I would just like to share with this blog the experience and success of the recently run and concluded co_LAB project.
If you’ve been following along recently, you’ll be aware of the co_LAB project I have been help organise. To quote from the official blurb:
co_LAB will be an intensive programme taking place between 12-16 May, 2014, featuring additional online content and a number of practice and skills workshops. We will be looking for enthusiastic participants made up from current Level 2 students from across Media Production, Audio Production, Film and Television, Contemporary Lens Media, and Interactive Design.
The project has now finished and the 21 participants (14 students and 7 staff) are producing their outputs (product design posters).
Although (very) intense, it has been a fantastic week (see co_LAB Blog – link below). Staff and students have come together to work on projects set by the theme of this year’s project. Individuals really did bring their own skills and strengths from their production areas and work collaboratively to produce coherent end products. But more than that, the atmosphere generated by working, sharing and socialising made for a very productive and welcoming learning environment, and one that I would be keen to see replicated in more areas of the academic world.
A dedicated film crew captured a lot of the activities and will be producing a short documentary / promotional film shortly. I will post the video on this blog when it’s ready.
Branding & Belonging
One thing which did arise that was especially noteworthy for this blog were my observations of how the majority of the participants demonstrated loyalty towards the brand. The branding in this instance isn’t one of a company or a product, it is one that represents a group of people and their experience while with that group. It just so happens that majority of participants associated this with a positive and fun experience. They then used the branding to express belonging to that group publicly.
One student even embraced the brand in the kitchen by creating a nice co_LAB branded cake. Not even the BBC has branded brownies! It was delicious in case you’re wondering (above).
Find out more
There will be a number of future outputs for academic purposes based on this project, but if you are interested in finding out more, check out the following resources. The blog may stagnate until the next iteration but the Facebook group seems to still be active, even though we are done with it in an official capacity: