4Talent heads to Dundee

10 October 2012

Channel 4's acclaimed new talent scheme 4Talent will hold a 4Talent Day in Dundee as the initiative continues its journey across the UK.

The University of Abertay Dundee has partnered with Channel 4 to host the 4Talent Day which takes place on Wednesday 17th October 2012 (from 8.45am) at the Hannah Maclure Centre, Dundee. The day will focus on games development - a key potential growth industry and employment driver for Scotland.

Working closely with the local creative industry, the day will offer 16 to 25 year olds keen to learn about working in the creative industry, the opportunity to network with local creative businesses, take part in hands-on workshops with professionals - and the possibility of gaining work experience placements. 

Local industry experts will present on the day including: guest Industry Speaker, Paul Farley of Dundee-based Tag Games recently commissioned by Channel 4 to create the interactive game for Hotel GB; and masterclasses with Rad Miller of Pocket Projects and Rad Miller Films on ‘image capture and green screen'; Tom Barrett of No Tosh on ‘how to create a positive digital footprint'; and Jeremiah Alexander, multi-award winning games designer and digital entrepreneur on ‘games development'.

The Channel 4 speaker will be Glynn Ryland, Industry Talent Manager at the channel - and Colin Macdonald, Commissioning Editor for Games at Channel 4, will deliver the ‘My Job, My Journey' talk and share his employment journey which began in his home town of Dundee. The event will also be supported by North East Scotland MSP Jenny Marra who will attend the day.

Attending one of the 4Talent days automatically qualifies young people to apply for the Channel 4 Work Experience scheme, of which 42% of participants find further experience or employment in the industry as a result.

4Talent's approach to 2012 reflects Channel 4's mission to break down barriers and engage with and develop the widest range of talent. By demystifying the media sector, 4Talent aims to help young people from all backgrounds navigate their way into a hugely competitive industry.

Diane Herbert, Channel 4's Director of Human Resources said: "At Channel 4 we know that good ideas can come from anywhere. The creative industries have huge potential to provide growth and employment, and we want to make sure that nobody is excluded from that and this is why we are taking our 4Talent Days to more unexpected places around the UK. This year in Derry-Londonderry, Dundee, Barnsley, Cardiff and Penzance we are looking for new talent with fresh perspectives. 

"We want to connect this talent to Channel 4, but also to the local creative industries on their doorstep, who will be joining us for these inspiring days."

Gregor White from Abertay University's Institute of Arts, Media and Computer Games said: "We're delighted to partner with Channel 4 for the 4Talent day in Dundee, giving local young people the chance to meet creative industry experts and learn how they too can unleash their creativity and build a career.

"Abertay University is extremely proud to be a hub for the creative industries, delivering internationally renowned education and helping our students join world-leading companies and start their own businesses."

The day is  produced by Tyneside based Carol Alevroyianni Associates who have been working with Channel 4 bringing UK wide creative teams of media professionals together since 2009 to take the 4Talent offer to a more diverse audience.

4Talent is supported in Dundee by University of Abertay Dundee; Dundee Contemporary Arts; Dundee University; Somewhereto Scotland; BAFTA; Tay Film; Dundee City; Scottish Enterprise - and Skills Development Scotland have been key recruitment partners helping 4Talent reach a more diverse audience.

For more details go to: http://4talent.channel4.com/

Ends

 

Notes to editors:

• A media photo call for speakers and participants can be accommodated at lunch time only on the day - contacts as above
• 4Talent is Channel 4's nationwide scheme aimed at supporting people aiming for a future in the media industry. It offers employment advice and inspiration, work experience placements, apprenticeships and master classes. http://4talent.channel4.com/
• Abertay University launched the world's first computer games technology degree in 1997, and runs both the UK Centre of Excellence for Computer Games Education and the international game design contest Dare to be Digital.

Its unique partnership with BAFTA makes Dare the exclusive pathway to the BAFTA Ones to Watch Award, a major recognition of up-and-coming games talent.
Through the Abertay University Prototype Fund start-up and small developers across the UK have access to funding to create new prototypes and attract additional investment, another practical way Abertay supports the growth of a sustainable, successful games industry.

