A Newcastle filmmaker has created an exhibition telling the stories of young and older people, care homes, NHS workers, and community volunteers during the Covid pandemic.
The project called “The COVID Age” was created collaboratively by the Newcastle City Council Arts development team, Newcastle University, and the UK National Innovation Centre for Ageing. Beginning in October 2020, artist and filmmaker Danielle Giddins started working with communities around Newcastle to understand their experiences of the Covid pandemic.
She shot four separate films focusing on stories on how young people coped with the lockdown, how older people struggled during the pandemic, the fear of the unknown, and the hardships care homes have experienced. Danielle set out to make the four films scripted from her interactions with the individuals and communities to ensure they were representative of lived experiences during the pandemic.
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The four short films are an artistic representation of the experiences of a particular group with each film focusing on a unique character and how the lockdown affected their life. The storylines were inspired by the experiences of people from Benfield School, Throckley Community Hall, the Freeman Heart, and Lung Association, and Newcastle College’ s ESOL department.
She has formed the exhibition through methods of research including photography and artwork. Filmmaker Danielle Giddins said: "I was tremendously excited when I saw the brief for this residency - the opportunity to explore and highlight stories of the impact of the pandemic on local people is truly once in a lifetime.
“It was an absolute privilege to have literally hundreds of personal stories and accounts shared with this project and myself. I feel they will only become more valuable as we seek to reflect on and make sense of these extraordinary events in the future.”
She added: “I was also mindful that while there were universal experiences of the pandemic, there were also vast differences between stories, and I wanted to capture even just a tiny proportion of that variety."
Lottie Rhodes, a Ph.D. student at Newcastle University who attended the exhibition, said: “The COVID Age was a brilliant exhibition and the films Danielle made are incredibly moving. I found the range of experiences and the way they were captured through storytelling a powerful way to express different experiences during the pandemic.
“Gloria’s film particularly resonated with me as I am a Covid response foodbank volunteer in Newcastle. The volunteer who spent time chatting with Gloria showed just how much the people of Newcastle care for their communities regardless of faith or age. Even a small action like having a chat goes a long way. I would highly recommend these films for everyone to see.”
Lorna Smith, Interim Director of Public Health for Newcastle, said: “The Public Health response to the pandemic has been incredibly broad, ranging far beyond managing cases and outbreaks, and has involved all council services working closely with partners across the city and the wider region.
“Actions and investment to support the wellbeing of our residents and communities has been fundamental to our approach, and we were delighted to support the series of incredibly important films – based on the lived experience of our residents – working closely with our Arts Development Team.
“This work shows the powerful impact of individual stories to stimulate reflection, generate empathy, and pay tribute to the unprecedented experience across generations from the past two years.”
Danielle added: “The project is probably more a time-capsule or archive than an art project, and one that we're hoping to grow while memories are fresh, and photos are to hand.
“I'd encourage anyone interested to submit their own photos and stories from that time period; the head-scratching bizarre images of queuing outside shops, two-meter signs, and hazard tape all over swings and slides will only become more valuable as time passes and we seek to explain this period to our children and grandchildren.
“People can submit their images to thecovidageproject@gmail.com and there is a public gallery at www.thecovidage.co.uk to view the four films, can visit: https://www.thecovidage.co.uk/watch-and-listen/ "
