Watching/Making Film workshops with Alasdair Satchel

Cinema is in all of us.  We are cinema natives.
We know when something works on screen or doesn’t.

Most people have access to mobile devices which feature very fine cameras and apps that can be used for editing and then sharing films. This democratisation of technology has offered a very positive response to the current Pandemic and our lack of social interaction. One of the core human needs is to be heard. Film allows people to make their voices heard, to share their take on the world around them and to testify to their being and creativity. At a time when we are so socially distanced from each other this technology will allow us to build bridges with others in our community and beyond.

People will watch films by other people, they will engage with someone else’s creative output in very personal ways. Film is a culturally significant medium, and to make films is to feed into that medium and have value added to our voice by contributing to it.

The Takeaway Creative filmmaking sessions will allow the participants to have their voice heard, to testify to their existence and their reality that will make connections with people both at home and further away.

Everyone is native in film, we’ve all seen thousands of hours of moving image texts, this project will allow the participant to take that knowledge and put it into action by making their own films.

The skills explored will cover Film Fundamentals such as how the camera, sound and editing work.
It will also look at elements of style – how to make your films stand out in ways that the great filmmakers have done so before.

Using any technology to hand the participants will spend time looking at the fundamental elements of film:

• How does a shot work?
• What does sound do?
• How does a filmmaker connect with their audience?
• How do you edit a film together?

Participants in the Takeaway Creative Filmmaking sessions will leave the project with a wide set of skills that they will be able to employ in making films and in the broader world making themselves clearly understood.

Supported by the Craignish Village Hall Arts Programme, this series of 6 online sessions will begin on Wednesday 17^th March at 7.30pm. Participation is free, to book your place e mail Tiziana: cvh.manager@gmail.com .

The sessions will run weekly and the content of each session will be announced shortly

About Alasdair Satchel

My name is Alasdair Satchel, I’m a theatre and filmmaker based on the Isle of Mull, Scotland.

Originally from Dunoon, I moved to Mull in 2007. I studied Drama and Theatre Arts, specialising in Playwriting at QMU in Edinburgh. My studies then took me to the École Jacques Lecoq in Paris, where I studied the full two year course.

On returning to Scotland I wrote, directed and performed my own work with Perhilion Theatre Co, touring One Man Rant and Two Man Rumble internationally for some years. I have also worked as an actor and director for other companies in the UK and throughout the world. I settled on Mull in 2007. Although based rurally, my work still takes me all over the world.

Having my home here on Mull is very important to me. I’m constantly inspired by the landscape, wildlife, seasons and community that surround my family here.

A French speaker, I work with the Cinématheque Française to interpret their Cinéma Cent Ans De Jeunesse training into English, and also translate the project website. I learnt Gaelic through Sabhal Mòr Ostaig’s distance learning courses. Having Gaelic and connecting to my roots and culture has made a significant impact on my life and work. I’m always looking to keep developing my Gaelic language skills and seek out opportunities to do so regularly.

In 2018 I started a podcast series called What We Do In The Winter to explore the nature of lives in remote communities. I’ve been making films since I was a teenager and I hope my craft has kept growing over the last 25 years or so.