The Story that Moves
Expression of Interest
I would love to create the legacy film for The Story that Moves and document the people, places and creative work behind the project.
I run Stories of Note, a filmmaking and photography company working exclusively with charities. I have recently been filming with Little Green Pig, another writing charity working with children and young people, creating films about different strands of their work.
That experience has made this opportunity particularly exciting to me. I would love to bring that same approach to The Story that Moves and create something that celebrates the creativity of the young people involved, while also showing the wider value and ambition of the Story Venues Cohort.
Why I’m interested in this project…
I love making films with young people, particularly when the creative process is as important as the finished work. There is something very rewarding about creating the space for young people to express themselves and then finding ways to turn those individual voices into a compelling story.
I think this project presents quite the challenge, but I think it's an exciting one. Eight different venues in eight different communities should mean we can create a film that acts as a tapestry of the project. I want to give a strong sense of the diversity of the projects but also make sure we convey that they are all pulling in the same direction.
My instinct would be to cast the net wide during filming. I would want to capture not only the finished artwork, but the people making it, the spaces in which they work, and the atmosphere of each venue. I love interviewing people, so I would like to interview as many people on the ground as possible.
The puzzle then begins in the edit, and finding the connections between these eight places and creating a film that feels like one shared story, rather than eight separate films placed alongside one another.
I think this film should not only document The Story that Moves, but also leave the viewer with a sense of why each organisation matters.
Skills and experience
I have a background in documentary filmmaking and run Stories of Note, a filmmaking and photography company dedicated to working with charities.
Alongside Stories of Note, I make documentaries about interesting and often overlooked people and communities, including films about England’s last working seacoalers, and a ping pong club with a difference. These films have screened at festivals across the UK and Europe, and you can view them here.
Most recently, I have been working with Little Green Pig, another writing charity working with children and young people, filming their after-school clubs and Amplified, a project working with teenagers.
I have also recently created a legacy film for the National Trust, bringing together more than a dozen different projects into a single film. This involved finding the common threads between very different stories and creating a coherent narrative from a wide range of people, places and activities, an experience I think is particularly relevant to The Story that Moves.
I am comfortable working independently from planning through to filming, interviewing, editing and final delivery, and would aim to make the process as straightforward as possible for each venue, working around their existing programmes rather than asking them to create something specifically for the camera.
My approach
I would approach The Story that Moves as one national story made up of eight local stories.
Each venue is different, and I want that diversity to come through, while recognising that an eight-minute film cannot explore every organisation in depth. I would therefore look for the moments, people and themes that best represent the collective story, while ensuring all eight venues have a meaningful presence. The individual one-minute films provide an opportunity to explore each venue in greater depth.
I would cast the net wide during filming, capturing the workshops and creative activity, the environments in which they take place, and the people involved. Interviews would be an important part of this, particularly with children and young people, alongside practitioners and families.
I would then look for the connections, contrasts and recurring themes between the venues in the edit, creating something energetic and varied but ultimately cohesive. I would like this to be a celebration of the organisations and young people involved while demonstrating the collective ambition and reach of the Story Venues Cohort.
Delivery and timeline
I would aim to complete all filming by the end of February 2027 at the latest, with the exact dates shaped around the programmes and activities taking place at each venue.
Where possible, I would group venues geographically to make the most of the filming time and budget. I would suggest:
Filming block 1 — South West
Alibi, Exeter + The Writers Block, Cornwall
Filming block 2 — North
Grimm & Co, Rotherham + The Reader, Liverpool + Z-Arts, Manchester
London & Oxford
Discover, Ministry of Stories and The Story Museum can be scheduled separately around the most suitable opportunities to capture the work.
I would begin reviewing and organising footage as filming progresses, allowing the overall story to develop throughout the project rather than waiting until the final shoot has finished.
Post-production
5–8 minute documentary — within 1 month of completing filming
3 minute cut — within a further 2 weeks
Venue-specific 1 minute films — within a further 2 weeks
30–40 second portrait reel + 20 second social reel — within a further week
The fee includes two formal rounds of feedback on the main film and 3-minute cut, with reasonable refinements beyond these where needed to ensure the final films achieve what the project requires.
High-resolution stills pulled from the footage will also be supplied.
Relevant work
Little Green Pig work with young people across Sussex, nurturing confidence, self-expression and creativity. This film follows their after-school writing clubs, where young people develop ideas and tell their own stories.
Filmed across three sessions, I interviewed young people, mentors and workshop leaders to capture different perspectives on the work, including the children reading their own writing.
Why it is relevant: It demonstrates my experience of filming young people in creative environments and building a story through a combination of observation, interviews and participant voices.
I recently created this legacy film for the National Trust, bringing together more than a dozen different projects into a single film. The project required finding the common threads between very different stories, people and places while giving the overall film a clear sense of purpose and progression.
Why it is relevant: Bringing multiple projects and communities together into one coherent story is central to The Story that Moves.
Budget
Total commission: £8,000 inclusive of VAT, travel, accommodation, materials and all other expenses.
I recognise that this is an ambitious project given the number of venues and outputs, but I would be very happy to undertake the commission for the full available fee. It is a project I would genuinely love to work on.
The fee covers planning, filming across all eight venues, travel and accommodation, editing, two rounds of feedback, captioning, all agreed outputs and high-resolution stills pulled from the footage.
The paperwork
I have a basic DBS check but will be happy to complete the required Enhanced DBS check as part of the commission.
…and finally
Thank you so much for taking the time to read through and consider my application. I really would be so excited to work with Ministry of Stories and help tell the story of this project.
Warm regards
Caleb