And you can help it win by voting for it!
A film about the pioneering work of women activists is up for a prestigious prize.
KairosWomen+, a women’s community group based in Renfrewshire, created the short to celebrate the legacy of women involved in the Scottish Co-operative Women’s Guild – and to tie up links between the struggles of the past and those of the present.
It features activists like Molly Mercer and aims to uncover a radical history of ordinary people fighting for advancement which has all but been forgotten – but which is incredibly relevant today.
The group created its short film for Paisley Museum, where it will be featured when refurbishment work has been completed.
It was made with the assistance of the voluntary sector creatives the media co-op – and it has been nominated for a Smiley Charity Film Award.
KairosWomen+ and the media co-op are now urging people to view the two minute film and vote for it in the awards.
Annie Tothill from Kairos said: “Every vote counts, it only takes a moment!”
Media co-op’s Vilte Vaitkute said: “Scotland has a rich tradition of radical women agitating for social change: equal rights, votes for women. But the history is in danger of getting lost.
“It’s been a real honour for media co-op to collaborate with local women activists, to rescue this inspiring history of the co-op movement, and put it on screen. And it’s been huge fun too. To be nominated for this award is the icing on the cake. We’re asking everyone we know to watch and vote, vote, vote.”
Annie Tothill added: “We spent weeks writing the script, hand-crafting our stop-motion animation, and recording the voice-over.
“The group’s talent, dedication and grit is awe-inspiring. Our film is about the past, and also about today – as our script puts it: ‘What we’ve learned from history is that when we work together, we can make a difference.’”
Kirsty Devine, project director at Paisley Museum Reimagined, said: “Paisley Museum is so proud of the award nomination for our film about the Co-operative Women’s Guild. It is a wonderful example of our co-production approach and the benefits it brings to the communities we’re working with. We’re creating a world-class attraction with community at its core and we’re delighted to have worked in partnership with Kairos on the film and the museum project. I hope everyone watches the film and votes – but the people at Kairos are already winners in our eyes.”
Voting for the Charity Film Awards is open till 12 January.