The Calico Group hosted their first ever creative showcase on Thursday, sharing an evening of inspiration through short films, script readings and talks.
Hosted at HOME in Manchester, the ‘Creative Waves’ event focused on the positive effects of creativity in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction and shining a light on the inspirational work of lived-experience services from around the Group.
Calico’s Head of Creative Enterprise, Adele Aitchison, who played a key role in organising and conceptualising the event, said: “Everyone presenting tonight has experience of addiction and has found solace in creativity.
“What makes tonight so special is seeing people share their creativity with others, to create something really powerful.”
Over 100 guests attended the event, including creative contributors, Calico colleagues, members of the recovery community – and actress Julie Hesmondhalgh.
Adele continued: “Each of the contributors is part of a growing wave of impactful creative work from the North West recovery scene. This work is elevating the voices of people in addiction recovery and shining a light on other peoples’ stories who might normally be overlooked”.
Many of the evening’s contributors have received support from Acorn Recovery Projects, who offer addiction recovery services around the North West such as residential rehab, community services and supported accommodation.
Acorn’s video production company, Bad Kamra, helped collaborators to create all the content shown on the night. As a team with lived experience, they are committed to creating content that engages, entertains, educates, and promotes positive change.
‘Creating waves’ through film and writing
Starting off the evening, the audience watched short film ‘Had It’. Written be Chris Breen. Written by Chris Breen alongside the Arc Film Group and the Character Factory, the film highlighted themes surrounding addiction and domestic violence.
Following a quick welcome to the evening from Adele and Calico Deputy Chief Exec Helen Thompson, author and psychologist Lisa Ogilvie PhD was first to speak.
Dr Lisa, who works at Acorn, introduced ‘recovery protection’ – valuing recovery as a positive and valuable lifestyle choice rather than ‘relapse prevention’ – and spoke about the myths surrounding drugs and creativity.
Next up was musician and producer, Nigel Clegg, who treated the audience to a quick rendition of ‘That’s Entertainment’. Nige himself re-discovered music during his recovery at Acorn, which inspired him to start a therapeutic music group for others in recovery.
Nige gave a short talk on music as a tool to unlock joy for overlooked groups, before sharing an inspirational video of a recent trip to Spirit Studios with a recovery group. The group, who graduated from Acorn services earlier this year, enjoyed recording their own rendition of ‘Don’t Look Back in Anger’.
Film-maker Tony Lord then presented a preview of ‘In the Minds of Men’, a new documentary examining suicide as the biggest killer of males under 50. Due to be released in 2025, the feature length documentary will call for compassionate and creative solutions to the crisis in men’s mental health.
The audience then listened to stories from contributors in recovery. Angie read her own story aloud, giving a lively performance on her story of addiction. Then, with the help of actresses Eve Steele and Julie Hesmondhalgh, writers Niall, David and Haley shared their creative writing based on their life experiences.
Haley Bradley’s potato-based story was brought to life by Corrie legend Julie – who used fun props to add a comedic edge to the performance.
After the reading finished, Haley added: “Julie really brought those potatoes to life, it was wonderful! Being involved in film projects gave me purpose and helped me stay sober – it’s been 3 years 8 months now and I feel incredible. The ability to be creatively seen has been amazing”
Finishing the evening was a premiere of short film ‘Umbilical’. Expressing the hardships of parents with children in addiction, the film received masses of applause.
David, who starred in the film, showcased his talents throughout the evening, also starring in ‘Had It’ and sharing his dark yet comedic story about life with a twin brother.
Part of The Calico Group
The Calico Group is a collaboration of innovative charities and businesses, working together to create social profit, rather than financial profit.
Helen Thompson, Deputy Chief Executive at Calico, added: “The Group has grown so much over the last 10 years. I’m proud to be here to showcase the amazing work we’ve been doing across our recovery services”.
Each part of the group has its own specialism, expertise and a track record of providing a complete community service in housing, healthcare, support, employability and construction.
Chris Breen, who helped produce the film’s premiered on the night, summarised the evening by saying: “It’s all about access to being creative. This sort of stuff makes the recovery process easier. Sometimes you can miss the process of addiction, so being creative fills the gap”.
