Narratives of Leadership Project

The Narratives of Leadership Project is an extension of an earlier collaboration with Partnership for Public Service, The Civic Leadership Stories Project, where we developed a platform for filmmakers seeking to tell compelling narratives about political leaders. In order to develop our own projects with authentic, multi-dimensional characters and narratives, we spoke with a wide variety of civic leaders to identify key themes, messaging strategies, and storytelling techniques that can inspire and mobilize audiences. We were especially interested in how to reach audiences under 30, to help instill a sense of civic responsibility and activism that can shape the world for years to come.

Too often, leaders are depicted as corrupt or incompetent, but there are rich stories to tell about leaders who:

ARE GENUINE: Authenticity creates trust. Showing a leader’s challenges, failures, and their full lives outside of politics reminds audiences that we’re all just people.

GO ON A JOURNEY: Following a leader as they develop new beliefs from new information, societal norms, personal experiences, or political dynamics fosters more empathy for the complexities of decision-making.

CELEBRATE SMALL VICTORIES: Demand for instant gratification poses significant challenges for leaders when meaningful change often happens from incremental shifts over a long period of time.

BREAK THE MOLD: Featuring young leadership brings unique ideas, diverse perspectives, and optimistic energy to the table. Their stories empower other young people to recognize their own agency and potential to affect change.

Thanks to these insights, Cinereach is developing a web series that highlights undersung civic leaders in a way that’s insightful, funny, and even gamified to introduce younger audiences to new ways ordinary people can make extraordinary change.