The Europe Challenge

The Local Challenge

SATIS BU is the audiovisual school library at Aix-Marseilles University, a space where students can consult books and journals, meet and talk about their work and carry out film rehearsals. The students and alumni make up the main library users with alumni now working in the audiovisual sector all over France and abroad. This library and community will hold sessions on ethical film-making, covering race, age, disability and common stereotypes in film-making both behind and in front of the camera for future and current film-makers and the broader community. 

 The Initiative  

The library is creating a ‘democratise library’ space, for local groups as a place to start debates about on-screen representation. The aim is to encourage building a conscious professional ethic in filmmaking, starting with the reflections on script writing: how and why we decide the selection of roles (e.g. women in leadership, people with a different skin colour or accents, people with disabilities, etc.), through to the production and shooting of film content, taking on board environmental responsibility, or eco-responsible film creation. The space is also hosting workshops, podcast making, panel discussions and expert meetings. 

After The Europe Challenge

The library and students have made a conversation on representational clichés of images in film, television and advertising and how they reinforce stereotypes and reduces diversity. The library encouraged the community of local residents and students to work together in movie-making and challenged themselves to offer services beyond the traditional library model. This shift has highlighted the library is not just as a repository of books, but as a dynamic space that fosters community collaboration, promotes inclusivity, and supports the personal and professional development of its users. 

Contact theeuropechallenge@culturalfoundation.eu if you have any questions or want to be connected with the team behind the project.