A high school project launched in 2009 has blossomed into both a nation-wide program and a documentary.
The two creators, sisters Macaulee and Kascha, recognised the need for a program to help senior citizens interact with the online sphere. After witnessing first-hand how learning to use the Internet had transformed their grandparent’s lives, the two girls started the Cyber-Seniors program to help other seniors get online.
They developed a training manual and recruited their friends to visit a local retirement home twice a week to teach interested seniors how to use the Internet. Some were eager to get onto Facebook to see photos of their grandchildren, while others wanted to play online games, and everyone wanted to use email.
The documentary, directed by Saffron Cassaday, is a heartwarming feature documentary that adds to the important international conversation about the growing generation gap. It focuses on a group of senior citizens who take their first steps into cyber-space under the tutelage of teenage mentors. The film renders a thought-provoking look at a spirited group of men and women who are enriched by digitally re-connecting with their families and each other.
Finding their footing rather quickly, the group moves on to compete for the most YouTube views while swiftly building their online inventory of friends.
Watch the funny and heartwarming trailer here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cAWnVL3yMeU
Website
http://cyberseniorsdocumentary.com/