Cambrai Tank 1917 Museum, Flesquieres, France. 2019

This film shows the research into tank Deborah D51 and its crew and the communities involved in the UK and France in its heritage and history.
The film makers worked with historian Philippe Gorczinski MBE who discovered the tank buried on the battlefields in Northern France. This short film is installed in the entrance foyer of a new museum in France which now houses the Mark IV World War One tank.
Having developed the Production House model (see output Production House) of allowing film producer-led narratives to give voice to academic research content, in this project the practice – led by film-producer GRAHAM – allowed new stories by diverse communities to be produced, with the result of bringing communities together when learning about WW1 and its aftermath on societies. This output is an example where a filmic practice pulls the creation of new content through a line of enquiry, as the narratives are developed with the communities that have been affected.
The film is a visual presentation of research with The Royal Tank Regiment and communities including the heritage patrons The Friends of Deborah in France and the British relatives of crew members including grandaughter Jenny Dodd from Leicester, UK, who died in the tank at the Battle of Cambrai - one the earliest tank battles.
The film supported independently by Associate Professor Fiona Graham and Paul Ottey Senior Lecturer and by Erasmus uses 4K and drone technologies, working with permissions with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and The Royal Tank Regiment.
It was installed during the opening of the museum to mark the centenary of the Battle of Cambrai and then permanently in 2019 to explain the story of the regiment and Philippe Gorczinski's MBE and the community importance and significance in its discovery and heritage.