A film by Ken Loach
I’ve always been a fan of documentary, cinematography, and film. Most evenings lately I haven’t had the opportunity to really indulge in my favourite past-time and I usually wake up half-dazed at 4: 00 am to find myself passed out in front of the TV screen. I happened to be flicking through the TV channels and stopped on BBC4 programme: Life Cinematic (Aired 04/03/21) the synopsis reads:
British Ghanaian director Amma Asante talks to Edith Bowman about the films that have helped shape her life and career. Her selection ranges from epic classics like Goodfellas and The Color Purple to intimate, emotional greats like Damage and Hidden. Amma also discusses her international breakthrough film Belle and the process she adopts when choosing and making the film projects she is renowned for.
One of the films that Amma had picked was a film by Ken Loach – Kes. Now it’s been many years since I thought about the film and book. I remember reading it distinctively in yr. 8 and I absolutely hated the book with a passion. It bored me. Maybe it was the slow pace of reading the book collectively as a class or the teacher stopping every so often to annotate the book for symbolism, needless to say I thought the book was uninteresting but what struck a chord was the similarities to me in how and where the book was set in comparison to one of my favourite films. Billy Elliot – Directed by Stephen Daldry.
During Amma’s explanation of why she choose the film, Amma picked a clip that really was a poignant and powerful moment where she says:
Amma Assante: “If you were a teacher and you had a child as inward leaning as Billy, you would want to know and feel they had something outside or school, outside of family where they could find themselves, somewhere they could find value for themselves” ………
Assante also talks about the: Role reversal in the clip
- Billy becomes the teacher
- The teacher Mr Farthing becomes the student
I think the programme made me think about how as teachers we don’t have all the answers, but it’s about taking the formative steps to get to know and connect with students who present a challenge. The idea of role reversal was also very important, although were meant to impart knowledge, the pedagogical relationship is transactional where there is an exchange of ideas, beliefs and truths. I also thought about my secondary education and the missed opportunities for teachers who labelled students as problematic, disruptive, stupid, without really getting to know the students and essentially building a relationship with a goal of re- establishing a love for learning and knowledge.
Years after reading and watching the film, I think that the series has made me re-examine my own positionality and is definitely worth a watch with fresh pair of eyes.