Memories of a future

Found this film ' Memories of a future' at the BFI yesterday after watching John Ak Msueme... godess of Memory.

A documentary on the memory of the spanish civil war. Why are some things called memory and some news and history?

Who's memory

Sat with a youngster tonight, whilst an elder, over 60 chatted with him. Kind of lectured him... that's what the elders do? Maybe... But he had so many memories, so much to share and for us to learn from. .. can we all still talk to each other?

He argued there wasn't the consciousness today, there wasn't the collective labour movement to share it out, challenge things the way they did. He knew about the general strike at an early age, because of his politics? Maybe? Because that was a time more working class people were in collective environments, more space together. As manufacturing got smashed, and work become more individualised and isolated we grew away from each other, they needed that to control us. Control our selves.. sat staring at shadows.. frightened to move.

If we don't have a memory of the events that are hidden, suppressed, or stolen. What happens, what impact does that have... ? What do we then see, if we don't know the layers behind. Things unseen..

47 Summary - updated 28.9

As we are asked to 'consult 'ourselves on what public services should go, and how to pay for the current economic crisis, this moving image project will explore how Liverpool City council faced with similar choices in 1983 and returned millions of pounds of grants to Liverpool from the Tory Government built 5000 homes, 3 parks and 6 nurseries and created hundreds of properly paid jobs and traineeships.

In early 1987, despite active widespread support, 5 law lords upheld a decision of an unelected auditor to surcharge and expel the 47 elected councillors from office. With over £340,000 surcharge the Liverpool 47.

A few months later, on June 11th 1987, at the general election, Tories are returned to power nationally. In Liverpool Labour fought under the banner of 'We support the 47' and won a landslide vote, which had it been repeated nationally would have seen the Tories into a minority.

The then Labour leader, Neil Kinnock, called the campaign led by the 47 as a 'grotesque chaos' and media and politicians queued up to discredit those involved. But whose chaos begun to turnaround the criminal poverty that many people were subjected to? And whose chaos is now cutting vital jobs and services across Liverpool and nationally, 35,000 redundancies notices that have been sent out in Sheffield and Birmingham alongside severe cuts to vital services.

This project will be an intimate portrait from the individual, mediated and collective memories of many of those involved. Re-opening a chapter of history of working class history, hidden and distorted. Making the invisible visible, to look back and forward simultaneously.

Characters: Members of the 47, a housing worker, a photographer and activist have already given interviews offering a thought provoking and humorous insights into what democracy could look like, and what politicians could look like and most importantly do if they were to really represent thier communities.

Dave Sinclair, Photographer, has agreed for his photographs to be used. One of the few journalists allowed into any meeting and event over that period. His photographs include key moments in this political events and of landscapes and members of community with a considerate and critical eye.

Often women are under exposed in histories of all kinds and we aim to try and encourage women involved at that time to speak and hear their memories and experiences.

Wider project engagement: Ideally I also want to gain more involvement from a wider group of people. A conversation in the city and other cities about what is happening and what could happen. Perhaps send a letter about the project to 47 houses that were built by the council, what did you know? What does that mean to you? What do you remember of that time? Requesting responses, verbally and visually.

Visually - The piece will incorporate photographs from Dave Sinclair and others of water..movement and landscapes, Parks, cityscape and activity. Allowing stories to weave in and out of locations and places. The past and present interwoven.

Questions

What did it feel like to be involved in the city council campaign?

What was it that drove these people to break the law?

How was surcharge paid? By who?

What impact did the experience have on your life?

What's the relevance of 47 today?

What do you remember about 47?

What makes you smile looking back?

What are you personally proud of having been involved in?

What are you proud of having done?

What do you think most people know of Liverpool 47

What would you like them to know more?

How did you involve wider public?

How did you get involved?

How has this influenced your life?

Layers

How do I make invisible visible - from whole story to women and process.

How do I ensure women involved and speak and express story.

For us:
Why do this project?
Why do this project now?
What did the Liverpool 47 mean to you?

What would you like to find out?
What were the most important elements in making the battle as particpatory and successful?
What do you think this project will achieve?

Why do you think there are so few women who are happy to be interviewed?
How can we change that?
Do you think womens voices and memories differ to mens? What does that mean here?

What do you personally hope to achieve?

Photos from Alan Hardman - City that dared to fight

Am up...

Its half past seven in the morning and I'm up! Been awake and excitable and nervous for a few hours. 47. Some thoughts and questions I could ask and should ask. Images and possible use of time lapse as MF said he might be interested and watched his work - incredible...koyanascatsi...(SP?) comes to mind.

How do I work collectively but have people with clear roles? 47 Memory...collective and individual memory...mediated to become nothing, or more? Or just one view of history than denies others?

Limited and hunted media = chaos South London Press - What am I looking for?

So much could go on and now I'm talking and asking others for involvement and help...and I got 5 replies from texts and calls yesterday:

TC - Accommodation and space to interview in Sep

TA - Will ask about camera people

DS - Look at his photos on Monday

MF - What is project? Money? Accommodation

BN - No money, not possible but good luck

Reminds me I need and want to go back into looking at how Cinema Action worked.

So quickly it can all move and be still at the same time. I'm loving being at home too a sense of homeyness and I like it. (Maybe because I am also doing rather than procrastinating!) I like it when I get things done, which always helps me be a better woman!

