Divided by Law

Agusita, Emma; Davies, Katie

Abstract

In this talk, Dr Emma Agusita and Dr Katie Davies discuss their research project in which film was used to explore and bear witness to the experiences of binational families and couples trying to cope with the UK’s hostile immigration environment. Captured just before and during the Coronavirus outbreak and in the lead up to Brexit, from multiple locations across the world, the resulting 26-minute film, ‘Divided by Law’, reveals personal accounts of how the interviewees navigate their way through the UK family immigration regulations, encountering prolonged periods of separation from their partners and families with distressing consequences. In May 2021, the film was selected for international competition in the 67th Oberhausen International Short Film Festival, where it won a jury special mention award.
Katie and Emma discuss the film and their collaborative approach to the project, which received support from Reunite Families UK, a national voluntary campaign group and support network for British and non-UK families separated by UK immigration rules. The project drew on Emma’s previous research work using visual and creative methods to examine experiences of family separation due to UK family immigration law and Katie’s research work using filmmaking practice to explore the construction of collective identities, with a focus on exploring the role of the state in identity construction. Emma is a lecturer, researcher and creative producer focusing on media, communications and culture, with an interest in social justice and civic participation. Katie is a moving image artist, lecturer and researcher whose work employs and explores critical practice-led approaches, with an interest in how moving image can produce new and reimagined places and identities. The project was funded by the University of the West of England and supported by its Digital Cultures Research Centre to which Emma and Katie are both affiliated.
'Divided by Law' Film (26 mins) - https://dividedbylaw.org

• Presentation Conference Type: Presentation / Talk
• Conference Name: Lunchtime Talk Seminar Series
• Start Date: Nov 19, 2021
• Publication Date: Nov 19, 2021
• Deposit Date: Nov 14, 2022
• Keywords: Immigration environment, Immigration
• Public URL: https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/10141005
• Related Public URLs: https://dividedbylaw.org/