Us Now

/ 23 Oct 2009 / 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm / Cinema Two, Chapter Arts Centre, Cardiff

UK/2008/60mins/ctba

A film project about the power of mass collaboration, government and the internet

In his student flat in Colchester, Jack Howe is staring intently into his computer screen. He is picking the team for Ebbsfleet United`s FA Trophy Semi-Final match against Aldershot. Around the world 35,000 other fans are doing the same thing, because together, they own and manage the football club. If distributed networks of people can run complex organisations such as football clubs, what else can they do?

Illustrating examples such as Ebbsfleet United (a football club owned and run by its fans), Zopa (a bank in which everyone is the manager), and Couch Surfing (a vast online network whose members share their homes with strangers), the film takes a compelling and positive look at how this type of participation could transform the way that countries are governed. If distributed networks can run complex organisations such as football clubs, what else can they do? The documentary brings together leading practitioners and thinkers in this field, inviting them to examine the possibilities for participative government and features contributions from Ed Miliband and George Osborne.

The founding principles of these projects -transparency, self-selection, open participation - are coming closer and closer to the mainstream of our social and political lives.

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There will be a Q&A with Director of Us Now - Ivo Gormley after the film until 6:40pm.

Ivo has worked in media and the public sector for four years since graduating
with an MA in Social Anthropology. Ivo has worked on projects with the BFI,
the Open University, BBC and Channel 4. Working at thinkpublic, he has led
numerous projects in the public sector aiming to increase participation in
public services across health, education and social care.

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