Kids’ Workshop on Participatory Video

A big video camera on a tripod, headphones and a fluffy microphone sure attracted the children’s attention! The workshop hardly started before everyone wanted to check out the camera. The three-day workshop was held over 12–14 March 2007 for a group of 15 children aged 10 to 16 years where they got to learn the basics of filming and make real videos.

A children’s rights session was included in which topics such as the right to have food, make choices, and have opinion were raised. A storytelling activity followed which presented the history of children’s rights from the First World War until the present day.

The highlight of the workshop was a trip to Kampung Tanjung Aru. The older children were asked to approach the village people and ask questions, for example, where they originated, the living conditions, and their plight, such as the lack of sanitation and rubbish collection in the village. The younger children, meanwhile, attracted the local children through their singing and games. It gave the participants and the village kids a rare opportunity to mingle and get to know one another.

The video footage made during the trip was viewed upon return to the SAWO Centre along with evaluation of sound, lighting, interviewing techniques, and the children’s experience from the trip in particular on the rights of a child. The participants captured their evaluation on film, and it was heartening to hear a couple of them saying the best part was learning about a child’s rights!