Film Launch

We now have a date for this, and a special guest!

Where: Studio One, Wyvern Theatre, Swindon

When: 2pm to 3pm Saturday 28th June

Guest: Rt Hon Michael Wills MP

Invitations to the launch will be sent out shortly and we are hoping to interest local TV, press and radio in the event.

Mr Wills is the MP for North Swindon, where a number of the young dads live, and is Minister of Justice in the Government. We're especially pleased that he wants to be there because he has been a long-time friend of U-Too. We have met him on a number of occasions when we've had problems about funding our work. Most importantly he arranged a meeting for us eighteen months ago with Ed Miliband, who was then the Minister for the Third Sector.

Introduction to the Film

DADS MATTER TOO

The young dads in this film have made it for a number of reasons. They are aware that, as a group, they do not get a ‘good press’. They want to show they are willing to face up to their responsibilities as parents, and that they recognise their importance in the lives of their children.

They are well aware of the difficulties they face. They feel health service professionals often overlook them during their partners’ pregnancies. They experience family conflict, accusations of being too young, problems with housing and finance, tensions in their relationships with their partners. Indeed some of them are no longer with the mothers of their children but maintain, or want to maintain, contact with their children.

Knowing these difficulties first hand means that they are not encouraging other young people to view teenage parenthood as a desirable condition. Far from it, but issues relating to teenage sexual activity, contraception, and teenage pregnancy are not what they want the film to be about. Rather it’s their need for support, through courses like U-Too’s Young Dads-To-Be course, finance to make this support available, and the consequent need to raise awareness among politicians and the general public of their experiences.
They want this film to help inform the national debate about teenage parenthood, challenge stereotypical prejudices, and remind us that ‘dads matter too’.

- Mike White, U-Too. May 2008.

U-Too and the Young Dads-to-be Course

U-Too Community Business Ltd. works with young parents from Swindon and Wiltshire, delivering a range of courses to suit individuals and their circumstances.U-Too has been delivering accredited courses for young mums-to-be and young mums for over five years.

U-Too recognised the need for a similar course for young dads-to-be, developed its own and has been delivering it for nearly four years.

Mike White, U-Too's young fathers' worker, meets dads each week, usually individually, sometimes in small groups, either at their home or at an appropriate centre. He supports them with various courses and personal development over a period of time.

DVD is away for duplication!

After a successful screening in Swindon for Dads & partners to check the film before the DVD was mastered, followed by a not-so-successful crash of Jackie's laptop that meant some of the artwork for print had to be remade, at last the DVD and CD are away being duplicated! There will be 50 'special' double-cased DVDs with music CD, and a further 450 boxed and shrink-wrapped DVDs. So we hope everyone reading this will want to get copies, and recommend the film widely! Details of how to order your copies and contribute to the project will be posted shortly.

The main film is 28 minutes long and includes soundtracks from the music workshops - featuring the Dads Rap 'We're Here To Stay' and a new track 'Skin to Skin; Proud to be a Young Dad'. Also lots of insights and information for anyone with any interest in young fathers. It includes footage from the workshops and interviews of the last 6 months, research, links for further info, and shows the 11 young dads who have been involved in the project.

There's also a further 80 minute of selected edits from the various interviews, workshops and courses. A series of 'Dads Speak' features address topics ranging from advice to other young people, birth, benefits and housing, relationships, to the highlights and challenges of being a young dad. Plus thought-provoking responses to the question 'Is there any other message you would like to give to people watching this film...?'

Next Dates

7th June
at the Link Centre for final media arts workshop.
- finishing off bits of editing, photos, designs for the calendar
- arts hero and heroine presentations
- choosing work to go on the web/print

14th June
Arts Award trip to Tate Modern, London
- details to follow

Media Workshop 4 - Pix

Pretty much a full house today, and a full day too! About 30 dads, partners and children...

The fourth media workshop was originally planned as a day to make promotional postcards using photoshop. But plans change and the idea for a Dads Matter Too calendar emerged a couple of months ago, and won top place over the postcards...

One of the really great things about the extra media workshops overlapping with the film project has been having flexibility to follow what people are interested in, and their new ideas. So today we checked over the designs from the last workshop - for the CD and DVD covers and logos, and saw how it all fits together, along with the new music track, in the final edit of the film which we watched along with some of the extra material that will go on the DVD. Then it was plans for the people doing their bronze Arts Award - including a proposed visit to the Tate Modern, arts heroes and heroines - who inspires you and why? - and some more fantastic arts apprenticeship tasks.
Marcus gathered quotes from all the Dads, choices for fonts and colours, to go on the calendar. Terri calmly rose to the challenge of taking pictures of Dads and children on location at the park, and back at the Link Centre - with really stunning results! Well done everyone! We had time for a picnic in the park - part of Mike's money management course. And of course a bit of time to play! We had such a good day the last of us didnt leave til 6.30pm!!