A varied programme of community events, involving film, photography and rivers.

The Rivers in Focus programme used film and photography to engage people with their local rivers in a variety of different ways. The programme is now finished but you can see what we did and watch finished films below.

River Fun and Filming Day
We took families from the Includes Us 2 charity in Ashford for a fun day on the River Stour in Ashford. Children enjoyed the river dipping and looked at the creatures they found using a video microscope. They also followed a guided trail and talked to film-makers Funder Films about their experience.

Whitstable’s Hidden River
Working with members of the community and organisations including Whitstable Museum and the Stream Walk Community Garden, we led a guided walk about the Gorrell Stream, looking at its role in the history of the town. We documented the walk in a short film. The level of local interest in this subject has been astounding – the film has had over 1600 views on YouTube, and a permanent interpretation panel about the Gorrell is now being designed.

River Wildlife Animation Workshop
In partnership with Young Animators, we ran an activity at The Riverside Centre in South Ashford where children used the Great Stour and its wildlife as the inspiration for animation.  Children could walk down to the river to see river birds, dragonflies and fish, and we used a video microscope to give them a closer look at aquatic invertebrates. They then drew and cut out their own creature to appear the joint animation in an underwater river scene.

River Walks
From the beautiful parklands of Godinton, through urban Ashford, to the wide open spaces of the Lower Stour and finally reaching the estuary at Sandwich Bay…Our series of eight River Walks reflected the journey of the Kentish Stour and its tributaries through the catchment. They also captured the great variety of landscapes, fascinating history and rich wildlife habitats on offer.

All walks were led by film-maker Hannah Fone (aka The Wild Native), and participants got involved by contributing photos and video footage to the short films she made about the walks.