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Archive for the ‘Training’ Category

Qualification: 20 M-Level credits (can count towards a full MA or Postgraduate Certificate)
Delivery dates: 27th, 28th & 29th September
Location: IDI Sound Stage, Teesside University
Price: £170.00 (normally £800.00)

Develop Your Skills in Green Screen Performance and Enhance Your Career Options & Employment Credentials:
Teesside University continues to deliver a series of highly innovative courses aimed at professional actors and film directors. Back by popular demand is Acting for Green Screen – a three day course which teaches actors how to perform in the virtual environments that have become the norm in today’s Hollywood blockbuster movies.

Led by award-winning director Malachi Bogdanov (Associate Director English Shakespeare Company, Wales Theatre Company) and Visual Effects Technician Mark Buschbacher (Casino Royale, Da Vinci Code & Harry Potter), the course will prepare the delegates for working in modern film industry environments and situations.

This University accredited intensive short course offers a unique opportunity for professional actors to work in Teesside University’s industry standard High-Definition sound stage (the only one of its kind available to actors in the north of England) to develop skills in Green Screen performance, increasing their employability and enhancing their career options.

Develop essential skills & gain a postgraduate qualification:
Working with the director and technical director, the delegates will begin by preparing selected scenes where Green Screen technologies will be used. Characters and scenarios will be developed in a rehearsal setting – allowing the actors to work from their established skill set. Once these ideas have been ‘worked up’, they will be filmed in the University’s sound stage and Green Screen facility where objects, surrounding contexts and other characters are recreated and replaced. Successful participants will be awarded 20 University M-Level credits. These credits can count towards further study such as Post Graduate Certificate or MA courses.

Subsidised cost for eligible freelancers, sole traders and SME businesses:
While the course fee is normally £800.00, the University is able to offer it at a one-off highly subsidised price of just £170.00.

Book Now:
To reserve your place on this course please contact Scott Watson on 01642 738 527 or Email: s.watson@tees.ac.uk. Only 12 places are available so please book early to avoid disappointment.

Qualification:  20 M-Level credits (can count towards a full MA or Postgraduate Certificate)
Delivery dates: 4^th, 5th, 25^th and 26^th November
Location: Aurora House Media Centre, Teesside University

This postgraduate course has been specifically designed for journalists and press officers who need to develop essential video production skills and an understanding of how to work effectively when producing online video news. It is being ran by the team who have delivered programmes to over 100 journalists from regional and national newspapers.

The course is being taught in two blocks of two-day workshops – a delivery method which enables the student to employ their new skills and understanding within their normal working environment during the course. Following the first set of workshops (4^th – 5^th November) the student is required to produce video content in their own working environment. On-line and telephone support is provided throughout this period. They will return to the University for a further two days of workshops on 25^th and 26^th November.

What you study:
This course focuses on the development of the technical skills you need as well as current practices in online video journalism and the opportunities it provides. While it will expand your knowledge and skills so you can produce effective stories in moving images, it will also explore its impact upon traditional journalistic practice.

How you learn and are assessed:
The workshops are practically focused, allowing you to continually discuss your work with tutors and your fellow professional delegates. While it is an intensive course, tutors and  specialist technicians are on hand to offer support throughout.

The course helps you develop the essential skills for on-line video journalism but you will also critically examine how they can be effectively deployed within your professional practice, both for your organisation and your readership.

You are required to produce a portfolio of work accompanied by critical examination of and proposals for the effective employment of on-line video in your professional practice.

Professional accreditation:
Teesside University is one of only 19 Skillset Media Academies in the UK. This 20 credit Masters level course is part of the innovative ‘Build Your Own MA’ project developed by Skillset for media professionals.

One-off highly subsidised price for North East based businesses:
The four day On-line Video Journalism course takes place in Teesside University’s Aurora House Media Centre on 4^th, 5th, 25^th and 26^th November. It is being subsidised by ECIF (Economic Challenge Investment Fund) funding and is therefore offered at an introductory price of £160.00 (usually £760.00) to North East based SME businesses, freelancers and sole traders. Please call for eligibility information.

