The Art of Migration: Artists, Film & Arts-based Approaches to Migration Studies

Migration & The Arts

Panel Discussion followed by Q&A.

• Bartolomeo Bartolini, Puppeteer, Performer & Producer
• Anja Meinhardt, Artistic Director, Justice in Motion
• Antônia Spohr Moro, Offbeat Producer

Chair: Nathan Grassi, COMPAS Administrator & Independent Theatremaker

An essential, yet sometimes overlooked, part of migration research is ‘lived experience’ – the unique and individual stories of migrants in the UK. Particular examples of these stories, which can deepen and contribute to migration scholarship, are those of migrant artists and individuals working in the UK arts sector, where much of their artistic work, whether intentional or not, centres on themes of migration or mobility. Joining an already precarious and competitive industry, theatremakers, producers, and performers from outside the UK can face potential barriers: an absence of the ‘right’ network when they arrive, language and cultural challenges, and being seen as 'other'. Having entered the UK, they must still make it through the Customs Gates of the ‘British’ Arts scene. However, creating and presenting artistic work in another language or bringing skills and techniques from different cultural perspectives can offer opportunities to spotlight alternative forms of creativity, broaden audience experience, and enhance an industry that thrives on constant evolution. This panel discussion is a chance to hear directly from individuals working in the UK as artists and arts professionals and how their experiences of migration inform their work and creativity (and vice versa).

Location: The Mawby Room, Kellogg College

Migration and the arts of co-production: urban mobilities and carceral London

• Susannah Cramer-Greenbaum, Honorary Research Fellow, Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis, UCL
• Michael Keith, Director of COMPAS, Professor & Director of PEAK Urban
• Eda Yazici, Senior Research Associate, School of Sociology, Politics and International Studies, Migration Mobilities Bristol, University of Bristol

Classical philosophy and social theory have long considered the ways in which the city is hospitable; open to the arrival of strangers, newcomers and migrants. In the Open City Project, working at multiple scales of the city as a whole, a single borough, a neighbourhood and a single housing estate, this sense of arrival, belonging and making a home was explored in collaborations across London with three artists. Drawing on different art forms, a scenographer (with a background in forensic architecture), a film-maker, and a socially engaged artist generated work that was central to our research. In this talk, we discuss these collaborations and consider how arts-based methods, often alongside co-produced or collaborative work, have become increasingly common across the social sciences. We discuss critically some of what have become conventional wisdoms of such work, surprising symmetries and asymmetries of knowledge production, especially within the affective register, the relationalities of churning urban life on the ground (and far below it!) and the always surprising insights of empirical research in migration studies, cutting across pasts, presents, and claims over the future.

Location: The Mawby Room, Kellogg College

Our Refugee, Your Refugee: A Story across Three Nations

Documentary Film Screening, followed by Q&A.

• Eun Hye Son, TV reporter and Journalist, Korean Broadcasting System (KBS), & COMPAS Visiting Academic

Refugees are often seen as distant figures—people whose struggles we hear about but rarely witness first-hand. Our Refugee, Your Refugee brings their reality to the forefront, offering a raw and unfiltered glimpse into life inside Syrian refugee camps in Lebanon and Myanmar refugee settlements in northern Thailand. Filmed by a Korean journalist from KBS, South Korea’s only public broadcaster, this documentary challenges the prevailing perception of refugees in a country with one of the world’s lowest refugee acceptance rates. It explores why many in Korean society dismiss refugees as “fake” and what happens when that narrative is questioned. This internationally recognised film sparked intense debate in Korea, winning the ABU International Award (Peace Category), 2024. More than just a story about displacement, this documentary invites us to reflect on our role in shaping the refugee discourse. How should British society understand immigration? How can we coexist with those seeking refuge? Through an in-depth discussion following the screening, we will explore migration narratives, public perceptions, and the broader implications for policy and society.

Location: The Hub, Kellogg College