Welcome to March's Issue of the Newsletter for members of "The Creative Networks"

'Creative Networks' at UCE Birmingham Technology Innovation Centre (tic) is about bringing together all parties involved in sound and screen-based media in the West Midlands. 'Creative Networks' seeks to promote both successful business development and collaboration. It also seeks to contribute to the establishment of a strong, long-term, sound and screen-based Creative Industry in the West Midlands. The tic achieves this through increasing knowledge sharing and use of innovative technologies, creative practice and business processes.

Regular monthly networking events are held at tic. They offer opportunities for individuals and companies to network, make pitches and identify the resources they are seeking or support for the projects they are planning.

Visit our online portal www.creativenetworksonline.com for up-to-date news, funding, business support, training and tender opportunities.

Contact Scarlet Scardanelli, the Creative Networks administrator with any feedback, case studies, success stories, interesting projects, collaboration opportunities or news:
:: phone 0121 331 5400
:: email scarlet.scardanelli@tic.ac.uk
:: or post to Technology Innovation Centre, Millennium Point, Curzon Street, Birmingham, B4 7XG
:: or online at www.creativenetworksonline.com

Thursday 29th March - From 5.00pm til LATE at tic, Millennium Point
The Collaborative Networking Event for Creative Industry Professionals

An extended March Creative Networks event sees the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) and Advantage West Midlands (AWM) joining with tic to host the Creative Industries Convention.

In addition to the regular networking sessions , the event will enable you to discover the skills and development support available to help you business.

Guest Speaker: Ken Loach Acclaimed British Film & TV Director Ken Loach joins us at Creative Networks to talk about a successful career in the world of the moving image that spans half a century. He is best known for directing the socially influential Cathy Come Home and Kes in the 1960’s. Ken won the Palme D’Or at the 2006 Cannes film festival, with The Wind that Shakes the Barley reaffirming his long held status as one of the UK’s most talented directors.

The Creative Networks event is FREE. If you would like to join us, please contact Scarlet Scardanelli email scarlet.scardanelli@tic.ac.uk, or phone 07969 226 693
or register online on the Creative Networks portal www.creativenetworksonline.com

You'll be very welcome.

February's Creative Networks event welcomed Nik Powell, the legendary film producer and co-founder of the Virgin Group. Nik shared some of the tips and tricks that have established him as one of the country's most respected entrepreneurs.

The event drew a huge crowd in excess of 160 creative industry professionals. Nearly half of the delegates were newcomers, so there is no doubt that word of mouth is spreading fast about the region's premier networking event.

The evening began an hour earlier than usual with the screening of 12 short films to a packed out boardroom of creatives, courtesy of students from Wolverhampton's Light House's City and Guilds Course. This was swiftly followed by speed networking over hot food and refreshments before the crowd made their way up to Nik Powell's talk in the lecture theatre.

Rikko International Contact: Dee Yin email info@rikko.co.uk phone 0870 442 8090 mobile 0793 946 6106

Rikko International are suppliers of specialist products and services around the world. Rikko's Dee Yin joined Creative Networks to tell the West Midlands creative community about DigiMemo. This product digitally captures handwritten/hand drawn data on ordinary paper, enabling it to be transferred onto a computer for storage and editing. The company is based in Birmingham and they currently source products globally. If you’d like to arrange a demonstration, get in contact with Dee Yin and her team.

Norma Lewis email singers_night@hotmail.co.uk web www.myspace.com/singersnight phone 07817 146 384

Norma pitched this month to tell the network about Singer's Night. Having worked in the industry over several decades, she has observed that venues rarely hire singers without a band, which makes it difficult for vocalists to find opportunities to showcase their talent. This event fills that gap and provides genuinely talented singers with a platform to show the world what they have to offer. Singer's Night uses resident photographers and film crews, and is already growing in stature having confirmed the venue for the rest of the year. If you'd like to find out more, please get in touch with Norma.

This event takes place on the first Friday of every month at Birmingham's Library Theatre.

Melting Ice Ltd
Contact: Gary Seeney

web www.myspace.com/midas

Melting Ice Ltd. is an artist management company based in Birmingahm's Jewellery Quarter. Their management team and associated consultants ensure that they are in a very strong position to look after the interests of the most exciting new bands and artists that the West Midlands has to offer. We were treated to a fine example of one of their bands in the shape of Midas, a young up and coming band from Stourbridge whose YouTube video impressed many in the Creative Networks audience. Gary highlighted the fact that the chart rules had recently changed and requested that the network help Midas to chart in order to help put the Birmingham music scene back on the map. If you want to pre-order a copy of the band's single then text 'Midas' to 78789. Midas are releasing their first single on 5th March 2007.

Tribal Contact: Nicky Shales email creative.college@tribalgroup.co.uk web www.tribalgroup.co.uk phone 0845 094 3140

Leadership and Management for the Creative Industries in the West Midlands

Delivered by Tribal's 'Creative College in the Community', this programme is for creative enterprises wanting to develop their organisation and key staff within their budgets.

Specifically designed for the creative industries, the course provides two 'Institute of Leadership and Management' (ILM) Level 3 qualifications; the Introductory Certificate for First Line Managers and the Award in Leadership.

Successful completion of the course can lead to further learning – 'Creative College' also offer the ILM Level 4 Introductory Diploma in Management and NVQ4 in Management. Course fees include registration, certification costs and learning materials. Candidates may be eligible for a bursary against this fee.

Solar Pictures Contact: David King email davidking@solarpictures.co.uk web www.solarpictures.co.uk

Solar Pictures and Birmingham Media recently worked in collaboration to create ‘Veiled Existence’, a film which David directed, co-produced and was also the lighting and camera operator. The film is due for release in May and a premiere screening will be taking place at the end of March at Cine World, Broad Street.

