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by Anna_t

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The Umbrella Project appeared in the City of York from the 7th of October, to the 12th of November 2011. During this time umbrellas were available at points all over the city, free to pick up, free to use, drop off at another point, or pass on. The Umbrella Project collected stories - each umbrella had a number on. If this number was called, you were invited to answer a question. The answers to these questions were collected, along with a whole collection of found sounds from around York (bicycle bells, buses, crowds, fountains, leaves, and lots more). Hannah Nicklin and Simon Ralph Goff (in association with Pilot Theatre, Loughborough University and Arts Council England) then made them into 3 sound experiences, free to download (as well as available ready-loaded on mp3 players at the Central Library, and York Theatre Royal) and do at any point, as well as at 3 main events (also free) throughout the 5 weeks. Check out ‘how can you take part?’ for more info on how people were able to be involved in the project.  This project was about finding a voice for the city of York, it was about strangers, storytelling, the murmurings of a city, and the glimmers of human kindness reflected in the puddle of a rainy day.  Pass it on…
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There were 4 ways people could take part in the Umbrella Project: Pick up an umbrella from one of the many pick up/drop off points in the city, use it, pass it on. Call the (local) number on the umbrellas and listen to the question, if they felt they could answer it, they just needed to leave a message. They could also hang up, and call back later if they thought of something. look out for the pop up Umbrella Project structure around the city on 4 days between the 7th of October and 12th of November. Here people could ask more questions, record a story directly, and talk to the artist putting it all together. download a soundwalk, or pick a ready loaded mp3 player up from the central library or York Theatre Royal. These are all available now, and you can download them, and find out where/what time of day to start from this page What is a soundwalk? The Umbrella Project collected the stories and sounds of the city of York, and made these stories and sounds into 3 ‘soundwalks’; audio tracks that you listen to in a certain part of the city and at a certain time of day, that put you at the centre of a story. Gentle instructions might ask you to move places, look at things, or do something in a certain type of way, but they will never put you in danger or attempt to make you look silly. For more information on the terms and conditions under which the stories were collected, please visit the ts and cs page
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Downloads The downloads are now all available! You will also need to download the instructions (also below) for the map with the start points, and more information on what to expect when you do one of the soundwalks. Try not to listen to too much of a soundwalk before you go out to the start point (testing it works is fine, though). Soundwalk 1: Evening - released 26/10. Download link (right click, save as)Soundwalk 2: Daytime - released 1/11. Download link (right click, save as)Soundwalk 3: Commute - released 10/11. Download link (right click, save as) - please note, you will need a pen or pencil and a piece of paper with you for this one. Instructions pdf - download link (right click and ‘save as’ or similar) If you don’t have access to an mp3 player, the available tracks will also be available on one of five ready-loaded mp3 players the day after release, and can be loaned from York Central Library, or York Theatre Royal. Contact us if you have any questions! Events The events have all happened now, but the details have been left below for reference. All of the events were free, and if people didn’t have access to an mp3 player they were able to reserve a copy on one for the event. Event 1: Evening, Friday 28th of Oct at 9pm (met outside Betty’s)Event 2: Daytime, Saturday 5th of Nov, at 1pm (met on Parliament St.)Event 3: Commute, Friday 11th of Nov, at 5:30pm (met outside the Central Library) Maps These were all of the places you could pick up and drop off umbrellas. Click through for the full list…  View The Umbrella Project in a larger map Massive thanks to the following places for hosting umbrellas; York Theatre Royal, York Explore Library, City Screen Picturehouse, York St Mary’s, York Castle Museum, Yorkshire Museum, Visit York, Bar Lane Studios, Deep, [TEMPORARILY OUT OF ACTION Xing Smoothies], VJ’s Art Bar, Licc, The Spurriergate Centre, Twenty Two Interiors, Yummy Yummy, and York Art Gallery. 
