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Plan a film screening

First suggested by Save the Children
Using film as the focus, plan an event to help others think about the experience of child refugees and welcoming new friends.

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You’ll need

  • Pens or pencils
  • Scrap paper
  • Projector and screen (optional)
  • Laptop (optional)
Discussion Points
PDF – 314.2KB
Download Discussion Points

Before you begin 

  • Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. Additional help to carry out your risk assessment, including examples can be found here. Don’t forget to make sure all young people and adults involved in the activity know how to take part safely. 
  • Make sure you’ll have enough adult helpers. You may need some parents and carers to help if you’re short on helpers 

Planning this activity 

Explain to your group that they are going to watch a four-minute film made by Save the Children and Aardman studio (the makers of Chicken Run and Wallace and Gromit) on the theme of refugees and displaced children. After watching, they will plan a film screening event to raise more awareness of the experiences of refugees in the UK. 

If you don’t have a projector, you will need to send the film link to parents/guardians in advance so your group can watch the film at home before the session. 

 

Thinking about the film with younger groups

Ask your group whether they liked the film and what they thought it was about. Ask them some questions to see what they remember about the film.  

  • What lesson was happening when the orange character arrived at school? 
  • What was the first thing the orange and purple characters talked about? 
  • Who does the orange character live with? Why do you think that is?  
  • What game did the purple character invite the orange character to play with their friends? 

True or False 

Get your group to stand up – tell them that one side of the room is ‘true’, and the other side is ‘false’. Read out the statements below and ask your group to move to either side of the room depending on whether they think the statement is true or false. Ask one or two group members why they chose true or false, after each statement.  

  • Everyone lives in the country they were born in  
  • Everyone in the same country speaks the same language  
  • When someone moves country, it’s always because they want to  
  • School is the same in every country  
  • Everyone around the world eats the same food, no matter where they’re from  
  • We can always find ways to communicate with someone even if they don’t speak the same language as us  
  • Wherever you go in the world, someone will want to be your friend  
  • When someone new arrives to your school or Scout group, you should find ways to make them feel welcome, no matter where they are from  
  • Moving to a new country to live for a long time feels the same as going on holiday  
  • When people move to a new country, sometimes they have to leave some of their family members behind 
  • Playing games where you don’t have to speak, like football or chess, is a nice way to welcome someone who speaks a different language into your friendship group  
  • Having people from lots of different countries in the place you live is a good thing  

 

Thinking about the film with older groups  

Ask the group what they thought of the film and what it was about.  

Use some of these discussion questions to get your group thinking about the issues explored in the film. 

  • What were the film makers trying to depict in the film?  
  • What challenges did the orange character face arriving in a different place? 
  • How did the characters overcome the language barriers they faced? 
  • Why did the orange character leave where they were living and how do you think they arrived in the new place? 
  • Can you remember some reasons why people may have to leave the country they live in? 
  • How did the purple character make the orange character feel welcome? 
  • Who do you think is responsible for making people feel welcome when they arrive in the UK as a refugee? 
  • What did the characters learn from each other? 
  • What message did you take from the scene at the end of the film with lots of colours? 

If your group are particularly confident in the topic, you could explore some more complex questions. 

  • Who holds the power to decide who can and cannot move to the UK as a refugee? 
  • What do you know about the processes people have to go through when they arrive in the UK as a refugee?  
  • What have you seen in the news recently about refugees and the UK?  

 

Plan your event 

  1. Tell the group that they are going to plan a film screening event. How they want to do this is up to them. Everyone should start by working together to think about how they may plan an event. Everyone will need to be patient, and listen to all the ideas, before they start narrowing it down.  
  2. Write down all of their suggestions (on paper or flipchart) as these will be needed for the smaller group work later.  
  3. You could start by asking them where and when they think it would be best to do the event. It could be during one of their evening sessions, during a district day, at the end of term or during camp, for example.  
  1. Ask them who they want to invite to the event – this might include their families and friends, other Scout groups, their teachers, local council members or local MPs and local refugee organisations. Ask them to think about who is responsible for making refugees and displaced children and adults feel welcome when they arrive in the UK. Will they invite the people they’ve identified? 
  2. Ask them what they want to happen at the event – how will they make sure they have a projector and sound to show the film during the event, how will they communicate the purpose of the event, will they give a talk or presentation after the film screening to explain the topic, will there be food and what type, will they run any of the A Million Hands activities for people attending the event.  
  3. Once you have lots of ideas from the whole group, they should split into smaller groups to work on finer details. One group, for example, should think about logistics and research potential venues and their availability, while another could start planning key points for the presentation and another could develop an agenda for the event and start to think about activities. Where possible, have five groups and give the discussion points to each group to help guide their planning.  
  1. After 10-20 minutes in their groups, they should come back together to share what their group has decided and why. Discuss as a whole group whether everything works together and give time for people to feedback on ideas so that final decisions can be made.  
  2. Work together to split up the planning, organising and responsibilities and put a clear timeline together as to when things need to be done. Think about what budget is needed and where this is going to come from. Then, get started with the event planning!  