Solar Pictures have a full high definition package for hire at daily, weekly or monthly rates, and can produce a range of production projects including the hire of all necessary crew.

The equipment available is as follows:
- Sony HD F900R camera
- Full range of 35mm prime lens including 6mm, 10mm, 15mm, 24mm, 35mm.
- HMI Lights, Blondes, Redheads, Dedos, Kino flows, reflectors and gels
- SQN 5 channel sound mixer, boom and 416 mic, radio mics and a sound proofed generator.
- Miller tripod, Dolli, track and gib-arm

David is also a freelance lighting cameraman/director having worked on 28 Days Later, Oscar Wilde, Land Girls and directed a digital short last year for Screen West Midlands.

ITV Local Contact: Michael Shelton, Channel Assistant email michael.shelton@itv.com phone 0121 634 4127

ITV Local launch in the Midlands

At the beginning of March ITV will be launching ITV Local in the Central region. ITV Local is ITV’s revolutionary £4 million multi-channel broadband TV station. They plan to devote a whole channel of scheduling to Local talent. It is a free to view video on demand site. The films can be viewed in full frame capacity & the quality of the picture is very good. By clicking anywhere on the screen while the film is playing, the viewer will be sent directly to the website of your choice. They are currently looking to get hold of films/documentaries to play on the site.

Craig Wilkinson
Short Film Programme: Best Served Cold (Advert) and
One Life Stand (Serious Drama)

email crawilkinson@hotmail.com
web www.startforduponavonfilmfest.com

After graduating in 2003 from Manchester Metropolitan University with 2.1 BA (Hons) in Business Management, I have managed operations at the Marco Island Film Festival 2004 in Florida, USA, managed Film entries at the Cannes Lions IAF 2005 and set up the Stratford upon Avon Digital Film Festival that inaugurated in 2005 and is set to take place again in 2007. After the Festival had finished in 2005 I moved back to my hometown, Dudley, when I discovered that Light House had the City & Guilds Course I wanted.

I came out of the course with everything that I had hoped to gain from it and more, including 3 DVD's, an informational piece about the Film Festival in Stratford upon Avon, an advert for Cancer Research and the short film - 'One Life Stand'.

I’m currently a freelance event manager working all over the UK whilst also spending the rest of my free time organising the Stratford upon Avon Digital Film Festival which is to take place in May 2007. I am also looking into starting my own creative services business and am interested in transferring my event organising skills into film production, which includes a future application to the NFTS for an MA in Producing.

Ken White
Short Film Programme: Warren and Phil (Comedy Drama)

I come from a musical background. Just started freelancing this year, with my company called Die Hard Media Ltd.

Warren and Phil are based on two characters I saw on a hilarious bus ride. Wrote the ideas down that night and before pitching to the tutors, I pitched to the students who responded to the idea with ideas of their own.

I like to use big characters, time/space and a mix of comedy with poignancy. I feel that combination is quite close to real life.

I’m due to start filming Warren and Phil 2 in March.

Kulwinder Ghataore
Short Film Programme: Confession (Serious Drama) and
Red Bull (Advert)

email kullysg@hotmail.com
phone 07731 801488

I am a West Midlands Director. I started as a production runner in the industry for the BBC and I decided to gain more experience, more technically, so I went to Light House Media in Wolverhampton. This is when I had the chance to make my first movie called the 'confession', basing it around two characters in conversation in a church, making it more intensified. I am proud in what I have achieved, in terms of what i wanted as a finished piece.

i4 Skills Contact: Stephen Houston email stephen.houston@tic.ac.uk web www.i4skillsonline.com phone0121 331 5400

Last chance to sign-up for FREE courses
The i4 Skills team are currently running two free business enterprise courses; Start With Success and Market Maker Skills.

Start With Success is aimed at newly established businesses/freelancers who are looking for business, networking and marketing advice, tips and tricks on getting started.

Market Maker Skills is aimed at established companies looking to diversify and find new markets for their products.

Both courses are supported with FREE business surgeries, one-to-one sessions with Industry specialists providing financial, legal and marketing advice. There is also FREE access to technology workshops.

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Harness your creative talent with your own business
FREE 'START WITH SUCCESS' 3-DAY BUSINESS START-UP COURSES
i4 'Start With Success' will help you realise the full potential of your creative talents by starting and managing your own business in the screen and sound-based media industries. The course is also suitable for recent business start-ups requiring additional support to get their business going.

i4 'Start With Success' will help you to:
- Understand the fundamentals of starting a business
- Prepare a basic business, financial and marketing plan
- Improve presentation skills for networking and pitching
- Develop your sales and client management skills
- Manage your time and creative projects more effectively
- Produce or develop your showreel

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Identify new markets for your creative media services
FREE 'MARKET MAKER SKILLS' 3-DAY MARKET DIVERSIFICATION COURSES
i4 'Market Maker Skills' will help screen and sound-based media professionals identify, analyse and engage with new markets for their creative media services, to secure project contracts and/or paid work.

i4 'Start With Success' will help you to:
- Review the market potential for media solutions in various industry sectors
- Assess emerging markets that have media requirements
- Develop business proposals and presentations for specific market sectors

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i4 Skills courses are FREE to those meeting the eligibility criteria. The courses are delivered by a series of seminars, workshops and activities over three full days (9.30am - 4.30pm), at Millennium Point in Birmingham City Centre.

These courses represent your FINAL chance to receive FREE training. After March 2007, these courses will still be available, but at a cost of £167

Co-financed by the Learning Skills Council and European Social Fund, i4 Skills training courses are run by UCE Birmingham Technology Innovation Centre, in conjunction with Wolverhampton-based Light House.

To find out if you are eligible or to book a course, please contact the i4 team.

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