From Camerron to the Asia-Pacific, the ComsForUs online workshop on podcasts and videos for changemakers brought together speaker and participants from all corners of the world. Three keypoints on the agenda: storytelling techniques, the hands-on aspects involved in the production of multimedia content, and ways of enhancing voices of members and allies. 

Demie Dangla from EngageMedia presented the Video4Change project, harnessing the power of video to advance human rights, social justice, and environmental change.

“We are continuously developing the toolkit through co-creation labs where we also exchange ideas with filmmakers and learn from their experiences on the ground,” Demie explained.  

Demie presented the Video for Change Impact Toolkit which shows how to design and strategise for impact in your progressive social change initiatives. It is designed for documentary or journalist video-makers, and nonprofit organisations that are using or thinking about using video to engage their communities. Demie also shared a list of resources helping civil society organisations to organise their filming projects - focusing on distribution, editing, mobile video technology, planning a video and more.  

“It is not about the output or video alone, but also about how we relate to the community,” Demie explained; the focus should be on the process, not solely on the result. 

As civil society organisations, the key aspects to keep in mind before starting to film are: what needs to change, who will benefit, what is the anticipated impact, how will this happen, who can help achieve these goals, what needs to be done to make this happen and how this film project sits within the ecosystem surrounding the projects at hand.  

Achu Alphonse Abongwa, Cameroonian backpack journalist, shared ideas on creating “budget-friendly” videos. Over the years, he has covered a wide range of subjects in Cameroon and across Africa with a focus on climate change, natural and manmade disasters, South-South Trade Relations and more.  

“Since in backpack journalism inter-dependence is eliminated, speed in delivery is guarateed and civil society organisations can take advantage of this. People generally want to see video [proof] before taking action, so videos can create change and impact the world. The role of images here is vital,” Alponse explained. 

“Civil society organisations are change makers in a world grappling with crisis of human rights, education, hunger and poverty, climate change and the list is unending. One of the best ways to address these crises is to get to the areas where the stories are happening and tell them in the most compelling way possible that can provoke change.” 

Régine Gwladys Lebouda a multimedia journalist and writivist based in Cameroon shared tips and best-practices on podcast production. Since 2011, Gwladys has been travelling the roads of Cameroon to tell the stories of far-from-the-spotlight communities.  

“Podcasts can help create a community winch is interested in what you have to say. They will help you tell your stories and in so doing become an important instrument in your fight,” says Gwladys. 

“You have to adopt interview, investigative or round-table formats which will keep your listeners glued to your podcast. They have to be so interested that they sit for up to an hour just listening to your every word.” 

Gwladys shared a number of statistics on podcast production and promotion. Today, there are over one million unique individual podcasts.  79.8% of people listen to podcasts on the move. 65% of podcasts are listened to on a mobile device. 

Building on the experience of productng the multi-lingual and collaborative podcast A Space for Us, Forus presented its new podcast guide (available in English, French and Spanish) that shares technical and theoretical knowledge on podcast production and promotion.  

Cover picture: EngageMedia