This year has changed the way that we do many things. With many of us currently working from home for the foreseeable, end of week work socials are also feeling like a distant memory.
Over lockdown many workspaces kept their Friday evening drinks practise going through having a drink with co-workers on Zoom. We discuss an alternative way that we can keep building our work relationships and have an enjoyable time too.
One way we can do this is through a virtual team movie night. You have most likely read about this before, but we want to discuss why it is a great virtual event for inspiring conscious conversations and making social events more inclusive.
Getting Started
It’s good to think about your team’s values. What is important to you and what is important to the team? Are there any issues that everyone at your workplace finds particularly interesting? It is important to make sure that you watch things that everyone feels comfortable with watching. Perhaps not a Christmas movie if not everyone in your team celebrates Christmas, for example. This is similar to making a works drinks evening that still includes and does not shame anyone who does not drink. It is important to respect and include everyone’s different preferences.
At Conscious Creatives we value looking after people and the planet. Therefore we knew that anything that discusses climate change and social justice would be the kind of show that everyone in our team can appreciate and find interesting.
Watching shows together as a team is big way to help reduce the impact of loneliness. While working from home we can easily feel isolated and not feel that same sense of connection that is there in the office. Allocating a certain time to watch something together makes us feel more connected and as though we are there with our team.
Not only this, it is the conversations that these shows can inspire afterwards that help us to feel connected.
Our Top Picks
If your team are interested in the planet and the life that lives here — like we are — then here are our suggestions. We have shared the best programmes and films that encourage meaningful discussions and help us to think more about the world that we live in.
1. Beyonce: Black is King
Where to watch: Disney Plus.
Film Length: 1 hour 25 minutes.
Ok so this isn’t actually on Netflix BUT it’s too important and too good not to include.
This visual album is one of celebration. It is a celebration of life, of African cultures, of womanhood — while also retelling the story of the Lion King. It takes us on a journey of the incredible beauty of the many black cultures in a way that is both heartfelt and inspiring.
Speaking about Black is King, Beyonce said: ‘Many of us want change. I believe that when Black people tell our own stories, we can shift the axis of the world and tell our REAL history of generational wealth and richness of soul…’
This is a great film to watch with your team if you want to see this celebration of Black art, culture, music, and tradition.
2) Kiss The Ground
Where to watch: Netflix
Film Length: 1 hour 24 minutes.
This documentary is a great film to watch if you and your team care about sustainability and life on our planet. It is a documentary that discusses ‘regenerative agriculture’ through an optimistic outlook. It is uplifting and offers a hopeful vision. Yet it is also informative as to how our earth can be a source of regeneration.
This film is a great watch with your team to help open discussions around regenerative agriculture, the importance of nature and our earth, and also to think positively about how we can change the future.
3) Down to Earth with Zac Efron
Where to watch: Netflix
Length: 8 episodes, 40 minutes long
This is a great series for if you want to make your film evenings a more frequent, and shorter, event. It is a great watch if you are interested in sustainability and the planet, but is also not too informative and is a great light watch. Focusing on Zac’s travels around the world, it is a great way to learn more about sustainable living practises. Whether you are very familiar with sustainability or not, this is a great and accessible watch for the whole team.
4) Minimalism: A Documentary About The Important Things
Where to watch: Netflix
Length: 1 hour 18 minutes
This is a film about happiness. It is about how we try to find it, and the things we do in the pursuit if it. This is a great short film to watch if you and your team want to think about where you spend your money, how you spend it, and the small things that you can do to feel happier. This is a film that discusses how certain lifestyles can encourage a cluttered mind and a feeling of unhappiness — and what we can do to change that. This film can encourage us to think not just about the planet, but about our own mental health too, and open up enlightening discussions about how we can find happiness.
5) David Attenborough: A Life On Our Planet
Where to watch: Netflix
Length: 1 hour 23 minutes
David Attenborough’s witness statement and vision for the future is a necessary watch. It encourages to want to act, to reminder of what is happening to the earth and what will happen without action, and shows us how important it is that change is made. This watch can a difficult watch in many ways, it is a wake up call to many, and so it is a good documentary to watch with the team so you can discuss from it. It offers an opportunity to discuss the things that we individually want to do to inspire action, whether big or small.
Inspiring interesting and conscious conversations
Watching these shows are a great way to inspire discussions, get to know more about each other, spend more time together in a virtual way, and also learn more about the planet together. If you have any suggestions of films, programmes, and documentaries that are great to watch as a team and inspire engaging or conscious conversations then let us know in the comments!
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