Today, a premiere screening of a new storytelling project took place at Dundee Blind & Partially Sighted Society. Dan Brown, Digital Storyteller in Residence at Dundee Libraries has been working with members of the Society over the past five weeks as part of the ‘We are Dundee’ project.
Participants could tell stories about anything they wanted, the diverse stories that emerged are about one woman’s memory of surviving the Wormit Picnic Train Crash of 1955, as well as narratives about pets, hobbies, grandparents and the importance of respecting women.
Dan is working with various groups and individuals across the city as part of a nine month project, giving people them the skills and confidence to share their stories using digital technology.
Following a successful pilot of the project in 2017, in Ayrshire and Fife, Scottish Book Trust was funded by the Scottish Government to support Digital Storytelling residencies in five locations. Each library service hosts a Digital Storyteller, recruited by Scottish Book Trust, to support specially selected groups to create their own digital stories about personal experiences important to them.
Shona Donaldson, Adult Library & Information Services Section Leader, said
“Dundee Libraries are delighted that Dan has helped the members of the Dundee Blind & Partially Sighted Society find their digital voice and enabled sharing of their stories. This is just one of many groups who have worked with Dan to improve their digital skills and connect with their communities by focussing on storytelling.”
Marc Lambert, CEO of Scottish Book Trust, said
“Digital skills are increasingly important for people to navigate all areas of life and connect with others, and by focusing on storytelling, this project makes it accessible to everyone. We all have stories to share, whether it is personal or about a community or a place or time. By capturing these local stories and building skills in communities, the project will have a long-term impact.”