Conscientisation Through Shared Authorship: A Cooperative Inquiry on Transformative Learning in Participatory Filmmaking

This article draws on a Cooperative Inquiry (CI) to critically reflect on a participatory filmmaking project led by 13 female members of a Hong Kong labour rights organisation. Together, they co-produced a fictional short film that surfaced the emotional and relational dimensions of working-class family life – challenging dominant narratives in Hong Kong’s labour movement, which often prioritise political mobilisation and structural critique. Grounded in critical pedagogy, the CI explored how shared authorship facilitated participants’ conscientisation. Through dialogic reflection, we identified four interrelated mechanisms: cultivating the conditions of co-creation; repossessing authorship through dialogic collaboration; reclaiming technical control and narrative power; and refusing moral closure. The process culminated in a collective choice for an open ending, which embodied a situated praxis and a rejection of simplistic moral closure. We argue that participatory filmmaking, when rooted in ethical facilitation and shared authorship, offers a powerful medium for transformative learning in community-based settings.