The Alness storytellers

Aged just three, Jean was sent away to school, hundreds of miles from home. Watch her story, Far from a quiet life

Jean Pentland applied for a chance to make a video (watch it online here) when the Highland Deaf Centre sent out information about Highland Lives.

Jean's story of an isolated childhood and her hopes for improved access to services and information in future will be familiar to the Deaf community but may surprise you if you've never chatted with somebody who's Deaf.

She presents her video in British Sign Language and there's a voice-over translation.

Jean found the four-week timescale tight but was really proud of the final result. "It was interesting finding out about filming and editing. It was great to see the old photos from before and then see what the process of making a film is like now."

Also from Alness

Karrie Marshall & Chris King made an audio slideshow about how the countryside around their remote farmhouse has inspired their artistic careers. The biggest problem they faced was recording sounds of the city, while happily 'stuck' in the peaceful countryside. They made their own! Watch Creative spaces.

Rob Ford wants to share his concern about homelessness in the Highlands with a general audience, who might think it's only a problem somewhere else. He was pleasantly surprised by how professional the equipment he got to use was, and appreciated the detailed training. Watch Not in my back yard.

Cass McDonald had made films before, when she was at college, but was surprised how much things had changed with video equipment going digital. Her story is based on a tour of local landmarks, harking back to when the area was all owned by large estates. Watch Moments in Ross-shire.

Susan Szymborksi wants to prove the Highlands aren't a boring place to live and hopes her story will attract new people to her frisbee team. She found making an audio slideshow a great way to learn about image and sound editing software but says she really can't get used to hearing her own voice. Watch Highland Fling.

Karen Steven pays tribute to community spirit in her film, which tells how she's trying to give something back to the people who helped her to recover from a brain haemorrage. She's keen to practise the video skills she learnt and is already making another film. Watch Saying yes to the NHS.

Other Highland Lives locations

Click around the map (upper right) or read about the Highland Lifers who took part in: Brora | Fort William | Grantown | Inverness | Thurso