The North East has had higher rates of unemployment and economic inactivity than England as a whole for over two decades, and a notable increase has been seen over the last three years. In 2011 alone youth unemployment rose by 120% in the region, and the worst affected areas have seen increases of well over 200% according to The Commission on Youth Unemployment. The commission estimated at least 25% of young people are not in employment, education or training (NEET) in the North East, highlighting a serious need for vocational training for NEET youth. Along with this comes a series of problems, notably a loss of hope, disengagement, low self-confidence and a lack of many generic skills this programme addresses.

The project provides film-making training for young people Not in Employment, Education or Training (NEET) and gives participants a voice. A series of workshops delivered covering sound production, camera work, interview techniques, scripting questions, storyboarding, presentation and editing. Participants will form a production team and will film and edit the documentary material themselves. Mentoring from media professionals will be available at each stage of the process, but film content and decision-making will be driven by participants. The project provides a unique educational framework by involving participants in filming public debates and in interviewing academics, activists, politicians and other people speaking at The Great Debate’s events. Discussion sessions with experts facilitate content development, providing knowledge about issues such as water resources, energy and food security. A series of documentaries capturing the reflections of participants and those in their community on 'Progress in the 21st century' will be produced, given a public première and published online.

The project will increase participants’ employability by building confidence and developing skills. These include communication skills (speaking, listening, reading and writing skills, interview techniques); Information Communication Technology (finding, developing and presenting information); working with others (team work is an essential element of the project, supporting development of interpersonal skills through working cooperatively with others to achieve shared objectives); improving own learning and performance through target-setting, planning, learning, communicating own needs and accepting constructive feedback; and technical skills related to film-making.