Interactive video clips: so that silent voices become loud

Educational work is particularly close to the heart of the organisation Arbeit und Leben Niedersachsen (Work amd Life Lower Saxony) which was founded in 1948. The aim is “the social and individual emancipation of learners” in order to help shape a democratic society based on solidarity. However, there are social groups that continue to remain unseen and unheard and, in the worst cases, are treated with hostility. The “Silent Voices” project, funded by the Federal Agency for Civic Education, wanted to counter this exclusion with the help of interactive video clips. flmh was commissioned to develop the storylines and produce seven videos on various forms of group-based misanthropy.

The videos were to focus on the perspective of those affected, depict conflict situations in social media and enable a dialog with viewers using interactive tools. In order to give this sensitive topic sufficient space, flmh pursued a people-first approach in the interviews: the focus was therefore on the self-determined portrayal of the interviewees – they were not to be reduced to one aspect of their identity or to their experiences of discrimination.

The Work und Life team selected the protagonists and drew up a proposal for the storylines. flmh developed these storylines into storyboards, shooting schedules, and editing lists for the interactive videos. The interactive elements also had to be planned, designed, and implemented. It was particularly important to give viewers the opportunity to look up complicated facts or technical terms again with a click and to view the corresponding texts or explanatory content. In addition, flmh integrated various options for action to show different outcomes of a situation. In just three months, flmh realised the interviews with the seven protagonists in Oldenburg and Berlin and implemented the interactive films.