Entry requirements:
This course is open to journalists and press officers with an undergraduate degree and significant professional experience, and to non-graduates with significant and relevant work experience who can demonstrate an ability to both complete and benefit from the course.
If you wish to apply for this course please contact Scott Watson to request an application form on 01642 738 527 or Email: samwfd@tees.ac.uk
For more information about the course itself, contact Course Leader Warren Harrison on: 01642 342 376 or Email: w.harrison@tees.ac.uk

Throughout the Summer Teesside University’s School of Arts & Media is offering a series of highly subsidised workshops and courses to those working in the region’s creative industries.

Learn how the voice works and how to apply these techniques to your professional practices:
Understanding Vocal Technique is a one day workshop which explores how the human voice works and how an understanding of these principles can be applied to vocal performance and teaching.

Singing teacher, performer and workshop leader Rebecca Pedlow will demonstrate the different capabilities of the voice, exploring such subjects as it’s physiology, different voices and what happens when a voice breaks. These theories will be applied through a series of practical sessions throughout the day.

Rebecca will focus on essential breathing and posture exercises and demonstrate how vocal warm ups relate to vocal technique. Variances in different styles of singing will be investigated as she demonstrates the different approaches to the likes of folk, pop, opera and musical theatre.

Find out about further training opportunities and how you can earn money from your skills:
The workshop will culminate in a careers and personal development session where delegates will be signposted to further training and potential job opportunities. Understanding Vocal Technique delegates will leave with an awareness of the skills they need to develop to become a better performer or teacher. The workshop is ideal for performers, singing teachers, instrumentalists, community musicians, school teachers/assistants or anyone wishing to be introduced to, or have more understanding of, how the voice works.

One-off Highly subsidised cost – Book your place now:
The Understanding Vocal Technique workshop takes place in Teesside University’s Phoenix Building on Saturday 21^st August from 9.30am – 4.30pm. It is being subsidised by ECIF and Talent Solutions funding and is therefore offered at an introductory price of £49.99 (usually £170.00) to North East based SME businesses, freelancers and sole traders. Please call for eligibility information.

To book your place please contact James McDermott on 01642 738 089 or Email: j.mcdermott@tees.ac.uk

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Following the hugely successful ‘Good Causes’ short training courses delivered last year as part of One North East’s Sustain training initiative, Endemol and Teesside University are delighted to announce another innovative, week-long, no cost short course, commencing July 5th at Teesside University.

This new course is designed for media practitioners and those working in the museums and galleries sector in the north east. Interdisciplinary production teams will produce digital content for a live project set by Hadrian’s Wall Heritage Ltd. The aim is for delegates from these two sectors to share knowledge and practice that are beneficial to each other in the context of a professional production environment led by Endemol staff.

Day one is made up of a set of intensive workshops encompassing content development, digital skills, pitching and production management, led by speakers and mentors from Endemol, Teesside University and the client company.

Over the rest of the week, production teams will produce content to a brief agreed with the client company. They will leave with professional credits for CVs and showreels.

Please note: these will be very intensive production days.

Applicants should send a short statement, outlining their professional experience/technical skills in no more than 200 words to James McDermott (j.mcdermott@tees.ac.uk), by 23rd June in order to be considered for a place on the course. Places are strictly limited.

All content will be shot on Sony V1 cameras and edited on Final Cut Pro. Not all applicants will require knowledge of these formats but those applying with production experience must be conversant with this hardware/software as no technical training will be given.

Please note: People who have previously benefited from participation in Sustain courses may apply for this course.

Learn how to act in modern studio environments for less than £50.00:
Teesside University is the only centre in the north of England that delivers green screen training to actors. Our state of the art facilities are comparable to those that you would see on a Hollywood film set and hot on the heels of the recent Acting for Green Screen postgraduate course, comes this one day workshop which is being delivered by the team behind it.

An Introduction to Acting for Green Screen is led by award-winning director Malachi Bogdanov (Associate Director English Shakespeare Company, Wales Theatre Company) and Visual Effects Technician Mark Buschbacher (Casino Royale, Da Vinci Code
& Harry Potter) and prepares the actor for working in modern film industry environments and situations.

Develop a range of skills that could enhance your employability and career options:
This workshop has been designed to offer actors the opportunity to experience firsthand, the challenges and demands of the genre, and to enable them to develop the skills required to achieve convincing and accomplished performance in an environment where nothing is as it seems.

