Islamic Voices resource
Creative Wiltshire has released the Islamic Voices project. This digital storytelling project reflects the many universal, sometimes unexpected, faces of Islam. The website and DVD present a series of personal stories depicting the peace, love and understanding central to the Muslim faith. The project evolved out of Prevent Agenda funding in Wiltshire seeking to generate an educational resource that would enable young people to gain insights into the lives and experiences of Muslims in the County.
Production took place over two years working with members of the Wiltshire Islamic community and Wiltshire College students. Two interns from the Digital Media Arts Degree course were part of the production team. An early version was screened at the College’s 2010 Festival of Culture. Each short film was developed using digital storytelling techniques enabling the speakers to fully own their story. Digital stories bring together a variety of assets from images, video clips and music linked by personal testimony into a single media format. It is a simple and powerful technique to tell family stories and the stories of a community in an accessible format.
Through Islamic Voices the production team aimed to provide a vehicle to unpack the fear and ignorance which underlies Islamophobia. The contributors are courageous people who stand by their beliefs. They tell stories of growing up in Wiltshire and arriving in the county from abroad. They explore the significance of their faith in their lives. Some share their experiences of the consequences of the attack on the World Trade Centre in New York as changed awareness and prejudice rippled out to Wiltshire.
The project was produced in partnership with Wiltshire Council involving a range of individuals, Wiltshire Islamic Cultural Centre and other organisations in Wiltshire.
For further information contact: info@abundantsun.com
Yahya - From Morocco to Wiltshire
Wali - The greatest journey of my life
Marta - From Poland to Wiltshire
Kamel - Making a sound judgement
Foz - Growing up in Trowbridge
Paul - Work, Family and Landscape