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Hannah Nicklin is a theatre maker, hacktivist, blogger and academic based in the East Midlands. Hannah graduated from the University of Birmingham’s prestigious Playwriting Studies Masters course in July 2009. She since has made pervasive theatre and games for Hazard Festival Manchester, Larkin’ About, the Global Youth Project, Take Over Festival, Forest Fringe and Illuminating York; had plays performed at Lakeside Theatre, Birmingham Hippodrome and Theatre503; and speaks regularly at universities, and tech/arts events about the arts and digital technology. hannahnicklin.com, or  @hannahnicklin on Twitter Simon Ralph Goff Simon is a musician currently based in Birmingham. Having studied classical violin at Birmingham Conservatoire, Simon now spends his time finding projects to be part of. He is part of Leeds band Hope and Social and a founding member of Lantern Music with whom he formed A Hawk in the Rain. As a session musician, Simon has recorded for Atlantic Records, and in Abbey Road as well as many sessions for artists in Bedroom Studios around the UK. Simon has taken part in performances around the world including a tour with the Ines Quartet in France and the first ever Orchestral Classical Performance in Nablus, Palestine. Simon is @simonralphgoff on Twitter
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The calls to the umbrella project number are charged at a local UK rate. Under 18s information (simplified): You must get the permission of a guardian before taking part in the umbrella project. If you leave a story, you are agreeing that you are either over 18, or have permission to do so. How do I leave a story? You leave a story by calling the number on the Umbrella Project Umbrellas between the dates printed on them. You have to have the bill payer’s permission to do this, and the call is charged at a local rate. None of your contact details will be shared, and if you don’t leave a name, you will be treated as anonymous. When you leave a story it will be under the terms of a ‘creative commons’ license. What happens then? Your story and recording will be used to inspire, or directly used in the making of one of 3 ‘soundwalks’. A soundwalk is like a film where you are at the centre. You download an mp3, go to a place in York (each soundwalk will come with a map, please get your parent permission to do the walks), press ‘play’, and follow the instructions. There will be sound, voices, and you will walk through the middle of a story. What does it means when it says my story is going to be shared ‘via creative commons’? Creative Commons is like copyright, but for the internet age. It allows us to share content (stories, images, audio, videos, that kind of thing) for things like mashups, remixes, and blogging. The license that’s used on the Umbrella Project is called a Creative Commons Non-Commercial Sharealike Licence, which allows derivative works. It means anyone can share and build on the content, as long as they attribute its origin – here ‘the origin’ means ‘the Umbrella Project’ if you’re remixing/building on stuff you’ve got from the site, and ‘the person who has left a story’ (if they’ve not done so anonymously) for people who submit content online or on the voicemail system. Moderation There is a moderation process: there aren’t really firm rules about language or content, but abusive, potentially libellous, or trollish material will not be published. If you have sent a story or any other content that you want to take down/not be used, please contact (or get your guardian to contact) Hannah Nicklin and Dr Dan Watt, d.p.watt@lboro.ac.uk, copying in Hannah@umbrellaproject.co.uk and it will be removed from the site immediately. But, because people share so quickly on the web, and search engines ‘cache’ (keep) old versions of sites, it can’t be guaranteed to be completely or immediately removed from other websites and search engines Confidentiality and personal data:  You don’t have to participate if you don’t want to. If you don’t leave your name, you will be treated as ‘anonymous’ and won’t be credited in the section on the website which will list contributors. Anything you leave on the voicemail system, or the website will be able to be seen by the general public, and will be all shared under the creative commons license explained above. The Umbrella Project has been produced by Loughborough University, Dr Dan Watt, Pilot Theatre, with support from FuturEverything. It is managed, written, moderated and the final artistic piece authored by Hannah Nicklin, with music from Simon Ralph Goff. This piece also forms the practice section of a PhD at Loughborough University, and content shared under the CC license may also make it into evaluation and summary material in Hannah Nicklin’s PhD thesis. Anything you leave on the voicemail system or the site will be handled according to the rules set out in the Data Protection Act 1998. More detailed information for 18+ Creative Commons licensing. Creative Commons is a modern response to the restrictive and out-of-date concept of copyright. Creative Commons is a legally binding intellectual property framework built for an online world in which things are shared, altered, mashed up, exchanged and built upon. The idea of the Umbrella Project is to collect online stories of the city of <insert city here> and allow people to use and react artistically to the material collected. This is why the material hosted here is shared