What is a concerned citizen? Is it someone running fundraisers and collecting donations to better the community? Is it an individual who is fighting against an issue they see, making themselves a social warrior? When we were thinking of who we wanted to focus on for our project, we agreed that we wanted someone who was passionate. We wanted someone who stood for something good, and had that genuine spirit of wanting to make the world a better place. What a better individual and example of this than that of a child? After all, in the scriptures we are constantly encouraged to become even as a child. Remi and Ella are two little girls on a mission to make their community a better place. Some may look at them and ask what exactly they can do, being children after all. But their reach is influencing and changing the environment in which they are a part of. Being a concerned citizen does not have to be a large, global scale thing. In fact, sometimes we reach the most people through small and seemingly simple things. These girls want to make sure that everyone is in fact having a wonderful day. They make sure they say hello to you when they see you, no matter who you are! This is not just a “once in awhile” thing. For those who live on this street, these young citizens are saying hello to everyone everyday. We looked at that situation and thought of all the things we wish to see in our society, and in ourselves. There is so much talk in the world today about the lack of love for one another. There seems to be so much hate always thrown around, and not enough compassion and understanding. These two little girls are doing the exact opposite of what the news says everyone else is doing. They are making people feel loved and important. They are, in a way, communicating that these neighbors are “seen”; that they are recognized and important.
When creating our video, we wanted to have a similar feel to many short films and documentaries we had viewed, a few of which having been introduced to us in the classroom, like “the Scared is scared,” by Bianca Giaever. We wanted to be able to capture the fun and optimistic spirit of these girls. In choosing music we wanted something upbeat and fun, reflecting the attitude of the focus of our assignment. With audio snippets and clips of the girls running from each house, saying hello with enthusiasm, we felt that we captured the excitement that they have in order to make sure everyone feels loved and has a good day. In the article we read for class, Arlene Goldbard said “If our higher purpose is to develop societies securely grounded in possibility, compassion, and connection, our task is to collectively imagine these things. There is no more powerful way to do that than by making art that rehearses the future we wish to help into being”. In making this video, we hoped to do just that. We wanted to capture something that reflected what we would like to see more of in the world. We would like more people to say hello to one another, more people to take some genuine interest in their neighbor, and more people to simply smile. If we start small, then surely this could spread, and little by little the human interaction would change. Maybe people would be more trusting, maybe they would be more willing to give someone the benefit of the doubt. It is said that we should treat others as we would like to be treated. We have gone away from that saying and it seems about time we take some advice from these sweet girls and start small, if even by simply saying “hello”.
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