Salon / NetworkPopChange

Pop Culture and Social Change Retreat 2022

Information

Date

Wednesday, 12 - Friday, 14 October 2022

Venue

Dartington Trust, Dartington, Totnes, Devon, TQ9 6EL

Participate

By invitation. Join us for the public programme.

 

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Salon / NetworkPopChange

Pop Culture and Social Change Retreat 2022

Counterpoints Arts is delighted to be hosting the 2022 Pop Culture and Social Change Retreat, bringing together a curated group of 50 change-making entertainment producers, artists, cultural innovators, activists and philanthropists at Dartington Hall, Devon (UK) from 12-14 October.

Produced as part of Counterpoints’ PopChange initiative, this year’s programme is being presented in partnership with Comic Relief, with support from Unbound Philanthropy, Open Society Foundations and Dartington Trust.

Taking place over two and a half days, the Pop Culture and Social Change Retreat 2022, brings together over 50 change-making entertainment producers, artists, cultural innovators, activists and philanthropists. In creating this reflective space, we aim to generate cross-sector exchanges, ideas and collaborations that will contribute to building long-term narrative power for displaced, migrant, Black and POC communities.

The retreat will focus on exploring displacement and migration narratives in scripted TV and film, and how to collaboratively produce nuanced and authentic storytelling. Our aspiration is to present projects and initiatives that drive social change and disrupt power structures through the creation and amplification of game-changing cultural content.

Programme 

We are especially excited to have our discussions kick off with Sarah Asante, Commissioning Editor at UKTV (BAFTA-winning Famalam and Dreaming Whilst Black), and Rufus Jones, writer of the refugee comedy Home (Channel 4). Other highlights include the launch of the latest groundbreaking research on immigrant narratives in television presented by Define American and the Norman Lear Center

The retreat will feature work by a range of creatives and cultural producers, short inspirations and provocations, panel discussions, organised walks, workshops and plenty of informal networking and shared meals. The inspirations include creatives whose work has produced a lasting impact on our perceptions of displacement and migration, including Hassan Akkad — a Syrian filmmaker, activist and Associate Producer on Netflix’s The Swimmers (2022), and Kosar Ali, BAFTA-nominated actor from Rocks (2019). 

A public programme of events is featured alongside the retreat, presented in partnership with Dartington Trust, including:

We look forward to spending time together in the wonderful environment of Dartington — collectively imagining new projects and possibilities; thinking up both big and small ideas; and reflecting on the rich complexity of the everyday stories shaping migration and displacement.

Context

Since the first Counterpoints Pop Culture & Social Change Retreat in 2018 and publication of the Unbound Philanthropy-supported report ‘How pop culture has the potential to catalyse social change in the UK’ (by Alice Sachrajda with Esme Peach), more creative teams in the UK are collaborating, producing and supporting narrative change initiatives. Recent examples of entertainment content focusing on lived experience of migration and displacement include Channel 4’s We Are Lady Parts and Home, highlighting the power of comedy to drive social change. Or Netflix’s His House where refugee experiences are navigated through the genre of horror. 

The 2022 retreat will draw inspiration from recent pop culture case studies, and the shared knowledge and experience of a fast growing network of creative practitioners and change-makers.

Scroll below to view and download the programme, and read bios of all participants.

WEDNESDAY, 12th October
WELCOME

OVERVIEW

HOME: HOW A COMEDY ABOUT A REFUGEE GOT ON THE TELLY

  • A ‘fireside’ chat between Rufus Jones, creator of Channel 4’s comedy series Home, and Hassan Akkad, who consulted on the programme.
THE COMMISSIONER’S PLAYBOOK

  • Sarah Asante (Commissioning Editor, UKTV) talks about impactful pitches and making shows like BAFTA-winning Famalam & Dreaming Whilst Black. In conversation with Suchandrika Chakrabarti (Co-Host, But Is It Funny).
THE POWER TO CREATE

  • Rashad Robinson (President, Color of Change) in a short clip from Counterpoints’ PopChange Salon Series, Southbank Centre, May 2022.
THAT’S WHAT WE’RE TALKING ABOUT: NARRATIVE POWER IN ACTION

