Short films
Using media to help young British Muslims talk and write about their relationship experiences.
The Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) funded Storying Relationships project has explored how young British Muslims talk and write about their relationship experiences, practices and expectations through the use of creative methods that include short story writing, playwriting, blogging and screenwriting for film.
Storying Relationships short films
Meaningful Research through Creative Writing
A number of workshops have been hosted across Scotland and England for the Storying Relationships project, where young people explored the topic of personal and intimate relationships through different mediums of creative writing. The benefits of utilising a creative methodology are shared through the film 'Meaningful Research through Creative Writing'.
In this film, the challenges of working with minority communities and researching sensitive issues are examined. The film breaks down the challenges of academics engaging in collaborative research and how strong partnerships and trust can facilitate the research process.
It also explores how academics and researchers must be conscious of sensitivities in research topics that include the challenges of what can and can't be talked about due to cultural and/or religious expectations but also examines the benefits of overcoming these difficulties.
We hope this film and resource will be used and shared widely for individuals and organisations to use in their research and working practice.
Halal Dating: An Animated Conversation from the Storying Relationships Project
This animation is the end product of our storying animation workshops, where young people explored the theme of halal dating and joined in debates of whether dating is halal (permissible) or haram (impermissible). All of the young people attending the workshops were new to animation and were able to storyboard their thoughts into an animated film.
Women Making Choices
This film engages with the intersections of gender, religion and culture exploring the ways in which young Muslim women do have agency in sharing their thoughts and experiences on relationships and relationship practices. This short-film focusses on the women involved in the project and Glasgow Women's Library, who were a collaborative project partner and hosted several of the creative writing workshops.
Women Making Choices provides a glimpse into the apprehensions the young women initially had about working with the topic of personal and intimate relationships, the journey of gaining creative writing experiences and the end results of embracing the topic and sharing their thoughts on often taboo topics, such and sex and intimacy. This film will be a useful resource for all, but will also be beneficial for organisations and staff training on topics such as intimacy and relationships.