Description
In October 2020, Nigerians worldwide rallied against police brutality under the #EndSARS movement, which spotlighted abuses perpetrated by the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) of the Nigerian Police. The movement was galvanised by social media, with millions of posts—photos, videos, and livestreams—capturing visceral moments of protest, loss, and resilience. This use of visual artefacts in activism has historically maintained the impulse of using juxtaposition, subaltern perspectives, and striking representations to challenge dominant narratives. #EndSARS visual artefacts were pivotal in sparking the protest, articulating grievances, and evidencing state-sponsored oppression. The films and documentaries made about the #EndSARS protests have however, struggled to capture the wealth and breadth of stories made available through social media.In this paper, I present my practice research work, which utilised these visual artefacts to tell a more complete story of the movement using an interactive film platform – Networked Narratives. Through curated Instagram posts recontextualised with short video commentary from the original creators, the platform is designed to document and expand the visual legacy of #EndSARS. Users are invited to navigate the movement through multiple entry points, comparison tools, and interactive prompts. By harnessing the potential of social media as an archive of lived experiences, Networked Narratives allows for a participatory, layered storytelling experience that goes beyond the constraints of conventional film or social media platforms. This method, grounded in the postcolonial principle of letting the subaltern speak, introduces new possibilities for awareness in global activism.
| Period | 26 Mar 2025 |
|---|---|
| Event title | British Association of Film, Television and Screen Studies Conference 2025: Global Aesthetics |
| Event type | Conference |
| Location | Coventry, United KingdomShow on map |
| Degree of Recognition | International |