By Onyeka Ezike
A compelling high class film project called “The Jisike Collective”, a collaborative work created to empower and help the youth in Bournemouth, UK, steer clear of crime, involving top creatives from diverse descents has launched at Bournemouth University in United Kingdom.

The workshop launch, held on February 28, 2026 in UK featured creative works that included a paintbrushes excerpt screening and poetry by a Nigerian, Nisola Jegede.

The ‘Jisike Collective’ project is a combination of scholarship, film, and storytelling to empower young people in the Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole (BCP) region.

Dr. Samantha Iwowo, Principal Academic in film directing at Bournemouth University, and Dr. Vanessa Iwowo, Associate Professor at Birkbeck, University of London, and Senior Fellow at the London School of Economics have previously launched this study in 2019 in collaboration with Nigerian-British actress, Pat Micheals Odiatu and Dr. Annie East, Principal Academic at Bournemouth University.

While introducing the team, Dr. Iwowo outlined the Collective’s origins and cited UK Office for National Statistics data on the theme work; “knife crime” stark realities.

The research explores underlying factors exposing youth to knife and county lines crime risks. It examines leadership formation from adolescence and how identities are shaped by society, culture, class, economics, gender, age, colonial legacies, and migration.

Academically, the project integrates postcolonial studies, leadership studies, transnational cinema, and intersectional identity studies into an interdisciplinary framework for understanding youth vulnerability and leadership dynamics.

Temporarily delayed by COVID-19, the study evolved into a research film directed by Dr. Samantha Iwowo titled “Paintbrushed: this house must fall.” The project was sponsored by Bournemouth University that provided seed funding as the institutional lead.

Executive producers of the project include Nigerian foremost hip-hop/rap artist, Weird MC; the popular “It’s My Life” crooner and Eurodance icon, Dr. Alban and Nigerian highlife star, Sunny Neji.

Others are Dr. Uvie Brigue, a consultant anaesthetist and clinical lead at Princess Royal University Hospital UK; Mrs. Victoria Adeleke and Ms. Mayowa Ede of the Peckham community in UK. The project also, drew support from Dorset’s Community Action Network (CAN).

Other contributors who aided the Jisike Collective in crafting storytelling interventions for BCP youth included the Capacity Building Officer, Tama Merdaci.

Tama Merdaci in her words stressed the necessity to blend storytelling, creative education, and lived-experience dialogue to counter drug and knife crime risks. The launch also, united educators, community groups, and Dorset Police, sparking collaborative workshops for ethnically diverse youth and international students.
Merdaci emphasized the power in the youth voice, saying “when young people share stories, communities respond collectively.”

Project Coordinator Nisola Jegede called the event vital for dialogue: “Knife crime is often just headlines, but behind each is a young life, family, and community. Post-film conversations underscored shared responsibilities among communities, families, students, and institutions.”

Dr. Samantha Iwowo and Secretary Mira Sapudhzieva assembled a multicultural BCP team from Chinese, Bulgarian, Nigerian, Pakistani, and Indian diasporas. Sapudhzieva highlighted multicultural knowledge exchange, curating dialogues and overseeing post-production of community stories.

Other team contributions shone through. Treasurer Dr. Emmanuella Ejime-Okereafor, Co-Chair of Bournemouth University’s Race Equality Network, called the launch “a powerful reminder that community storytelling drives real change,” uniting lived experience, research, and voices against youth crime.

Media Communications Coordinator Qian “Jenny” Zhou noted genuine practitioner-community dialogue, urging deeper questions: “We don’t just ask how to punish, we ask why and what led youth there. The Jisike Collective turns reflections into action, building community bridges.”

Community Engagement Coordinator Jeffery Ononiwu, Vice President for Student Opportunities, ensured international student perspectives on safety and wellbeing.

Project Filmmaker Dr. Yuchen Zhou praised film’s power to spark reflection on knife crime and responsibility.

Cybersecurity and Compliance Coordinator Taiwo Olajide focused on prevention, with workshops on digital safety and cybersecurity for youth and parents, plus plans for digital platforms to amplify impact.

Dorset Police’s Facebook post reflected: “PCSOs Matt, Jason, and Lydia from the Neighbourhood Policing Team represented us at Bournemouth University’s Jisike Collective launch.” They endorsed: “Addressing child criminal exploitation and knife crime demands collaboration—proactive and reactive. The Jisike Collective unites communities, education, charities, businesses, authorities, government, and police to protect youth.”

Qian “Jenny” Zhou translated “Jisike” from Igbo as “keep going in strength,” echoing Dr. Samantha Iwowo’s vision: youth hubs offering skills training to navigate county-lines and knife crime risks confidently.

At its core, The Jisike Collective fuses research, creative practice, and community leadership. It deciphers structural youth vulnerabilities while building skills, confidence, and networks for empowered futures, true to “Jisike: keep going in strength.”