via a Creative Commons Non-Commercial Sharealike Licence, which allows derivative works. It means people can share and build on the content of the site, as long as they attribute its origin – both of the project, and a person who has left a story (if they’ve not done so anonymously). The licence also requires that the products of people using this material must be shared in a like way. If you submit something to the site and want it to be attributed to you, leave your name. If you want to submit material anonymously simply omit your name from the body of the submission. There is a moderation process: there are no explicit rules about language or content, but abusive, potentially libellous, or trollish material will not be published. If you wish for material you have submitted to be withdrawn, please contact Hannah Nicklin and Dr Dan Watt, d.p.watt@lboro.ac.uk, copying in Hannah@umbrellaproject.co.uk and it will be removed from the site immediately. However because of the nature of the web it cannot be guaranteed to be immediately removed from search engine caches, or any derivative works. Consent People handed umbrellas are able to donate stories, images, videos and sound recordings to this online repository using their mobile phones, the submission form and emails. You do not have to contribute unless you wish to. To contribute material is to give consent to its being shared under the above licence. Please make sure you understand the terms under which you share content. If you are under 18 and wish to take part, please check this is OK with your legal guardian. When submitting material, no contact details will be shared, and you can waive attribution and select anonymity by leaving no name. The Project The Umbrella Project is in association with Loughborough University, Dr Dan Watt, Pilot Theatre and the idea was mentored by FuturEverything, it is managed, written, moderated and the final artistic piece authored by Hannah Nicklin. Music by Simon Ralph Goff. This piece also forms the practice section of a PhD at Loughborough University, and content shared under the CC license may also make it into evaluation and summary material in Hannah Nicklin’s PhD thesis. Confidentiality and personal data: No one need participate in any way if they do not wish. Anonymity will be safeguarded from the moment a message is left (no numbers will be stored, and names only used if left). It is made clear in the online submission guidelines that to leave no name will mean attribution is intended to be waived and anonymity opted for instead. Content offered will be publicly available to view and make derivative works from as per the aforementioned CC license. To make this fully explicit: there will be no control over who will access the content (images, text, videos, audio etc.) that you submit to the project, once they have been published. If you choose to be attributed (by leaving your name in the body of the submission, or speaking it in the phone message, your name will be attached to that material (attributed). The process for requesting the withdrawal of content is listed in the third paragraph of this information. The Data Protection Act 1998: It is not data that the Umbrella Project intends to collect, but content. Because the project focuses on storytelling, relevancy is deemed by whatever a participant wishes to contribute. Accuracy, too, will be coloured by whether or not participants decide to tell ‘true’ stories, and also the fact that no story is ever true - but rather coloured in the telling. The Umbrella Project’s approach to your data is explained simply from the moment of interaction with the project, and more information is available online, or if you have any questions, by contacting the artistic director Hannah Nicklin at Hannah<at>umbrellaproject.co.uk. Put simply, any content made available will be shared (publicly, and under a CC licence), though you are fully able to waive attribution and choose anonymity at the point of submission. The  project is also part of a PhD thesis, and submitted content may form part of the write-up. The very heart of the project is based on peer-to-peer and Creative Commons-enabled sharing of stories (in whatever form you might offer them). Derivative works are actively encouraged. To take part will be considered as giving consent to share content in accordance with the above terms. The system is opt-in rather than opt-out.
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The Umbrella Project is produced in association with Pilot Theatre and Loughborough University, supported by the FuturEverything accelerator programe and Arts Council England. Pilot Theatre is a multi-platform theatre organisation delivering critically acclaimed excellent work regionally, nationally and internationally.They inspire creativity and new ways of thinking and are strategic innovators in the field of digital networks and leaders in the delivery and distribution of work for, by and with young people. Pilot also brought on board Arts Council England support for the work. This project also forms the basis of the practice aspect of Hannah Nicklin’s PhD at Loughborough University, where she is kindly supported by an English and Drama departmental studentship. Loughborough University has an international reputation for excellence in teaching and research, strong links with industry, and unrivalled sporting achievement. Finally, the early stages of the idea were supported by the Future Everything accelerator programe.