Module Submission
Student Name: Nick Gellatly
Blog: www.theoldtimes.co.uk
Student ID Number: 1025128
Module Name: Digital Content Creation
Module Code: 2025 MOD009751TR12 F01CAM
Personal Learning Manifesto
- https://theoldtimes.co.uk/2025/09/22/the-manifesto/
- https://theoldtimes.co.uk/2025/09/23/my-personal-manifesto/
A copy of my personal manifesto of which I keep a copy in my diary and on the wall in my ‘Shed Office’ where I do my work outside of weekly sessions at University. This post includes information concerning the development of the class manifesto and a video of my personal manifesto process together with a detailed description of each of the streams of my personal manifesto.
Personal Use of AI Policy
I use artificial intelligence tools in my work. I say this plainly and without apology. I am always the author, AI does not direct my practice, I direct it. These tools extend my reach and open creative possibilities, but the vision, the judgement, and the final call are mine. I bring critical thinking to every output, I try to attribute AI’s contribution honestly, and I am developing my AI literacy as a deliberate professional and academic choice.
Portfolio Contents
Digital Content Creation Module Week 1
Week 1 of the Digital Content Creation module covers three tasks: ranking social media apps (WhatsApp tops my list), reflecting on Web 2.0’s democratising potential, and defining long/short-form content.
My Journey to ARU
I created a short TikTok video about his journey to ARU. This is a new video format for me and is deliberately brief (unusually) , fun, and well-received.
A UFO Sighting!
In this exercise, I created “Kirk Broon and the Visitors from the Sky”, a children’s UFO bedtime story set in Edinburgh, with Midjourney illustrations, narrated PowerPoint pages and published on YouTube.
Content Creation Strategies
Here I explored freedom of speech, misinformation versus disinformation, and deepfakes; then created my own AI avatar using HeyGen to discuss online hoaxes, with mixed accents and (I hope) entertaining results.
Digital Narratives
In this post, I explored digital narrative themes, choosing the topic of “Unclobbering Faith” and deconstructing Bible passages misused against LGBTQ+ people with a target audience of TikTok’s progressive spirituality audience with short, accessible, myth-busting videos.
Building Blocks of Content Creation
I began to look at contents which has informed and inspired me such as Rev Brandan Robertson’s multi-platform theology content, then developed my own “Clobber Passages” TikTok project, a comedy based deconstruction inspired by Munya Chawawa and This Morning!
Clobbered by the Bible
In this post I cover my This Morning-style scripts as my project begins to emerge where ‘Richard and Judy’ warmly dismantling each of the clobber passages with humour, scholarship, and the recurring message: you are made in the image of God.
Change of Direction
Here I show an early attempt at making the TikTok videos and my decision to restructure the project from disconnected TikTok sketches to meet the ‘three linked chapters’ objective of the project.
Pre-Production
In this stage I worked on the pre-production stage as the concept evolved in my mind and began to create a story board and develop my ideas.
Audience Research
Having put the cart before the horse, I began to define a potential audience for my three chapter story and I started filming of my content during the ‘playtime’ week. After this session of filming, I looked again at the script and changed the focus, slightly, of the following chapters.
Chapter 1 – Edited Version
An edited and posted version of the first chapter.
Clobbered by TikTok
Following a chat with Tutors, I returned to the TikTok strand, replacing Richard and Judy with queer-coded Biblical characters Ruth and Jonathan, writing three brief scripts and using them as prompts for AI generated videos produced using Dreamina Seedance 2.0.
Three Chapters and an Introduction
In the end I recorded four videos, a personal coming-out introduction plus three chapters, filmed on location in the grounds of St Neots Parish Church and in Rus 141 at ARU, with full scripts, closing with a pastoral sermon affirming queer Christians unconditionally.
Reflective Report
What began as a series of quick TikTok comedy videos gradually transformed into something more honest and more personal. When the jokes felt too thin for the subject, I changed course, moving to a three-part YouTube documentary with a personal introduction, filmed partly on location at St Neots Parish Church and partly at ARU using green screen.
The production was technically challenging. Learning CapCut Pro and beginning Adobe Premiere Pro pushed me well outside my comfort zone, but the results were better for it.
The audience question came late, because the content for this project was driven first by conviction: that if we are all made in the image of God, there is no theological justification for excluding people on the grounds of sexuality or gender identity. Opening with my own coming-out story, as my tutor Loren suggested, set the right tone. I also repurposed my initial scripts for Ruth and Jonathan to demonstrate my journey and ended with a TED Talk inspired ‘SHED Talk’ to embrace the whole project.
Final Thoughts Following The Premiere
Presenting to classmates felt unexpectedly vulnerable, I’m comfortable on stage but not under scrutiny! This project became an act of removing my mask: exposing my sexuality, theology and shame. Feedback from Loren, Nur and colleagues shaped the work meaningfully. I started with Richard and Judy; I ended with Ruth and Jonathan. The voice was always there, I just needed the discomfort of being truly seen to finally use it.
Leave a Reply