10 Comments

Really enjoyed this conversation... the point about losing water is one I've been banging on about for several years. The loss of snow in the Alps is about way more than losing snow sports - and the fact that the mountains are falling to bits due to melting permafrost is a big part of it. Entire mountain economies/communities are having or will have to change how they function, as traditional ways of making a living are impacted, from farming to snowsports & climbing. From a filmmaking point of view, the obstacle is, as always, getting funding to tell these stories.

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Thanks Katie. You should have a listen to the episode before with Gavin Fernie-Jones, as our entire conversation is pretty much about that point you make. Thanks for listening!

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ha, just commenting on that one now! I have listened and was shouting 'yes' at the computer throughout!! :0)

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Loved Soraya's points re: long form - that maybe we're not interested in long tellings of the same old stories. She put into words something I've not been able to pin-point. Long from will abide. I mean, look at the length of captions on Instagram posts these days, the extended videos and stories folk post, and how Twitter (whatever) has extend the character count for those who pay for the ranty option... short form can be so powerful and effective, but lots of content making and media folk are learning we sometimes need more space to say things worth saying. Long live blogs!

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(P.S. The swathes of the silent spaces at the end made me laugh. It made clear how too-long questions and the "more of a comment than a question" moments from the audience interrupt the flow of contributions from a panel.)

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The Q&A at the end was very annoying to listen to on a car journey where pushing up the volume to try to hear the question was not an option. Especially given how long some of those questions were.!

Next time, please repeat the question for the benefit of the podcast audience (like you've done on previous occasions).

That niggle apart, another fascinating discussion, thank you!

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Matt P just put out his version where I think he’s dropped the questions in 🤙

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Great conversation, lovely choice of panel and of course glad to see Kendal put on a podcast that was recorded so that people who don't attend can hear important panels like this - you know I love a panel!

One thing that Soraya touched on a bit when talking about 'a shortcut to understanding' with interviewers - I would have liked to see this explored a bit more and talk about the idea of 'parachute' storytelling. Even when we have more representative stories on camera etc. it's so often being driven by creators who have no affinity with the story or subject. I think you shared an article in a 10 Things a while back that was about photography and the need for diversity behind the lens , and I think it needs to be talked about more across all media. Underrepresented communities shouldn't need allies or champions to be listened to, but unfortunately we still get women's stories through the male gaze, Black stories from white directors, Disabled stories as inspiration porn etc.

Related, I think, is the aspect Matt P. mentioned of always being asked to add the conflict and drama into commissioned films. I wonder if the same comments will be made when the Senior levels of brands are actually representative.

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Yep, as a friend of mine pithily put it, 'true diversity comes when people are allowed to tell the stories - and are not just the subject of them'. Ta for listening and commenting Fran

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That is a much more succinct way of saying it!

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