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| '''Circle storytelling''' is the way [[Logos]] asks [[Circles]] to tell the stories of their [[Winnable issue|winnable issues]]. It is set out in ''Storytelling and Content'', a Logos Circle training course from 2026. It deals mostly with short phone videos.
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| == The basics ==
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| The course says a Circle story has one job: to get viewers to act, by coming to a meetup, joining a Circle or starting one. The stories come from the Circle and the people it works with, in their own words.
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| The course argues that a fact has to be memorised and a story does not. It says a story is understood directly, remembered, lets people reach the conclusion themselves and moves them emotionally. It adds that people who tell the same stories end up on the same side, even if they never meet. In its view most Circle posts today are reports, which track progress and do a different job from a story.
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| == The four parts ==
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| In the course's simplest structure, a story has a character, a challenge, a choice and an outcome. The character is one person or one family. The course rules out "the community". In its view the moment that person chooses to act is what makes a story. Before filming, Circles find out what the challenge is, how long it has lasted, what was tried and what is still not fixed. They write a short outline and leave the choice and outcome open until the people involved describe them.
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| === Report versus story ===
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| The course shows how the same report could run as a story. The report says the Circle met on Saturday, 40 people came and 200 food packs went out. The story follows a woman the course calls Mrs A, feeding six people on one income since a factory closed. She finds 39 households in the same position, judges a petition too slow, and the Circle runs a food drive. The factory is still closed. The course notes that the person comes before the number, and the open ending leaves the viewer something to do.
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| == Formats ==
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| The course describes five formats that it says work online. Each tells the same four parts.
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| * '''One person's story''' follows one person through a task, a day or a decision. The course cites Ange Zountchegbe, a content creator from Benin, for posting about one person again and again until the problem was solved. It also cites More Perfect Union, a US non-profit news outlet founded in 2021, whose video opens on one worker in their own workplace.
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| * '''The history of one issue''' traces how a problem started, then shows who it hurts now. The example is Kenyan creator Valerie Keter, whose video opens on one strange, concrete detail.
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| * '''Winnable issue highlight''' shows the Circle carrying out its action, such as a food drive or a clean-up.
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| * '''Steward or activist interview''' has a steward or activist explain why they started or joined. The example is Salary Transparent Street, a series by Hannah Williams asking strangers what they earn.
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| * '''Quick unscripted interviews''' put one question to several people. The example is Invisible People, a US non-profit founded by Mark Horvath in 2008 that interviews homeless people.
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| For Circles that do not film, the course points to a Logos blog post on a clean-up near Liberland in April 2026, where a pop-up Circle removed over 35 bags of waste in Apatin, Serbia. Interviewers ask questions starting with why, how or "tell me", leave three seconds of silence after each answer and ask for numbers. Consent is covered in [[Consent on camera]].
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| == Filming ==
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| The course warns that filming near police or officials can bring trouble. Circles check the local law, film in pairs so one person keeps watch, and send footage to someone they trust before leaving.
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| The phone is held upright in both hands, or rested on a wall or tripod, with each shot held for at least ten seconds. Every place and action gets four shots: wide, medium, close and cutaways. Cutaways cover the spots where something was cut. The light source sits behind the camera. For sound, the phone goes close to the speaker and the filmer listens on headphones. After each interview the phone records a minute of the place's sound.
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| == Editing ==
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| After filming, the Circle writes one paragraph naming the four parts. Circle videos run under 60 seconds and open on the person or the problem within three seconds, with no logo or greeting first. The course prefers street words, such as "the clinic charges for water", to office phrases. Every video has captions, in English where people speak another language. Music stays quiet under speech.
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| Before the ending, the video includes one sentence, in the words of someone from the Circle, on how the story fits what Logos is building, which the course calls a [[Parallel society|parallel society]]. Any Logos logo, text or colours on screen follow the design guide at logos.co/design-guide, which offers the marks for download.
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| == The ending and the ask ==
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| The course argues that a video ending with the problem solved leaves viewers nothing to do. Circle videos end on what is still not fixed and also show what has changed. The ask has two parts. One is a local action with a time and place. The other always includes joining or starting a Circle at logos.co/circles, which now leads to the Logos movement page, and can add sharing the video with a Circle facing the same problem. Circles post the cut on their own accounts and tag @Logos_network on X, which the course says lets Logos send notes and help promote it.
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| == Passing it on ==
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| Members retell the story at meetups and send it to Circles with similar problems. The course says Logos tries to send notes on every tagged video. Before the next one, Circles check the last against the four parts, the person before the number, clear sound and captions, plain words, an open ending and no suffering shown for its own sake.
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| == See also ==
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| * [[Circles]]
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| * [[Winnable issue]]
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| * [[Consent on camera]]
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| * [[Start a Circle]]
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| * [[Parallel society]]
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| * [[Resources for activists]]
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| == Sources ==
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| * Storytelling and Content, Logos Circle training course, 2026
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| * [https://logos.co/media/article/circles-liberland-cleanup You Can Just Do Things: A Circles-Driven Liberland Cleanup], Logos, 13 May 2026
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| * [https://logos.co/design-guide Design Guide], Logos, read 4 November 2026
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| * [https://logos.co/movement Movement], Logos, read 4 November 2026
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| * [https://www.tiktok.com/@angezountchegbe Ange Zountchegbe], TikTok, read 4 November 2026
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| * [https://angezountchegbe.bj Ange Zountchegbe], personal site, read 4 November 2026
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| * [https://www.tiktok.com/@moreperfectunion/video/6997158925032328454 Video cited by the course], More Perfect Union, TikTok
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| * [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/More_Perfect_Union_(media_organization) More Perfect Union (media organization)], Wikipedia, read 4 November 2026
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| * [https://www.tiktok.com/@valerie_keter/video/7657217659741900039 Video cited by the course], Valerie Keter, TikTok
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| * [https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/business/entertainment/article/2001541357/how-valerie-keter-is-using-tiktok-to-rewrite-african-cultural-narratives How Valerie Keter is using TikTok to rewrite African cultural narratives], The Standard, read 4 November 2026
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| * [https://www.tiktok.com/@salarytransparentstreet/video/7500003502501186862 Video cited by the course], Salary Transparent Street, TikTok
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| * [https://fortune.com/2022/08/04/hannah-williams-salary-transparency-street-tiktok-videos-asking-strangers-how-much-they-earn Hannah Williams, Salary Transparent Street], Fortune, 4 August 2022
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| * [https://www.tiktok.com/@invisiblepeopletv Invisible People], TikTok, read 4 November 2026
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| * [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Invisible_People_(organization) Invisible People (organization)], Wikipedia, read 4 November 2026
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| {{Page status|Outline}}
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| [[Category:Circles]]
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