Paradox in A/r/tography: Collective Short Animated Film-Making for Social Inclusion

Abstract

Abstract This article reflects on a/r/tography as a practice-based research methodology and as a strategy for inclusivity applied to a collective creative process with a group of diverse children and teenagers creating audiovisual animated narratives. The aim of the educative experience is to create an opportunity for young people with interpersonal difficulties (family, health, or social issues) to interact with young people without such difficulties in a common creative activity. In this article I narrate how it was necessary to move away from the pre-determined syllabus in order to attend to the young peoples’ interests of studying their biographies and collective narrative inquiries. I also address my experience of facing the impossible research goal of "full equal participation" and the necessity to come to terms with contradictory intentions, actions, and results. As a result, I propose "paradox" as a key concept in a/r/tography.