  • Suchandrika Chakrabarti leads an interactive discussion highlighting the pop culture examples that are moving us right now. With AWATE (Rapper/ Screenwriter), Nana Bempah (CEO, Pocc) and Sarah Lowe (Director of Research + Impact, Define American).
THURSDAY, 13th October
HOW TO INVEST IN SHAPING THE NARRATIVE

  • Arij Mikati (Managing Director of Culture Change, Pillars Fund) on championing Muslim artists behind the screen.
NUANCE & IMPACT: HOW IMMIGRANT NARRATIVES ON TV HAVE SHIFTED

  • Erica Rosenthal (Director of Research, Norman Lear Center) and Sarah Lowe (Director of Research + Impact, Define American) share a preview of their latest ground-breaking report, in conversation with Alice Sachrajda (Co-Chair, Counterpoints Arts).
WHEN YOUR LIFE IS THE STORY

  • Queer Iraqi/Syrian/Assyrian performer, Yasmeen Ghrawi, on creating art and feeding writer’s rooms.
MAKING SPACE FOR LIVED EXPERIENCE IN ENTERTAINMENT

  • Industry models making impact in writer’s rooms and talent development, and how to sustain them. With Axa Hynes (Co-Director, We Are Bridge), Kosar Ali (Actor, Rocks), Nathalie McDermott (CEO, On Road Media) and Tolu Stedford (Co-CEO, Independent Film Trust). Chaired by Anu Henriques (Producer, Counterpoints Arts).
FROM THE GROUND UP: BUILDING COLLABORATIVE STORYTELLING

  • A workshop thinking through the architecture of a lived experience TV/film consultancy programme being developed by Counterpoints. Think of this as a work-in-progress sharing where we can collectively pull apart what we’ve been dreaming up (and hopefully put back together again), with the help of a few case studies, guest speaker Hassan Akkad (consultant on Netflix/C4 programmes), and lots of time for sharing experiences, thoughts, questions and possible future collaborations. Facilitated by Anu Henriques.
WHO’S WATCHING? CONNECTING STORYTELLING WITH AUDIENCES

  • Understanding audiences across screens, arts venues and publishing —who they are, how to engage them, and how to commission work that connects. With Mia Bays (Director, BFI Film Fund), Ruth Hardie (Head of Public Programming, Southbank Centre) and Vidisha Biswas (Director, Footnote Press). Chaired by Tom Green (Senior Producer, Counterpoints Arts).
HOW TO COLLABORATE ACROSS SECTORS

  • Jenni Regan (CEO, IMIX) on tackling mental health through daytime TV, and how to connect with migrant narratives.
HOW DO CREATIVES WITHOUT LIVED EXPERIENCE CENTRE LIVED EXPERIENCE

  • Hannah Azuonye (Editorial/Operations Coordinator) and Nkenna Akunna (Co-Director) on how they commissioned Skin Deep’s season on Palestine.
HOW NARRATIVE CHANGE TRANSLATES TO SOCIAL JUSTICE

  • Rebekah Delsol (Director of Strategy, Healing Justice London) on racial justice, structural change, and advising EastEnders.
FRIDAY, 14th October
A PULSE CHECK ON THE CULTURAL MOMENT

  • K Biswas (Editor & Critic) reflects on cultural moments in the UK and the current windows of opportunity.
HOW TO INSPIRE COLLECTIVE ACTION FOR THE LONG-TERM

  • Ella Saltmarshe (Co-Founder, Reset Narratives/The Long Time Project) on how we galvanise public imagination and collective action to shape the future.
COLLECTIVE VISIONING FOR NARRATIVE POWER AND SOCIAL CHANGE IN THE UK

  • Reflecting on the network’s progress and emergence of the multi-funder Power of Pop Fund, Faiza Ali (Portfolio Manager, Comic Relief), Saphia Youssef (Learning Consultant, PoP Fund) and Alice Sachrajda (Consultant) help us map out the next decade towards ‘Pop x Change 2032’.
HOW DO WE CELEBRATE JOY IN ACTIVISM

  • Kayza Rose (Founder) on creating BLM Fest to centre joy and celebrate Black lives.
HOW DO THREE WOMEN MAKE 1 MILLION PEOPLE LISTEN

  • Huda Jawad (1/3 of The Three Hijabis) talks about tackling racism through social media.