Presentation
The aim for my presentation, is to create a relaxing yet immersive experience for those who view it. This will be done by bringing various things from the walk, whether these be a collage of photos documenting the experiences I had or bringing items such as a pair of walking boots which resonate with the experience well. Having items like these, helps to provide my audience with an insight top the filming process, including things such as the memories I made along the way. Including images of memories from production, helps to tie in with the overall topic of my product which is Men’s Mental Health, as it shows that being around your mates and having a laugh is so impactful on your mental health and the healing process behind it. In order to keep my viewers engaged, I need to make my presentation interactive, with various things for passers to read/ do which will catch their attention. To do this, I have a few ideas lined up. One of these things is a blank canvas mind map surrounding the topic of mental health, where passers by can add their own associations with mental health, whether this be various conditions feelings, or words they associate around the topic. This helps to connect the audience with my product and figure out the themes or extent of the existing knowledge that passers by may have. Another activity I have incorporated into my presentation, is a ballot style box and a pen and paper, where viewers can write down their own experiences with opening up about their feelings, and how it made them feel, or on the contrary where they can write down reasons why they may not open up. This in itself, is a bit of an experiment, as people may not feel comfortable enough to write down these personal thoughts and feelings, yet the idea and option is still there for people to do it anonymously.
To the side of the computer showcasing my product, will be a large A3 style flyer with facts and figures on it regarding mental health, which will provide context to the product, and the topic. On one side of this fact sheet, I aim to have a list of various help sites and charities such as Andy’s Man Club, or Mind, where people can get the help, they need it and are unsure of where to go. Next to this, I will then have a stack of small business cards, or flyers for the various organisations that people can take with them to both use and find out more about the charities to provide the help for those who need it whether it be themselves or a loved one. To round my presentation off, there will be a small bowl of chocolates where those who are viewing the product can take with them, along with a leaflet for the help organisations. Overall, I feel like my presentation idea has the potential to be successful if executed correctly, and have the impact on people that I hoped it would have, especially if I intended to create another mental health product in the future, by being able to use the answers people give to the mind map etc. as audience research for future projects to figure out where I can improve from this current one.
Initially, I intended for my presentation to have an unorganised chaotic theme, showing how it feels to suffer with mental health, not knowing what is going on and feeling like everything is becoming overwhelming. The scrunched-up notes aimed to represent that feeling, which is present within many men, which is that they feel a constant need to have perfection in everything they do, often being overly critical of work and constantly starting over again to make sure everything is exactly how it should be. The addition of the mind map and thought box worked well, as I feel it allowed for people have their say on the topic and leave their own personal touch, which the thought box did very well in, with various people adding in their own notes of habits or things that make them feel happy within themselves. As previously thought though, this little experiment did exactly as I hoped it would, with some people feeling comfortable enough to add their own thoughts and happy moments into the box, whereas others simply looked at it and walked by. In addition to, my original plans, I added a poem written about Men’s Mental Health which was written in memorial of a man who lost the battle with his thoughts and sadly took his own life. This was a nice touch for people to read whilst/after viewing my product and helped to the awareness and deeper side of the exhibition. Overall, I feel that it was a success, but one thing I would’ve changed, is to make it feel cozier and a little more sheltered to give that feeling of safety and warmth which is often lacking from most men’s lives when they need it most.