You and Me
You and Me - Empowering rural youth
A Youth film project for a new European narrative
Our youth film project brought together 9 young who grew up in the rural areas in Spain, Greece and Germany. They grabbed a camera and told their own stories beyond the media spin and stereotypes that have dominated the mainstream narrative in the European Union over the last few years. After taking part in a film training, they travelled in September and October 2016 as transnational groups through the rural areas of Brandenburg (Germany), Lesbos (Greece) and Aragón (Spain), where they interviewed other youngsters about their lives in the rural areas, their dreams and everyday challenges. They produced the documentary film Ruralink:
In the EU, 75% of the population lives in urban areas, while 80% of the territory is categorised as rural. Rural areas throughout Europe are often associated with remoteness, population decline, lack of education, infrastructure and services, and therefore risk marginalisation and social exclusion. The documentary film Ruralink features six stories of rural youth from Brandenburg (Germany), Aragón (Spain) and Lesbos (Greece) beyond stereotypes and mainstream narrative. It provides a fresh look at rural Europe and shows dynamic young people, committed to reviving their local communities and regions.
The documentary was supported by Jugend Für Europa in the frame of the transnational project "You and Me - A Youth Film Project for a New European Narrative". Started in April 2016, the project brought together 9 young people from rural areas in Attica, Lesbos (Greece), Aragón (Spain) and Brandenburg (Germany). After an intensive film training, they were split into three transnational film crews and grabbed their cameras to tell stories of rural youth in their regions.
Find out more on the project blog: https://youmefilmproject.wordpress.com/
Direction, Camera and Editing: Ruth-Maria Thomas, Elisabeth Wank, Jesus Lozano Lombarte, Laura Martinez Pallas, Anabel Roda Cerda, Emre Jon Brooks, Panagiotis Kypriotis
Media trainer / Artistic Direction: Séverine Lenglet
Production: Citizens For Europe, Fondo Natural, Bridging Europe
Coordinators of the project "You and Me- A Youth Film Project for a New European Narrative": Chiara Zannoni (Citizens For Europe), Jorge Gracia Lopez (Fondo Natural), Eleni Kostantopoulou (Bridging Europe).
The content of this documentary does not reflect the official opinion of the European Union. Responsibility for the information and views expressed therein lie entirely with the authors.
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