Watched Capitalism a love story MM, not that keen, mixture of camera, sweeping shots beautifully framed and then rushed unfocused others but the stories there and the quality makes sense in the story. Overly beautiful shots in this could take away...but 'up the yangetze' had amazing shots and that didn't take away the story...stunning sweeping shots.. but very grounded clearly focused documentary. Lucky to have watched it in Sheffield in 2008, bought it after too. And I will watch more over the coming weeks - drama, doc, installations feed into it, onto this.

Sherlock 3 part drama has been on, texts used in shots, maybe text and emails can more openly be used within a piece as opposed to outside of it. Need to re-look at John Akmofrahs MS at BFI southbank about memory.

Could or should I put you under the banner of rooftop collective? it would feel better and give life and focus to RC outside of just me or us. Do I need permission? Support of 47 officially? Need also to check that with LL. Also £ and process.

Oh la la this project is alive!

Without you

A little time at the LRC looking through emails yesterday till I got down to what I'd done before meeting Anna R. I went over the list I'd sent her and saying some of that out loud was good. Life brings layers together.

Looking at NSSN conference with the hint of cultural additions, Suzanne Muna added her work as there were more connections, more of a relationship and confidence from her about her work. It was already out there, on covers, on flyer's, she was an artist and had work ready for a mobile exhibition. She is also one of the Defend the 4 hounded by Unison out of her role for 2 years. The others I asked maybe felt less engaged with me or with the works or possibility. But I did it with little efforts and other peoples engagement and practical nature.

Memory keeps reoccurring as a underlying theme, area of discussion and investigation. Interesting, or more interesting to me right now as my working memory is of the lowest 10% for my age group. I have been looking at ways round it with others too, but I have memories. What is it I remember? What I feel? but not dates or statistics or detail. I rarely recall all of that but sometimes general ideas around it all - and it comes out in conversation, it gets deeper and better - and clearer. It can often be clearer and I don't know it till if comes out,, whats bubbling under there....what is there but needs space to breathe and mix up itself as we speak, as I speak, as you speak as we listen and see, and see.

So she's happy with the 47, as she feels I am and says work backwards. I like that, its what I tend to do. Set a gallery screening/event date here and maybe one in Liverpool (WOW?).

Its a lot of work and one shoot of 3 days won't be enough, cant be enough. Last 10 minute piece was shot over 5 days. Then 40 was shot in under 3 hours. So its possible but needs incredible planning. I need to know where I am and where we are in all this from to place, we need a clear schedule - separate some people, a little together, a little apart. especially for women away from men. (Wonder why DC said if it was about memories then KM? Are memories seen as less important? Less Objective? If that's what we remember then in some ways it doesn't matter what happened, its only what we have in our minds, consciousness? How do we see the past, feel the past, create a past? How do we articulate it to others? And which others?

I'm not excited, I'll be honest, but scared. Its such a big project, I cant share it all, but I could open the doors of the stories and see.

Without you 47? Maybe title? What would we do without you? What would we have without you? Parks, Homes, Jobs?

To Do by symposium and next tutorial:

1. I page synopsis
2. Schedule backwards & book gallery May 2011
3. Blog - for assessment needs editing and focus on criteria
4. Schedule for shoot and crew
5. Funding plan & Crowd funding model
6. Connect with Red
7. Reading on memory

Pictures

Meeting Dave Sinclair today - photos from Liverpool 80's and the Liverpool 47 Council.

Maybe I could also ask for Alan Hardmans Cartoons? (Men again, men?)

Some photos in the Book Liverpool a city that dared to fight, those expelled by Labour, Walton Prison...

Would like all photos on a slide show on DVD or part of an exhibition. Building houses ad, Cellar in Huntely (where interviews will be held). Tina C pregnant with Dave & Ti's son Jack 1984. Shaw st, Percy St. Big demo jack was born 2 days before...

Paving stones on trolly

Kids in mersey

Locations

Young students march

So before I go some reading:

1:

Roots of Liverpool - Special?

Population 1000 in 17c, to over 200,000 in 1841 due to Slave trade, docks etc.

1840's also sees Irish famine and 500,000 Irish come to Liverpool

14:

'Blood and anger of Irish - low wages. Divide and Rule. Casual Labour. Drop in wages despite expansion of Capital.

15:

'TU was restricted to the skilled trades who jealously guarded their posative principles'

16:

NALGO (TU) built by a tory!

1888 Liverpool Trades council revived 'Greatest depth of union organisation...from unskilled"

17:

LTC in 1891 has 121 delegates and 47 trades covered representing 46,000 workers

1900 LRC formed

18:

1910-1914 'Shadow of Revolution hung over Britian" Trotsky

18/19:

Trotsky argued "neither recession nor an economic upswing necessarily radicalises working class or results in strikes. It is the change from one period to another. " With a new generation of young workers impatient of LP and 'ossiefied TU'.

20:

Dock strike 1911 TOM MANN (Man...man..) meeting at Canning Place with 2-3, 000 people. After dockers won, Walton women rubber workers took strike action . "union ale" shared...

21:

13:8:1911 Troops drafted in with live amunnition. Behind barricades residents and community stood for 36 hours. 2 days later 3000 workers marched to Jail, jail was full.

22: 14th Aug eve of General strike (This day I ran away to Liverpool 1987)

23: Terrorial army forced to surrender and dual power exsisted!

1919 police strike

1926 General Strike UK

1932 Birkenhead Riots

50:

Seeds of conflict from Thatchers public expenditure cuts.

52: Red Clare

Companies offered relaxed planning

100% Capital allowance

1980 Liberals put through 34% rent rise.