Q10

a. Does SoCo have any impact on your personal video or club activities, if so, please describe?
Lee: Yes, Competitions and making productions for. Also discussions.
Julian: SoCo has only a small impact on my personal videomaking activities. It organises an
annual competition and I have attended the competition ‘show’ on a couple of occasions.
My most frequent ‘contact’ with SoCo is through reading the SoCo newsletter distributed by
e-mail.
Brian: In honesty, minimal impact other than participation in the competitions
b. What could SoCo do, other than publishing SoCo News, to add value to your personal or
club movie making?
Lee: Provide / Publish some articles (SOCO News) about the various methods and
experiences / problems met with in movie making for discussion.
Problem solving and the Involvement of Young people – ‘Teenagers that is. Stories from “the
set / location”. Plus the “value” of IAC membership.
Julian: I would suggest that SoCo should organise an (at least) annual meeting / seminar at
an accessible location in the SoCo area. This could take the form of an all-day meeting with 2
or 3 good speakers on film-making subjects. A ‘Bring and Buy’ sale table could be included.
The CEMRIAC branch of the IAC have run a seminar along these lines in Worcester for the
last few years and would doubtless be happy to advise. I would suggest Exeter area as a
suitable place for the first meeting but because the SoCo area is so large it might be good to
choose another, more easterly, town (say Swindon) the next year.
Brian: Possibly alter balance of content in SoCo News to include more
technical/educational material
c. Would you personally, or your video club, be prepared to become actively involved in the
running of SoCo either by hosting events or joining the Regional Council where meetings
could be run using the same format we have used over the past couple of months?
Lee: Unable to host events BUT: I / We are involved already.
Julian: In principle I would be pleased to help but personal issues mean I cannot offer to do
so just at the moment.
Brian: Happy to support in whatever way is possible but a long time ago Reading did
host an event but even then the distances prevented wide participation. As previously
discussed this prompts the question as to whether the SoCo geographic area is too big
to encourage face to face attendance. Many clubs already have contacts with their
nearest other local clubs

d. Would you support SoCo merging with another region (if they would have us) and, if so,
what could they do that SoCo does not?
Lee: Questionable! Only if there was some advantage for us.
Julian: As the SoCo region is so large at the moment I feel that merging with another region
would be impractical. However, inter-region co-operation would be desirable and might
include publicising events/seminars/competitions taking place in adjacent regions.
Brian: No objection in principal but it is difficult to see what advantages would be
gained based on the current structure. Distances would be greater and the larger you
get it starts to compete with the IAC itself. If this was to be pursued then I think a
more radical review to establish our mission, purpose and objectives would be
needed. Should we attempt to define what these should be, it sometimes helps the
thinking.
e. Would you support the above questions being the basis of a questionnaire to be sent to
individual IAC members in the SoCo Region? Please feel free to add/amend the questions
Lee: Yes.
Julian: Yes, provided that costs could be kept to a minimum e.g. by distributing the
questionnaire as an insert into the copies of F&V Maker destined for SoCo members.
Question c) would need amendment as most people would not know about how the
Regional Council meetings operate.
Brian: Yes
f. Would you be willing for your name or that of your club to be associated with the
questionnaire – this would give it added credibility? (Please indicate which)
Lee: Both. Myself and Stonehouse and Stroud Video Unit.
Julian: No. The questionnaire should be from SoCo not a club or individual (who might be
known to hold contentious views).
Brian: No Problem with either