Deborah, The Friend Making Machine
- Submitting institution
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Staffordshire University
- Unit of assessment
- 34 - Communication, Cultural and Media Studies, Library and Information Management
- Output identifier
- Lists 74
- Type
- T - Other
- DOI
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- Location
- -
- Brief description of type
- A multi-component output including several elements: Film, Curated Exhibition, Museum installations and other public outputs
- Open access status
- Out of scope for open access requirements
- Month
- -
- Year
- 2018
- URL
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- Supplementary information
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- Request cross-referral to
- -
- Output has been delayed by COVID-19
- No
- COVID-19 affected output statement
- -
- Forensic science
- No
- Criminology
- No
- Interdisciplinary
- Yes
- Number of additional authors
-
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- Research group(s)
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A - The C3 Centre: Creative Industries and Creative Communities
- Proposed double-weighted
- No
- Reserve for an output with double weighting
- No
- Additional information
- This multi-component output captures the research about the story of a unique World War One tank called "Deborah" – now a National French Monument - discovered on the battlefields in France. GRAHAM’s specific film practice allows producer-led narratives to give voice to academic research content, with the result of bringing communities together when learning about WW1 and its aftermath on societies. This output is an example where a filmic practice pulls the creation of new content through a line of enquiry, as the narratives are developed with the communities that have been affected.
The research methodology is a novel, participatory and community-focussed pulling the creation of new content with the public and stakeholders taking centre stage. Traditional development models saw the public as mere consumers and mitigated against them taking part in developing their own narratives. Critically, this approach also ensured that stories could be told in a timely manner which is particularly important for the veterans who are still able to tell the stories of their lived historical experiences. Using this methodology, the community has a transformational input into the narrative, creating new knowledge and by-passing traditional development approaches. This generates new knowledge about stories and content as well as processes and tools, without the constraints of previous business models where funding had to be secured before work could start.
Deborah was created during the opening of a new museum to mark the centenary of the Battle of Cambrai and in the UK to explain the story of the regiment. A number of further museums have directly benefited from exhibitions derived from Deborah the Tank citing public interest in the story of Mark IV tank and increased understanding of the regiment and historical context.
- Author contribution statement
- -
- Non-English
- No
- English abstract
- -
