________________________________________________________________________