The global pandemic, caused by COVID19, has brought with it many exceptional situations that each and every one of us deals with it differently; emotionally, socially and economically.
Various measures have been taken by the government. Every stage and each moment have been experienced in some way by us all. The confinement resulting from the Declaration of a State of Alarm made in March of this year 2020 generated a feeling of uncertainty about a situation never experienced before:
- A strict lockdown which lead to most people living isolated lives.
- The obligation of spending all hours of the day in the company of the people with whom we live, producing a multitude of different scenarios, in an atmosphere of uncertainty.
- This led to us seeing and being seen through a screen.
The big window to the world was not the balconies, it was the internet. It became the natural habitat for some who already navigate that world with ease but for many others, not so versed in this form of communication, it became the only way to be close to family, friends, and the outside world. It was the older generation perhaps, who are unfamiliar with these technologies, that most suffered the loneliness of this confinement.
From each of these circumstances, from each relationship between so many parameters; age, technology, family, communication, love, hate… arise stories that are still fresh in our memory. These experiences form a part of the history of our village and can inspire scripts, images or symbolisms for artistic creation.
Our project takes as a study group families that include three generations (grandparents – parents – sons / daughters) promoting a conversation about the pandemic in the framework of a multigenerational experience with clear and evaluable objectives:
Objective 1 . Creation of an archive documenting the experiences of the people of Cediera during the pandemic, which we would make available to the council and other entities that are willing to analyse and act on those experiences for the benefit of the community.
Objective 2 . Creation of a video and a narrative text that can serve as a generator of artistic / cultural activities (theatre, cinema, dance, exhibition…)
Interviews are the main method used for reaching these objectives.
The restrictions in place as a result of covid have meant that interviews cannot be done by professionals going to peoples’ homes. So the technical role will fall to one of the people involved in the conversation or someone close to them. We will guide them with simple instructions of how to film the interview.
Families interested in participating will have access to a set of open-ended questions that encourage a conversation that should take place in the most natural way possible.
The interview has two stages a pre-covid stage and a post-covid stage. The questions take into account the age differences of the participants and their memories of what life was like in Cedeira fifty years ago to the present day.
Pre-Covid Questions
- Tell me about your first memories about life in Cedeira: places where you went, people in your life, games you played etc…
- What stories from your childhood, real or fantastic, do you remember most intensely?
- Are there any songs you remember from your childhood?
- Could you tell us some common anecdotes or phrases you learned from your parents or grandparent?
- What are the most notable changes you have witnessed in Cedeira? (They can be physical changes such as buildings or parks, or changes in the character or nature of people in Cedeira?
- What impact have these changes had on your life?
- If you were encouraging someone to come and live in Cedeira, what aspects would you highlight?
- Do you know any symbols or myths that are special or unique to the people of Cedeira?
Post-Covid Questions.
- How did you experience the lockdown of Covid 19?
- Describe to us what you felt during the lockdown.
- Do some of the following words resonate with that experience: confident, protected, isolated, scared, lonely, amazed, informed, deceived, loved, contemplative, angry, worried, hopeful, strange, confused?
- What has changed for you since it started to open up again?
- What were the biggest challenges for your generation during this crisis?
- If there was another Lockdown what could be done to improve the experience for your community?
- Is there anything you would like to see happen locally to help people cope with the changes we are experiencing?
- Are there positive changes in your life or in your community due to this crisis?
- What would you like to see happen in the coming months? And in the coming years?
- Did your experience during the confinement give you a new perspective on life?
- Can you imagine life returning to normal?
- How do you think the pandemic affected the world? Was there a positive impact on the world? If that is the case what are they?
- What questions would you like to ask the government?
How to record the interview
Simple rules to help you make sure you record a good interview:
- Review your questions and decide which ones you would definitely like to ask. .
- Make sure your phone is charged.
- Clean your lens.
- Set up the camera on the front camera so you can see on your screen what you’re shooting.
- Support your phone against something in front of where the interviewees will be sitting. Your phone should be placed sideways in a horizontal position.
- Make sure there is a light source that falls on the interviewees faces and that there is no big light source behind them, a window for example.
- Check the light levels by touching the screen and adjusting them accordingly.
- Do a short test interview, press record. Introduce yourself, sitting in the interviewees’chair. Say your name, age, date, where you live.
- Now go back to your phone and look at what you just recorded.
Are you well framed in the camera?
Can you hear your voice?
Is the lighting level right?
You are ready to begin.
How to submit your video
To send us your video you can use the free WeTransfer service . This service is free and requires no registration. Simply upload your video through the WeTransfer website and put our email address asociacionsinerxia@gmail.com as the recipient. Please note that to use this service your video cannot exceed 2 GB in size.
Press the + button Sellect your file and click ‘Next’. Optionally, you can attach a message with your contact details Select the option ‘Send an e-mail’ Type our address and yours so we can reach you You will get a verification code in your mailbox. Type it and click ‘Verify’
If you already have an account or your video is bigger than 2 GB you can also use other cloud services like Google Drive or Dropbox to share it with us.
If you have any other questions regarding our project or about how to send your video you can contact us via mail at asociacionsinerxia@gmail.com
