32 Dare To Imagine Relationship building with staff and residents As there was a complete change in those of us working on the residency we had to start the relationship anew in Spring 2022. The creative team met with the new Care Home Manager and Care Manager and Lifestyle Coordinator to discuss the revised plan for the project. The two key objectives for the care home were for all residents to have the opportunity to take part and for staff to learn skills to use themselves in their work with the residents. Although we would not be able to include everyone in the film and needed to find a core group to attend weekly sessions, we also wanted to be as inclusive as we could. We therefore decided that our first two sessions would take the form of a social tea dance on each of the four units in St Fillans with all residents welcome to attend, and we opened with a short dance performed by Alan and Emily. This proved so successful as a way of working that we incorporated the tea dance format into all our sessions as it was familiar to the residents. We encouraged staff to take part in the sessions and while the Lifestyle Coordinators and key carers working individually with residents attended most weeks, this was difficult for the majority of staff due to availability and staff turnover. Towards the end of our workshops we had one session for staff, which some staff were able to attend. We then worked with management and came up with a plan for a staff training day which took place in March 2023. The staff at St Fillans were key to the success of the artists’ residencies. We worked closely with Lifestyle Coordinators Samantha and Beverley to get to know the residents; they provided us with details about residents’ lives and helped us connect to some family members. This information was invaluable and contributed to both the workshops and the final films in terms of scenes that we devised and music that we used. We hope that St Fillans will continue to bring movement and performance to their work with the residents. To support this, we have created a video resource and will offer a year of mentoring as they develop their skills and already fantastic arts programme. Sharing the work Moving from our first plan of a live theatre performance to the creation of a film not only allowed us to create something that did not depend on access to St Fillans in case of Covid-19 restrictions; it also crucially allows us to share the work we created and the stories of the residents more widely. It was important to the creative team that the work in the film came from the residents. The stories and their movements were incorporated, as was their choice of music. Music was a key part of the workshops that Alan and Emily created. Choosing songs that the residents enjoyed meant that movement could be added and remembered, but it also made it more enjoyable for the residents. Elvis, The Beatles, Frank Sinatra and Chubby Checker were always popular for a dance and most songs were sung to. ‘A Bicycle Made for Two’ and ‘Que Sera Sera’ were great for a singsong. We wanted to bring that music into the film but, limited by budget, had to choose what we could afford to pay royalties for. We decided it was more important that the film include some of the songs the residents loved and so paid for it to be streamed from the New Adventures website in the UK only. While this limits the potential audience for the film, it does stay true to the heart of the work that we created, and who we created it for. The film, Moving in Time, is inspired by the residents and the journeys that shaped them. To ensure that we could properly celebrate the residents and their contributions to the film we held a premiere at St Fillans on 9 March 2023. We brought the dancers from the film to meet the residents and after
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