Subsidised price for North East based SME businesses, freelancers and sole traders:
The ECIF* subsidised An Introduction to Acting for Green Screen is priced at just £49.99 (usually £170.00) per person and takes place in Teesside University’s Phoenix Building from 9.30am – 4.30pm on Wednesday 30th June.

 To book your place now please call James McDermott on 01642 738 089 or Email: samwfd@tees.ac.uk

‘Thinking Digitally’ is a short postgraduate course designed for those working in TV, film and video wishing to explore new and emerging approaches to online content creation for the first time. The course is a 20 credit Masters level module that is part of the innovative ‘Build Your Own MA’ project developed by Skillset for media professionals.

The course involves two full days of workshops and discussion, plus guest speakers, and is supported via on-line resources and tutor support. The course runs over two days, 18^th June and 9^th July (delegates must be able to commit to both dates).

The course is delivered in the Institute of Digital innovation, Teesside University.

Course outline:
Day one (18^th June)
Through an in-depth exploration of a variety of case studies, delegates are expected to examine their current approaches to content creation. Here the aim is to enable delegates to develop advanced understanding of possible production as well as economic models that could be employed in future projects, such as business models, brand partnerships and audience engagement.

Confirmed guest speakers (via Skype) are Peter Cowley (former MD of Endemol Digital) and Clay Nichols (Dadlabs).

Following this workshop, each delegate will develop a short presentation outlining their professional response to the issues covered for discussion on the second day.

Day two (9^th July)
Each delegate will present their responses to on-line content creation for discussion with fellow delegates in order to further professional debate.

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Final Cut Pro is the industry standard software for film and video editors

Teesside University has recently became an Apple Authorised Training Centre for Final Cut Pro. The School of Arts & Media is delivering five courses in the latest version of the industry standard video editing software between February and July 2010. Subsidies are available for eligible North East-based SME and freelance businesses.

Final Cut Pro is the first choice software package for professional TV and film editors. Version 7 provides better integration with Apple’s other Pro applications than ever before with improved codec support for editing HD, DV and SD video formats. It also boasts new presets for devices such as iPod, Apple TV, and Blu-ray discs. Over four intensive days, this course aims to develop a professional competence in both post production craft and an understanding and operation of Final Cut Pro 7 software.

All delegates attending the Teesside course will be given the opportunity to obtain an Apple accredited certificate for the latest version of the package, while also obtaining 20 University credits in ‘Post Production with Final Cut Pro’. The cost of the Apple exam and Final Cut Pro 7 handbook is included in the fee.
Cost per person: £830.00
Subsidised cost per person: Up to 90% discount (based on successful Teesside University and Business Link application)

For further information regarding eligibility and course dates contact James McDermott on: 01642 738 089 or Email: samwfd@tees.ac.uk

The social media world is Buzzing (pun intended) with news of Google Buzz which has achieved a massive number of users since launching only last week. If you are a Gmail user you probably noticed it appearing below your inbox.  Since the Google Buzz launch there has been a furore about privacy concerns [ see article ] which Google has reacted quickly to address. The general opinion is that the genie is out of the bottle and Buzz is here to stay. Personally I don’t spend my life on social networking sites but if you want to dip your toes in a combination of Facebook and Twitter is enough to be social online. I’d say, add Buzz to that too because it adds a new dimension to your email inbox and just as Twitter and Facebook are different beasts, Google Buzz has a uniqueness to it too.

So how about making them all play nice together?

With thanks to Ari Milner who posted an article about integrating Facebook ad Twitter into Gmail, I now have Buzz, Facebook and Twitter all in one place. Here’s how it’s done……..

1. Go to Gmail Labs. (you should find this at the top right of Gmail. –see pic below)
2. Activate “Add any gadget by URL” in Gmail Labs — you’ll find it near the bottom of the list.
3. Now go to Settings (to the right of labs in image above) and then  Gadgets. Here you’ll find a place to add Gadget URLs.
4. Add the TwitterGadget App. This lets tweet from the sidebar of Gmail. To do this copy  the following URL and paste it into Gmail’s Gadget settings https://twittergadget.appspot.com/gadget-gmail.xml
5. Add the Facebook Gadget. To add it, copy and paste this URL into Gmail’s Gadget settings
   “http://hosting.gmodules.com/ig/gadgets/file/104971404861070329537/facebook.xml”
6. That’s it – Facebook, Twitter and Buzz are integrated into your email account. Click here to see my set up. Hey ! please don’t read my email!

