We ran a filming session at the end of December, with the goal of performing some cool stuff on camera and creating a new promotional video for the club to help show what sort of things we do.
My hope for the video was for it to feature club members, rather than showing off what the instructor can do. After all, one of the best ways to assess a club is to look at what the general level of skill is like, rather than watching only the instructors. I believe the general level of skill in our club is pleasantly high, and I am keen to show that to the world.
One of my priorities when I opened the club back in 2017 was to make sure it became self-sufficient quickly – not only in terms of finance, but in terms of people, so that we would have plenty of members who could help each other and so that the continued success of the club would not rest solely on my shoulders. What we have managed to achieve at the club, by working enthusiastically and together, is a great community of people who are more than happy to help each other, and I don’t feel that I am solely responsible for the success of the club. Our people make Liverpool HEMA what it is.
I think the video shows this. It is not a dry, instructional video, nor is it a trophy reel of tournament fights and victories. Instead, it shows a close-knit community of people having fun while training together and exhibiting a wide variety of skills. This makes me particularly happy, as it is exactly what I hoped we could develop for ourselves in the club.
Please enjoy the video, share it with friends, and let’s look forward to another year of playing with swords with each other!
Keith Farrell
InstructorKeith Farrell teaches HEMA professionally, often at international events, and has an interest in coaching instructors to become better teachers. I teach regularly at Liverpool HEMA, and help behind the scenes with running HEMA in Glasgow at the Vanguard Centre. I have authored Scottish Broadsword and British Singlestick and the award-winning AHA German Longsword Study Guide, and maintain a blog at www.keithfarrell.net where I post regularly.
