How to make the most of your workshop experience

Here are some suggestions and guidelines to help you get the most out of your digital storytelling experience.

Be present

It is important that you plan to attend all sessions. Enrollment is limited; so your seat in the workshop is precious.

The workshop is a step-by-step process designed to lead to a fulfilling conclusion – your personal digital story. Each session fits with the previous one. If you miss one it could be hard to catch up and it is difficult for the workshop facilitator to offer extra help without detracting from the experience of the other storytellers.

One of the most enriching experiences of the workshop is working in a group. The group gives you feedback and support to help you tell your story. Each member depends on the others’ contribution, including yours.

It is particularly important to be present – in mind and body – for the first three sessions. This is when your story will take form. It is the most challenging part of the process and requires full participation to be successful.

Honour the story

While you will develop some technical skills, the story is at the heart of the workshop. Before the first session, take some time to think about some of the moments in your life when you have been changed forever – the ones when to you fell in love, discovered something new, made a difficult decision, found new meaning in an ordinary day … important moments that you want to share because because they have transformed you.

Think of the people, images, objects, sounds and smells that take you back to those moments. The images in particular will help tell your story, give context and meaning beyond your words,

Come to the workshop with an open mind and an open heart; your story will find you.

Sharing your story

One of the key aims of Latitudes and Longitudes is to give ordinary people a safe place to explore and tell their stories. However another important goal of the project is to collect, preserve and present the stories of everyday to the community at large.

We hope you will share your story with the community through the Latitudes and Longitudes website as others have done. We also hope you will let us show your story at festivals and events such as the Latitudes Storytelling Festival, Word on the Street and other workshops. Of course, you will be free to show your story to anyone you choose.

But, we also understand that some stories MUST be told, but sometimes can only be shared with a select group. You can read about one such experience on the project blog.

Technology and Tools

There are some inexpensive items that will make the assembly of your digital story much easier.

One is a USB memory stick. They are widely available at electronics/computer stores such as Future Shop and Best Buy, general merchandise stores such as Canadian Tire and are even available in some dollar stores.

The second item you will need is a set of headphones. We will be editing the audio for your story in the computer lab and you will need to be able to work without disturbing the others. As well, headphones allow to hear all the nuances of the sound; this will make editing much easier and precise.

We will be using an online video editor called Creaza Video Editor and an open source audio editor called Audacity.

Fees

The Latitudes and Longitudes project is funded by the Region of Waterloo Arts Fund and receives in-kind support from The Working Centre. Through these sources we are able make the workshop available a minimal cost of $50 and even subsidize those who can’t afford the fee. The workshop fee is due at the time you register.

Payment Methods:

By Mail:

• Make your cheque payable to Latitudes Storytelling Festival
• Address it to:
  Latitudes and Longitudes Digital Storytelling
  63 Heins Ave.
  Kitchener, Ontario
  N2G 1Z7

Online:

We now have secure online payments through PayPal. Sorry, there is a $2.50 handling fee to cover the cost of the service.

Be sure to fill out the registration form.