If you’ve enjoyed this, watch out for the new “Social Media for Enterprise” course coming out of Teesside University.

Teesside University is set to deliver a series of innovative courses aimed at professional actors and film directors. The first of these is Acting for Green Screen – a course which will teach actors how to perform in the virtual environments that have become the norm in today’s Hollywood blockbuster movies.

Led by award-winning director Malachi Bogdanov ( Assoc Director English Shakespeare Company, Wales Theatre Company, directed over 70 professional theatre productions) and Special Effects Technician Mark Buschbacher (Casino Royale, Da Vinci Code & Harry Potter), the course will prepare the delegates for working in modern film industry environments and situations.

Ewan Mcgregor found acting in virtual environments daunting. North East-based actors can learn how it's done at Teesside University in March.

This University accredited three day intensive short course offers a unique opportunity for professional actors to work in Teesside University’s industry standard High-Definition sound stage – the only one of its kind available to actors in the north of England, to develop skills in Green Screen Performance, increasing their employability and enhancing their career options.

Acting with an imaginary character in an imaginary location is a daunting prospect for any actor and a technical discipline is required that is not usually supported by conventional actor training. High profile actors like Ewan McGregor and Gwyneth Paltrow have admitted to finding it ‘very, very hard’ and ‘daunting’ when working with this media. Acting for Green Screen has been designed to offer actors the opportunity to experience firsthand, the challenges and demands of this genre, and to enable them to develop the skills required to achieve convincing and accomplished performance in an environment where nothing is as it seems.

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Teesside University has announced details of its Spring University programme and as usual there are a whole host of creative courses on offer:

Design
Introduction to Digital Photography
Introduction to Graphic Design
Introduction to Interior Design
Introduction to Product Design
Introduction to Web Design

English
Introduction to Creative Writing
Regional Writing

Fine Art
Exploring Galleries
Introduction to Drawing
Introduction to Painting
Looking at Modern Art

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The next in Teesside University’s series of One North East and Skillset funded workshops for recent entrants to the creative media industries is ‘Shoot Fashion with Keith Moss and Kate Fearnley’.

Led by former Vogue and Wella photographer Keith and internationally acclaimed fashion designer Kate, this workshop is ideal for anyone who is wishing to establish themselves as a fashion photographer.

Fashion photography may be one of the most exciting industries to work in but it’s a highly competitive one that can be extremely difficult to get into. So, how does an aspiring photographer break in to the industry? And when they get there, what is their role – and what are they expected to do? Who else will they work with and how does he/she interact with the many models, stylists and make-up artists who are all essential parts of the process? Leading to the next question: How do they go about recruiting these people in the first place?

Finally, how does the fashion photographer achieve the expectations of the fashion designer while appealing to the tastes of the designer’s audience? And how do they ensure that the image that appears on the billboard or in the magazine looks like the one that they and their client had in their heads?

All of these questions (and many more) will be answered in this practical workshop led by Keith Moss. Keith who has worked at the top of his industry for over 20 years, will be joined by renowned fashion designer Kate Fearnley who will give a unique insight in to the mind of the person who creates the clothes and buys the photography.

The myths of the industry will be dispelled through candid, ‘behind the scenes’ discussions with professional make-up artists, stylists and models who are all highly important contributors to the creation of great fashion photography.

This will be followed by a live shoot where (with their own cameras) the participants will have the rare opportunity to photograph the models wearing Kate Fearnley’s latest collection, supported by a team of stylists and make-up artists. Keith and Kate will give technical and creative feedback to the delegates as they develop the skills needed to become a successful fashion photographer throughout the shoot.

The Shoot Fashion with Keith Moss and Kate Fearnley workshop takes place at Teesside University from 9.30am – 4.30pm on Tuesday 23^rd February 2010.

The One North East funded workshop is open to recent entrants to the photography industry who have an interest in working in fashion. If you are interested in attending, please send a brief biog/CV and web link to your work to James McDermott at: j.mcdermott@tees.ac.uk with ‘Shoot Fashion Workshop’ in the Subject box by midday on Friday 12^th February. For further information call James on: 01642 738 089. Please note that as with all Skillset Sustain funded events, delegates MUST be working in the North East-based media industries to qualify for this ‘no cost’ event.