2025 Community Film Festival: Real Utopias Co-Programming Project
Empowering Multicultural Communities Alliance (EMCA) is proud to collaborate with Take One Action on the Community Film Festival: Real Utopias in Edinburgh. This partnership is part of Take One Action’s bold initiative to democratise film festival programming by placing decision-making power into the hands of grassroots and community-led groups.
What Is the Project About?
Traditional film festival programming is often top-down. This project challenges this by creating space for local people to shape what stories are told and how they are shared. Together, we will curate a film event in Edinburgh that reflects the priorities, struggles, and hopes of our communities—centred on the 2025 theme of Real Utopias.
How It Works?
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Community-Led Programming: A local programming group will collaboratively choose the films, themes, venue, and audiences. EMCA will coordinate this group, ensuring that their voices guide every step.
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Beyond the Screen: The festival event will include workshops, discussions, or performances designed to spark meaningful dialogue and grassroots action.
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Support and Accessibility: We will provide stipends for participation, cover travel and childcare costs, and prioritise accessibility throughout the process.
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Impact and Next Steps: Together, we aim to build lasting partnerships, share resources, and open pathways for ongoing community-led cultural programming.
Why This Matters?
At its core, this collaboration is about sharing power, celebrating diverse perspectives, and creating a more just and inclusive cultural landscape. By co-creating this festival with Take One Action, we are imagining and building the kinds of radical futures our communities deserve.