A BRIGHTON arts organisation has been shortlisted for a share of £3million funding.

The Big Lottery Fund’s People’s Projects has listed ‘Hidden Stories’ by the group Root Experience in its regional final five.

Hidden Stories will need at least 3,000 votes to secure vital funds that will enable them to help communities understand what it’s like for a person living with an invisible illnesses, such as depression and ME, and distribute a free manual for change.

Voting is now open.

Root Experience explores audience interaction and play through creating interactive experience and events.

It examines audience and performer relationships through improvisation, gaming techniques and compassionate interactive practices, investigating the world from both a personal and social point of view.

Simon Magnus, Artistic Director, said “Although knowledge is growing about what people may be dealing with behind the scenes, we’ve learnt through the project that these people need help in sharing their voice.

“We need thousands of votes to be awarded the £45,000 we need to continue our already successful project and as most people know someone living with an invisible illness, we really hope that we will get the votes we need.”

Hidden Stories is about understanding how it feels to navigate the world with an invisible disability.

It’s an interactive community-based project centred on sharing the experiences of those living with invisible illnesses, to encourage increased public understanding.

The project began with creative workshops, where a group of individuals affected were invited to explore how life is for one another.

Their responses provided a window into their ‘hidden’ worlds – through which the project team were able to invite discussion, empathy and acceptance.

Now, Root Experience wants to collect more stories by running workshops resulting in stories illuminating a range of invisible conditions.