TITLE : Contre-Courants 2 : PORTRAITS - MEETING OF/GETTING TOGETHER OF EUROPEAN YOUTHS FROM DIFFERENT CULTURAL AND SOCIAL BACKGROUNDS APPLICANT PROPOSAL: Oblique Compagnie PARTNERS : Centre Social le Lierre (community center), CS Jacques Prévert (community center), Maison de quartier de la côte des roses (Community and social center), École de la deuxième chance (School of Second Chances), Mission Locale (the local mission), « Nest »-centre dramatique national (NEST Theater), Association Émergence (a community support association), Impulsion jeunesse (interactive program “Impulsion jeunesse”), Association pour la Protection Judiciaire de Jeunesse (Association for the legal protection of children and young people), lycée pro. de la Malgrange (Malgrange, vovational school), les petitespoucettes (a travel blog). KEYWORDS : Citizenship / Openness to Europe / Social ties / Integration / Performing arts / Culture / Skill acquisition / Structured dialogue / Testimony-Portraits Contre-courants 2 is the second stage of an artistic, interactive, multi-disciplinary, social and cultural project that unites and mobilises local resources of many partners and youth. This project was created for and by abou fifty youths aged 13 to 20 years old from different social and cultural backgrounds. Through images and documents gathered throughout Europe, they will learn about each other, and being young Europeans, and explore paths and lives that differ from theirs. They will gain knowledge on the cultural and geopolitical differences in Europe that constitute its wealth but that can also divide us sometimes. They will become aware of how important it is to be committed citizens, both in a democracy and in personal or collective projects. They will learn that it is essential to open themselves up to the world by stepping out of their own geographical and moral boundaries. This will help them identify future paths in order to avoid regression or ethnocentrism for example, or to increase opportunities to meet, travel and help each other. To begin with, author, journalist and traveler Sandra Reinflet, will travel as a ‘special correspondent’ from Athens through the Ukraine to Helsinki to collect testimonies from young Europeans. Their words and experiences reflecting their unique lives as engaged citizens will be shown to youths in Thionville. This collected material will be the source of reflection and inspiration to question, exchange and develop their own paths in life. They will then complement these base materials with their own writings and create various scripts to convey the message, to make it resonate, to stage and choreograph it and to initiate a dialogue. This hands-on, artistic and educational journey will take place over the course of 9 months. Experts will support them along the way. They will have a choice between various forms of art writing through workshops: theater and slam, theater and improvisation, modern dance and hip-hop, video and “Listen-See!” (Audience School). In May 2015 they will bring us together with a collage of artistic, dynamic and multifaceted performances that will shake up the habits of the audience, the people of Thionville living close to the border and young decision makers amongst others. Over the course of three days they will draw portraits of multifaceted European youths using different media throughout the city. Through writings, videos, plays and dynamic fictional and documentary portraits based on true stories, they will capture the role young people play in our society, and convey the way they perceive their own realities and the importance of community engagement. The purpose of Contre-courants 2 project is for youths to establish links between lives that will probably never cross (local voices and those from abroad), and to invite us to participate in a structured exchange with and through creative means. Summary: - Enable youths to acquire new skills and means of expressing themselves through cultural projects so that they can make their voices heard, thus art become a tool of social mediation and openness towards Europe. - Help young people develop a sense of responsibility through reflection and creation. - Create communities and opportunities of exchange. Allow youths to understand the issues they face in our societies and their daily lives. As well, raise their awareness of current geopolitical issues and on how important it is for them to participate in democratic debates on issues that affect them. - Emphasise social ties and exchanges between different groups. Value youths and their social integration. Fight against inequality, discrimination and prejudice.