Reflection

This activity was all about being a local, national, and international citizen. It helped the group to think further about other people’s experiences and how to make them feel welcome somewhere new. Can they reflect on what they would do if a refugee arrived at their school or Scout group? How would they welcome them? How did it make them think about different levels of responsibility and power when it comes to welcoming refugees and displaced people?  

This activity was also about communication. Was it easy to agree on ideas in groups, or did people find it tricky? Could the groups plan their section of the event on their own, or did they have to talk to other groups as well? Did anyone have any interesting conversations with guests? Perhaps they had the chance to share some information or listen and put themselves in someone else’s shoes. 

Safety

All activities must be safely managed. You must complete a thorough risk assessment and take appropriate steps to reduce risk. Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. Always get approval for the activity, and have suitable supervision and an InTouch process.

Electrical equipment

Inspect cables for any damage before each use. A responsible adult should supervise people using equipment, and people should follow instructions on how to use them correctly and safely. They should be properly maintained and stored. Be extra cautious of trailing cables and water when using electric equipment.

Music and films

Make sure music and films are age appropriate for the youngest person present.

  • The amount of responsibility and guidance you give people will depend on their age and experience. For older age groups they could have more responsibility with calling a venue and making arrangements (with suitable supervision and safeguarding) but for younger age groups, more adults will need to be involved in logistics. The age of your group will also have an impact on what is a realistic film screening event you can hold.  
  • For groups that need more guidance, instead of asking open questions like “where do you want to hold the event”, you could give them three options, such as during one of their evening sessions, at a Fun Day or at camp when you will already have the group together and structure in place.  
  • This activity may be difficult for people who have experience of being a refugee or displaced child. Speak to them (and their parent or carer) beforehand, so you can create a plan for how to make it manageable. For example, would they prefer to share their experience or not? Are there any specific examples or situations you should avoid mentioning? 
  • Make sure your venue and activities are accessible, including considering any dietary requirements, allergies when preparing food and drink items.

  • Make sure there’s a role for everyone. If anyone doesn’t want to join in the discussion, they can take on another role, such as writing down ideas. If you spot someone who’s a great fit for one of the discussion prompts, why not make sure they end up working on it? 

  • People could work in pairs if someone doesn’t want to do the activity independently or if someone may need more support by working together to take part. If someone might struggle with making decisions, their partner could then help them. If needed, let people be in bigger groups to make sure everyone’s supported in taking part in the activity. A young leader could join a group to help people to take part, too. 

  • People who struggle with making choices could find all the options a bit overwhelming, so they might need extra support. They might want to work with a friend, young leader or volunteer to be able to help to decide. 

  • Make sure to break information up into smaller 'chunks' so no one feels overwhelmed. 

  • Take time and have patience while telling everyone what to do. Give short instructions clearly and concisely. If you need to, pause, then repeat the same instruction using the same words. You should allow extra 'thinking' time for some people to process verbal or written information and respond.  

  • Check for understanding by asking the group questions, such as ‘what do you need to do first?’, or having a practice round of a game. If people are struggling to understand or know what to do, you could let any confident young people help explain to each other what to do. 

  • Remember some people, including autistic people, might not look at you while you’re speaking. This doesn’t mean they're not listening. Eye contact can be painful for some people and shouldn't be forced. 

  • Try to build movement breaks into your activities to help people who may struggling sitting and listening for long periods. 

  • In the ‘true’ or ‘false’ activity, for anyone who may not be able to move around your meeting place easily, think about creating response cards for everyone. People can hold the response cards up to show their choice, instead of moving to different parts of your meeting place. If it’s tricky for everyone to hear the statement being called out while moving around, this game could be played in a circle instead with the cards. For anyone who may not be able to hear the instructions or activity, consider printing them a version that they can read at the same time. 

All Scout activities should be inclusive and accessible.

Community Impact Stage 1