Digital Stories is the name of the project that young people from Westminster Collage participated in to produce a short story using images and sound. The project gives young people the opportunity to learn professional skills in photography, storyboarding, editing and directing. This project was funded by The Media Trust and Adobe Youth Voices. Newtek Digital was commissioned by Paddington Arts to create and deliver the project.

The young people who participated where part of a short scheme which gives young people who failed to pass school or gain enough GCSE’s, the opportunity to gain further qualifications to pursue their higher education and career prospects. The session ran for a period of six weeks and 18 young people signed up, they were an interesting bunch, some were more enthusiastic than others and showed more interest, where others who lacked media experience showed resistance and no interest in getting involved. My introduction is usually a method I use to include my experience as a young person being exposed to things out of my comfort zone. 9 times out of 10 this approach allows young people to keep their guard down and believe if I can do it they can too so the rest of the sessions become an interesting journey.

I had a young person introduced to me as a very hard to reach individual and half an hour in my hands he became one of the most enthusiastic young people in my session. Without any previous media skills being taught the young people produce 9 pieces of short digital stories.