Student Olivia Crook chose to investigate the subject of dementia in a drama based on the experiences of her own family for the final project of her Creative Media Production course.
The 12-minute film — titled “Forgetting, Forgot, Forgotten” — explores the problems faced by a growing number of families as they decide how best to cope with increasingly frail elderly relatives.
Olivia’s film is part of the exhibition of our students’ work running at the Old Fire Station Gallery in Market Place from Thursday (June 13) to Tuesday, June 19. Olivia, of Abrahams Road, is the daughter of Henley Residents Group councillor Donna Crook. She was inspired to make the film after her grandfather, Peter Roberts, was diagnosed with dementia.
“The Henley College has been really good for me. I started on an A-level programme but I find exams very difficult so I switched to an extended diploma after the first year. I really enjoyed photography so I kept that on as an A-level while studying Creative Media Production. It was really hard doing both but I got an A grade in photography last year so it felt worthwhile. The diploma course is very hard but it is also fun. It allows you to be creative but also teaches the skills you need to bring projects to a successful conclusion. You learn how to meet the requirements of the exam board while exploring your own creative ideas. I’m going to study film production at Portsmouth University in September. It will allow me to find out more about different areas of the film industry which is what I where I want to work. Before I came to The Henley College I never would have dreamed of going to Uni., I thought I would go straight into work, but coming here allowed me to see all of the opportunities that were open to me.“
The drama also features Olivia’s mother Donna Crook who is Henley Residents Group councillor for North Ward. Olivia said: “I wasn’t sure how she would feel because the subject is so close to home and she is quite a private person. At first, she was quite hesitant but once I started to work out how I would film she realised that it might help other people understand how hard it is to cope. My mum hasn’t actually seen the final edit but I showed it to my sister and she cried when she saw it. She told me that she thought it was true-to-life and had captured the essence of the story.“.
The Creative Media Course is a two-year extended diploma designed to prepare students for work in the media industry. The sector is expected to be worth £76 Billion to the UK economy by 2022 according to accountancy firm PwC*.
The Henley College’s creative media course is a two-year extended diploma designed to prepare students for work in the media industry. The sector is expected to be worth £76 billion to the UK economy by 2022, according to accountancy firm PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Find out more about the Creative Subjects exhibition in June
