Posted: 28th May 2025

Seeing Ourselves Through New Eyes: Creative Workshops at the Future Narratives Festival

The Future Narratives Festival brought together young minds from across Europe to consider a single powerful question: how do we imagine and build the future together? In a series of interactive workshops, participants weren’t just audience members – they were storytellers, makers, and visionaries. Here’s a glimpse of some of the most memorable sessions we built together.

Exploring Identity Through Art and Perspective

In one session on creativity, each person was invited to draw five formative moments in their own life – ones which have made them who they are today. Then, in small groups, each person shared their drawings and life story with the others. But the magic began in earnest when group members were invited to do two further drawings of another person in their group: one showing how others might see them, from their story.

This exercise led to amazing discoveries – people saw each other in more inspirational ways than they had expected. One of the participants, for example, was envisioned as a prize-winning author – something they had never dreamed of before. That imaginative impression planted a real seed of motivation.

Next, all were invited to share their life stories again, but from the perspective of another: maybe a sibling, best friend, or even an abstract concept like freedom. This led everyone to think even more about how identity is created not just through personal memory, but through context, imagination, and connection.

Imagining Everyday Futures

A second highlight session requested that participants take a journey into the future. In groups, they imagined what life would be like in 2050, envisioning advancements in various areas: technology, medicine, education, the workforce, and beyond.

Then, after changing groups, they built on each other’s ideas, fostering collaboration and forward thinking. In the last section, all sat in a circle and one at a time envisioned one everyday routine in their 2050 life. Some stated, “I don’t brush my teeth anymore – a device does it for me.” Others pictured entertainment not on a screen, but through augmented reality glasses. These brief, futuristic snapshots opened a large door to reconceiving what’s possible.”

Stepping Into Future Roles

To push even harder, a theatre improvisation workshop got participants out of their comfort zones. The task: go on stage and start a scene. One would say, “I’m a tree.” Another would say, “I’m a photographer.” A third would say, “I’m the girl being photographed.”

And then there was the twist: the frozen characters had to spring to life, improvising the very next moment in that narrative. Not only was it a lesson in spontaneity, but in predicting what comes next – a metaphor for the future itself. Just like real life, nothing remained static.

Final thoughts 

The festival also featured workshops in self-discovery, urban imagination, and even “city magic” – where individuals explored how place determines who we are and how we dream. 

The Future Narratives Festival wasn’t so much about predicting the future. It was about finding out how to see ourselves and each other differently, and to imagine what could be. Sometimes the first step toward changing the world for the better is to allow someone else to draw your picture – and then be brave enough to believe it.