Electric December '07

Online advent calendar’s digital treats selected and presented by young eShedders

Electric December, Watershed’s online Digital Advent Calendar, goes live on Sat 1 Dec offering a delightful digital treat daily throughout the traditional holiday countdown period. Now in its ninth year, Electric December ‘07 promises to deliver a range of fantastic digital distractions with a difference. This year it has been curated and organised by young people from eShed.net, a website made by young people for young people aged 14-21 who have a passion for film and media. Each day a new film will be revealed from some of the freshest young film talent in the UK. In addition to online access it is now even easier to enjoy the digital delights as they are available on your mobile via bluetooth from within Watershed and can be downloaded as video podcasts.

Also during December, on eShed.net, there will be daily updates with more news, reviews and other extra features on each day’s film.

Tim's BIG Adventure - 7 Dec's present

Electric December has always sought to introduce local community and education groups to professional media companies, and facilitate partnerships to produce new pieces of creative work for the web. These partnerships have ensured that skills are pooled and shared and the world of online creativity is opened up to all. This potential of the internet and digital tools to encourage and celebrate creativity is now widely recognised and many people are creating their own work, particularly young people.

In light of these developments, Electric December ’07 is a bit different from previous years. It is a celebration of young people’s creativity, curated and organised by eShed.net. The eShed group have sought out 24 of the best short films and animations from some of the freshest young filmmaking talent across the UK. Sourcing the selection from existing networks as well as newly discovered enterprises, the final selection of 24 films covers a range of styles, topics and issues that are important to young people today, including: feminism, bullying, loneliness, stereotyping and global warming.

On choosing the final 24 titles, Taran, an eShedder on the selection panel, said:

I really enjoyed watching all of the films, although it was really hard to pick a final selection, and there were some that we just couldn’t choose between. We do feel however that the chosen titles offer a good mixture of styles, topics and talents and we’re really excited about putting them out and hearing people’s reactions.’

Green Ideas - 17 Dec's present

What has really added to the eShedders experience with Electric December this year is that they have also developed and executed the entire project, including the organisation of the site itself, the launch and the communication strategy, giving them first-hand experience in project management and professional planning.

Watershed’s Digital Development Co-ordinator, Gill Haworth said of this year’s project:

Over the last eight years Electric December has been a great success – at its core is the desire to nurture talent, particularly in young people, exposing them to new areas of creativity. This year is no different, but with the increased participation in filmmaking by young people, we wanted to harness this array of talent and film whilst maintaining Electric December’s original objectives.

Electric December '07 is a Watershed project, supported by Arts Council England, Firetv.org.uk (an Avon Fire & Rescue Service's project) with kind assistance from Quartier Vert.

To satisfy your curiosity until the launch, why not check out previous years' electrical fun on ElectricDecember.org.

For film details and images, contact Dan Fowler or Amy McGuinness.