Help Me Take a Course in Trauma-Informed Practices

I'm Grace Dyas. I make films.

I live and work between inner-city Dublin, Limerick City, and Inis Oirr, Aran Islands.

I am an established artist and activist with nearly twenty years of experience making socially engaged art. In collaboration with people processing trauma, I have made landmark works of art that raised provocative public questions about power, ethics, class, and social justice. This has often led me to the coalface of the most contentious issues of the time and the most contested spaces; both online and off. ' 'I'm starting to see my work to date as acts of artistic mediation. 

' 'I'm an artist, activist, writer, director, producer, performer, actor and experienced public speaker, I regularly speak on panels at events and also as a contributor on TV and Radio and ' 'I've had the privilege of touring my theatre work both nationally and internationally.

My achievements include being nominated for Best Short Live Action Film at the Irish Film and Television Awards for *WAITING DAY* in 2024 and winning the Best Short Film Award at the London Irish Film Festival in 2023. ' 'I've also received recognition from the Fishamble New Writing Award for *ROUGH* and the Spirit of The Fringe Award in 2010 for *HEROIN*. My work has been praised by critics in the Irish Times and The Guardian.

I am looking for support to undertake a course in 'Trauma-Informed Practices' In Limerick this year. If you are in a position to donate, you can do so here: https://revolut.me/gracedyas - Donations can be Mighty or Tinchy, all support will be massively valued.

It's hard to believe that the word 'trauma' didn't appear in the work I am most well known for 'HEROIN' which I made in 2010. The play was about the social history of heroin in Ireland from the 60s up to the present day and to make it I worked with drug users all over Ireland. 

I quickly started to see a pattern where nearly every single person I spoke to had been sexually abused. I knew at that point that abuse leads to drug use, but it wasn't until I began to work in Limerick in 2014 that I heard the words trauma and trauma informed practice from Catherine O'Halloran, who is leading this course. 

I started to see that both an understanding of trauma on a systemic level, and a deep awareness of what people who have experienced trauma need to feel safe to participate in art as a viewer or collaborator would really bring my work to a whole new level and I went on to make The Game, NOT AT HOME and ITS NOT OVER, projects about previously untouchable subjects; the sex trade, abortion and the IRA. Over the years I have garnered my knowledge from the professionals I hired to work on each project, from some reading, from the internet and from Catherine, informally. 

In my previous theatre work I innovated in trying to create trauma informed projects, both for the artists involved and for the audience and I had some scrappy trial and error, some success and some outright failure where these interventions on my part were actually seen as detrimental.

 I feel now that what was missing was I didn't have a qualified understanding innately of trauma informed practice and I was always outsourcing that responsibility to a therapeutic practitioner who often explained they felt out of their depth through their lack of understanding of art. 

I am motivated to do this course because I think with my understanding of art and actual qualification in trauma informed practices I could work in a radically more successful way to make Art by Grace Dyas and Shift (my new film production companies) some of the first truly trauma-informed film production companies in Ireland.. 

Most of my work involves collaborating with people who have not made much if any art before and are motivated to make films to change perceptions and right wrongs they have experienced. They are people who have or are experiencing trauma. I often find myself stuck at a moral and ethical crossroads where I need outside support to decide. I would like to know what to do myself.

For example, someone may want to share a part of their story that I feel could be damaging. They are insisting. How do I proceed? To stop them could exacerbate their trauma, but what responsibility do I have for their protection, can they make their own mistakes and understand the consequences etc? There is no right answer to this, but an understanding of trauma-informed practices could help me adjudicate these things internally better before seeking support. I think the nature of the course and discussions with other students could help me to sit with and process these questions. 

I hope the course will help me to really be in the room with someone who may be triggered and and in distress. How to collaborate with someone who can't stop talking, or who is so angry they can't be in a discussion. What can be done to regulate, to reach another part of that person and help them find their creativity? How to be confident that me, my team or my projects are not causing further harm. 

The course offered by Limerick City Build stands out as the perfect fit for my needs. ' 'Catherine's expertise in trauma-informed practices, combined with the fact that the course is designed for those working on the frontline and is offered for free, makes it an ideal opportunity. With your support, I hope to start on September 19 and continue through March. To balance this with my current projects, ' 'I've set aside two days a week for classes and additional time for reading and applying what I learn.This also feels right for me, as up till this point I only have my leaving cert, and I have always wanted to study. This course is a level 6.

However, while the course itself is free, the associated expenses are significant. Each week, I need to cover 37 euros for flights from the Aran Islands to Galway, 36 euros for the bus to Limerick, about 60 euros for meals, and approximately 60 euros for accommodation in Limerick City. ' 'I've been fortunate to receive 500 euros from a generous business owner, but I am seeking additional funding through grants or patronage to cover these ongoing costs until the course concludes in March. Approximately 200 per month. I need 4,000 euros in total. 

If you or anyone you know can assist with funding or know of potential grant opportunities, I would greatly appreciate your support. Thank you for considering this request and helping me advance my work to better support those impacted by trauma through art.  If you are in a position to donate, you can do so here: https://revolut.me/gracedyas

Grace Dyas