Wall.e

I’ve been mulling over our family trip to see the new Disney/Pixar movie Wall.e

Once the children got into the fact that the first third of the movie has almost no dialogue they really enjoyed it. There is a certain irony in watching a computer animated film that warns of the dangers in living a virtual life and there is a bigger irony that Wall.e, who spends his life clearing up rubbish, was then transformed into a give away from a certain well know fast food chain. Guess where most of those toys will already be!

I could also wax lyrical about the robot that is sent to see if earth can sustain life is called Eva – lots of links to both the Biblical story of creation and to the doves sent out from the ark to see if the flood was reducing – but you can make your own links there.

What also strikes me in my post-greenbelt buzz is that the movie celebrates human creativity. The captain of the spaceship discovers the wonder of dance, of planting seeds, of community. Maybe that is why Greenbelt works for so many people? Because it provides a moments when they are not dominated by screens and business and they have opportunity to reconnect with what really makes us human, creativity, community and faith.

Despite its commercial, corporate parentage Wall.e asks some big questions about values. What is important, can we keep living the way we live, what really matters, is life to be escaped or lived? I love Greenbelt because it doesn’t make money by asking those questions, but connects people who are attempting to work out honestly in their daily lives how we answer those questions as people of faith in a world that does often feel its coming apart.

Greenbelt 2

There is so much more i could write about Greenbelt, but here a just a few, short, random thoughts.

Firstly I was amazed by the amount of work and dedication of the teams who keep the whole thing running. The teams who work through the night to keep people safe, the people who run the control room, the medics, those responsible for safety and the list just goes on and on. For the last few years I have simply enjoyed being a festival goer – the step up to having an area of responsibility opened my eyes to the incredibly commitment of so many people to the festival. They are an amazing bunch and it was great to work with them.

Secondly I’m really pleased about the response to a number of bands on the fresh talent stage. On that stage we had bands who were made up of performers aged 18 and under. In their extensive review of the music at the festival crossrhythms magazine wrote “Certainly The Royal Welcome sound good enough to be hiked up to Greenbelt's Underground venue next year together with the other two outstanding bands from the Fresh Talent venue, Something For Sophie and Toxic Federation. It seems Greenbelt can still unearth exciting grassroots talent.” I’m so pleased that the talent of these young bands was recognised both for them, and because I believe giving young people a chance to develop their skills in the arts is a key part of what the festival is about. You can find the full review of Greenbelt at http://www.crossrhythms.co.uk/articles/music/Greenbelt_08_The_Music_Reviews/33185/p1/

Thirdly it was great to work with a fantastic team of over 100 youth workers all pulling together to create a great weekend. You know who you are...thank you!!

Greenbelt 1

Where to start? Heading up the youth programme at Greenbelt was an amazing, incredible, fantastic, confusing, complex and shattering experience!

Technical problems on the opening night saw venues opening late (or in the case of one youth stage staying dark), but once we got going we had a great night. In Humanic (14-17's) the team lead some crazy games between some great performances. The Royal Welcome, Just Fuzz, Zerostar and thebandwithnoname all played their hearts out to a crowd that just kept growing. Meanwhile Sounds of Salvation paid their first ever visit to the 11-14's venue and had a fantastic night with over 300 kids in that venue. Tom Elliot was everything a magician should be - funny, interactive and unbelievable, and a great time was had by all.

Of course there was lots of dashing about backstage, but we got off to a great start. By 11pm on Friday the message was out, this was not going to be jut another year in the youth venues, but a giant leap forward in terms of ambition, depth and strength of the programme. But that was only the beginning...

Lost in Space...

Well the old blog has gone where ever missing blogs go, its wit and insight lost forever. However I have failed to take the hint, and despite this tragic loss here I am blogging again!

Writing this 48 hours before Greenbelt is just a bit scary. We have a great youth programme in place for this year with some fantastic bands, speakers, workshops and teams. The plans are in place, the tents are going up. We're hoping a team of 14-17 year old's will also make a short movie that captures something of the heart of the festival - the finished item will end up on the Greenbelt website and I hope here.

Friday night alone we have Sounds of Salvation, The Band With No Name, Zerostar, Just Fuzz, The Royal Welcome, magician Tom Elliot, Karaoke, The Skate Park, Chill Zones and some weird and wacky games and shows. And that's just in the youth part of the festival. All in all its going to be quite a weekend. www.greenbelt.org.uk

However all this excitement means i won't be able to blog my thoughts about the new Star Wars movie or Wall.e for a little while yet.
Watch this space...