Two documentaries by a senior lecturer showing life Colchester's most deprived estate will be shown at the Lakeside Theatre this month

The movies, by filmmaker and Essex University lecturer Nic Blower, show life on the Greenstead estate in Colchester and also depict stories of community cohesion.

Slated for screening at the venue next Tuesday, This Moment and the Next and Residents’ Diaries were created for a project called Stories from the Stead.

The project includes film and storytelling workshops and a weekly film club that gives people the skills to film their own stories.

This Moment and the Next is a feature-length film that came about after filmmakers spent time embedded in the community.

Mr Blower said: "This is a small slice of life from the community and there is so much more that we could’ve filmed and included."

The second, Residents’ Diaries, captures the daily lives of people aged between 11 and 64. 

Mr Blower hopes the films will motivate communities across the UK to create their own narratives.

He said: “Documentary film has the potential to communicate complex and nuanced stories, and people can tell stories about their own lives and experiences, which can be liberating."

The project was funded by a grant from North East Essex Health and Wellbeing Alliance.