 Abertay has the highest number of Skillset accreditations for computer games courses (five out of 12 across the UK) as well as holding full Skillset Media Academy status, recognition of the important industry skills that are developed on our courses. 

 www.abertay.ac.uk/studying/schools/amg/

• Skills Development Scotland (SDS) is the national skills body supporting the people and businesses of Scotland. SDS was formed in 2008 as a non-departmental public body, bringing together careers, skills, training and funding services. SDS promotes the creative industry through its interactive online service, My World of Work that provides information such as job roles and current news relating to the industry. SDS also offers Modern Apprenticeships in the Creative sector, including a Modern Apprenticeship that covers Creative and Digital Media.
• Jenny Marra is a regional MSP for North East Scotland.
  She was born in Dundee in 1977 and educated at St John's High School before going on to study history at St Andrews University from where she won a scholarship to Emory University in Atlanta, USA.
  Jenny returned to her home town and spent five years promoting Dundee as a location for students, research and investment as Head of Press at Dundee University. After a stint as the Labour MEP's spokesperson in Brussels and Strasbourg, Jenny took a Scots law degree and qualified in both Scots and English law and Scottish legal practice.
  She is a member of the GMB, Community the Union and Amnesty International.
  Jenny is a member of the Justice Committee in the Scottish Parliament and is the Shadow Minister for Community Safety and Legal Affairs.
• Glynn Ryland is an award winning media professional with a broad film and television career spanning 20 years. Glynn has worked predominantly in international roles for Universal Studios Networks (Worldwide Creative Manager) and NBC (Creative Director) launching and branding TV channels globally as well as producing promotional campaigns for manyUKbroadcasters, including ITV, MTV and BBC.
  Glynn created a media support scheme for disadvantaged young talent while working for the trade charity of the UK film and TV industry: The Cinema & Television Benevolent Fund. Glynn set up and ran the BBC's first ever volunteering scheme, placing BBC staff with charities on media-related projects He now works as the Industry Talent Manager for Channel 4, working with new talent across the 4Talent portfolio. Outside his media career Glynn is a property developer, film producer and a qualified NLP coach.
• Colin Macdonald is Channel 4's first Games Commissioning Editor and is based in Glasgow. He is the main point of contact for gaming companies and is responsible for commissioning games that complement TV shows and projects that have the potential to cross over to TV.
  Colin is a respected and pioneering figure in the gaming industry and has worked on some of the most innovative titles of all time including Lemmings, Grand Theft Auto and Crackdown. He entered the games industry in 1990 as Software Manager of SAM Computers Ltd, the manufacturer of the last British home computer. Following that experience he founded and ran a small games development and publishing company bringing around twenty titles to market, including licences of Lemmings and Prince of Persia. He joined DMA Design in 1997 as Producer on the multi-billion dollar generating Grand Theft Auto franchise. Then helped found and was Studio Manager of Realtime Worlds, where he helped raise over $80m in investment and oversaw development of the two million selling, BAFTA-winning game Crackdown.
• Rad Miller at Pocket Projects and Rad Miller Films is a Film Director, writer and educator based in Leeds, Yorkshire and has a background in music production and working with young people giving them a voice through film with his company Pocket Projects. He is currently working on production of a full length film.
• Tom Barrett is a senior consultant at No Tosh, an Edinburgh-based education company that, unlike any others, spends half its time working in the creative industries and web start-up scene, living and breathing first-hand the creative thinking, processes and production in the projects they are part of.

No Tosh helped direct the digital strategy for the SNP's successful re-election bid in the Scottish Parliamentary elections working with educational video company Twig and 'learner voice' start-up Every1Speaks at developing their products, and at the same time working with many schools and on the Channel 4 Inspiration programme in 2011.
Tom was one of the UK's best known primary teachers before joining No Tosh and has demonstrated the power of social networking for learning and for teachers' personal learning networks on services like Twitter where he has more than 12,000 followers. He was instrumental in the creation of the UK's Google Teacher Academy (the first outside the US).

• Jeremiah Alexander is a multi-award winning games designer and digital entrepreneur who thinks, writes, designs, codes, facilitates and ideates on social change.
  He set up his first company, Ideonic, in 2006 after graduating from Teesside University with a 1st class honours in BSc Computer Games Programming. Now, a multi-award winning digital agency, Ideonic has focussed exclusively on developing cross-platform digital content that is not only engaging but also makes peoples' lives better, either by helping them learn or giving them the knowledge, skills and confidence they need to change their lives or their society. Projects include: MirrorMe, a Guardian MEGA award winning App with Channel 4; The Time Machine, a Learning on Screen, RTS and BigChip award winning, transmedia game to engage primary schools kids in cinema heritage - featured in the Times Education Supplement (This was for the Tyneside Cinema in Newcastle); and Every1Speaks, the World's first collaborative learning platform designed to develop a pupil's skills through enquiry based learning.
• Carol Alevroyianni Associates bring creative teams together to make things happen for clients across the arts, culture and education sectors. Carol started her career as a photojournalist running a media agency in Athens Greece, She has worked in the arts as a corporate fundraiser, music festival director and programmer. She was responsible for creating the national media platform for the last Labour government's youth festival SHINE and gaining 34% saturation of the population activating her wealth of high profile contacts, setting up the first youth debate in the house of lords and over 300 street dancers performing on the roof of London's South Bank Centre. Carol has been working with Channel 4 to take the 4Talent offer to a more diverse audience since 2009.