Understanding Collaboration
Storytelling requires deep listening and connection; and video production depends on contributions from many different creative people. Everything we do is rooted in collaboration. That doesn't mean that all productions are, in fact, collaborative. To the contrary, traditionally there is a strict hierarchy on film sets.
I came up as a union organizer, and was trained to listen and move people to action. I bring this to my work. At Time Travel Productions, we develop, produce and distribute all projects in close alliance with the people and communities reflected in the films. As part of this practice, we have always centered film participants in the creative process as the authorities on their own stories. Still, as the professionals with filmmaking skills, we have a certain amount of control over the final narrative.
I am developing a partnership on a new film where that cannot be the case. We that will need to honor film participants as the primary drivers of the narrative. We will bring the skill of how to craft a story so that it is understood by a wide audience, but collaboration will need to be embedded in the very DNA of the project.
*Side note: this collaborative practice is grounded in awareness that the main subjects of these films are largely invisible in our society. If we were telling stories about a group or individual with political, economic or social power, then it would not be appropriate for them to be the authorities on their own stories. In that case, independent journalistic practice would require objective observation.
Back to this new endeavor. As part of reimagining a deeper professional collaboration, I searched for synonyms and discovered there are two separate sections for "collaboration" in the Miriam-Webster thesaurus.
The first is Collaboration as in Partnership.
If we think of collaboration as a partnership, then we are talking about things like cooperation, which means we work together as equals, and affiliation, which implies that we back each other up. It also suggests that we are building relationships, which goes beyond transactional interactions to something more meaningful.
Accountability is important in relationships. There will need to be accountability not just in how the stories appear on screen, but how they are promoted. We will need to be equal partners accountable to each other.
As we build out this partnership, I ask myself, what processes will need to be in place to ensure that we work together as equals? What structures can we create to provide accountability?
The second section in the Miriam-Webster thesaurus is Collaboration as in Coordination.
The idea of collaboration as coordination makes me think more of logistics and aligning activities. There is also a teamwork and cooperation element to this, since we must be on the same page. If we explore further down the list of synonyms, I see reciprocity, oneness and mutualism, all of which imply total consensus.
Consensus, cooperation and relationship require an emotional commitment. We will need to engage in conversations about our differences as part of the creative process.
As we build out this new partnership, I ask myself, how do we need to show up differently to honor reciprocity and oneness at every stage of production and distribution?
If you are interested in exploring how we can support your storytelling needs, reach out to schedule a discovery call.