September Newsletter 2005

8 September 2005

Dear Arts Practitioner,

Welcome to the Autumn newsletter which has seminars that will take place between October and December 2005.

Apologies to those of you that experienced problems logging onto the website to view the new format e-bulletin. As with any new system we have experienced some teething problems. If you do not subscribe to the e-bulletin and would like to, please contact the Creative Skills office to receive your user name and password.

Creative practitioners in the North and East of Cornwall can now access the free professional development service offered by Creative Skills much closer to home. Alison Sharkey will be spending the first Friday of every month at North Cornwall Arts in Camelford and one day a month at the Liskerrett centre in Liskeard. Alison can offer artists a Development Needs Analysis, a one to one focussed look at their practice and information about development opportunities and funding. To arrange an appointment get in touch with the Creative Skills office in Redruth, on 01209 218879.

SEMINAR PROGRAMME

- Marketing And Distributing Low Budget Feature Films
Friday 30th September 2005
9.30am to 5.00pm, Falmouth Arts Centre
Charge: £12

A day devoted to the distribution and marketing of feature films.  Cornwall produces great low budget features - drama and documentary. How can we get these seen by a broader audience? 

Through case studies and informal discussion the day will address the following questions:

- What are the key questions to ask about your project in the early stages to ensure you reach the widest possible market - are there any elements that make a difference - genre, production values, cast?

- How do you make connections with sales agents, distributors?

- What are the key festivals and other showcasing opportunities and how do you get into these?

- What other opportunities exist for independent distribution - online, satellite, DVD 'tupperware' parties, new developments in digital distribution?

- How important is marketing, and are there any low cost methods of letting people know about your film?

Confirmed speakers are:

Mary Davies - Industry Consultant at Edinburgh and Rotterdam festivals amongst others, ex-sales agent and buyer.

Pete Buckingham - head of the UK Film Council's Distribution and Exhibition department, where he has been responsible for developing the UK Digital Screen Network that aims to create more distribution opportunities in the UK for British material. Prior to this, he was Deputy Chief Executive of Film Four Limited, Managing Director of Oasis Cinemas, and Director of Film Distribution for Virgin Vision.

David Nicholas Wilkinson - producer, writer, actor and founder of Guerilla Films, a UK distribution company focused on distributing British and Irish films in the UK. Guerilla have also distributed over 40 feature films from European producers, including classic films from Eric Rohmer, Barbet Schroeder, and Claude Chabrol.

This event is brought to you by Creative Skills, with support from Cornwall Film and Cornwall Media Focus.

- Kersten Kartshen (current Tate St Ives Porthmeor Studios artist in residence)
Thursday 6th October 2005
6.30pm, Tate St Ives
Charge: £12
Kerstin Kartscher is Artist in Residence 2004-2005 and is the third artist to participate in the prestigious Tate St Ives Artists' Residency Programme.
Born in 1966 in Nuremberg, Kartscher's work portrays visionary worlds probing contemporary freedom. In a realm where social, emotional and psychological constraints have mutated, Kartscher's protagonists celebrate their femininity within fantastical, elegant and immense landscapes. A narrative unfolds from flowing graphic lines in marker ink on paper or fabric, blending elements and allowing fluidity and continuity between disparate styles and varieties of imagery. The resulting vistas draw the viewer to an exotic meeting place of past, present and future, where Kartscher can explore themes of post-feminist identity within the random collisions of moments of time.
Kartscher's seductive drawings on paper and fabric have previously been adorned with significant accessories such as gilded chains or formed the surface of objects such as boudoir screens or awnings. The work in this idiom stands as possible furnishings for the women in the drawings. The residency programme has given Kartscher the time to evolve her practice over the preceding twelve months and she has created her first room installation for Tate St Ives. The centrepiece for the Tate St Ives exhibition is assembled and constructed around a tent.
A 32-page illustrated publication with essays by Heike Munder, Director of Migros Museum, Zürich and writer, critic and curator Jan Verwoert accompanies this exhibition, priced £8.95.
Kerstin will introduce her work at Tate St Ives on Thursday 6 October 6.30pm followed by a pay bar and discussion.

- Tacita Dean
Saturday 8th October 2005,
7.30pm probably in St Ives cinema (to be confirmed)
Charge: £12
Tacita Dean is a British artist renowned for her photographs and 16mm film installations. Dean is related by birth and marriage to Britain's most important cinema pioneers, Basil Dean and Michael Balcon from the celebrated Ealing Film Studio. In late 2003, Dean filmed her uncles.
Dean's eldest Winton and Balcon's only son Jonathan - as they discussed film and family with MOMA Curator Laurence Kardish. 77 min. 16mm color anamorphic, optical sound.
Her exhibition including new work for Tate St Ives runs from 8 October.
The artist will introduce the film on Saturday 8 October at 7.30pm followed by informal discussion.

- Introduction to Photoshop
Monday 24th October 2005
9.30am to 4.30pm, Cornwall College, Pool
Charge: £12

This Photoshop course will introduce those with little or no knowledge of the programme to:

- the image adjustment facility
- the photoshop basic tools
- basic layer usage and filter application

The course does require that you have a good knowledge of how to use a computer.

- Intermediate Photoshop
Tuesday 25th October 2005
9.30am to 4.30pm, Cornwall College, Pool
Charge: £12

This course is designed for individuals who have completed the Introductory Photoshop course, or, for those who feel they have a grasp of the basic Photoshop tools already. It will further your knowledge of the software, and enhance your image manipulation and design skills.

There will be a recapping of the tools and skills learnt in the Introductory course. This will be followed by tutorials on how to develop them to enhance layout, and imagery, for a variety of multimedia outcomes. Students will also learn the basics of photo retouching.
 
It will go something like this:
 
- Recap of tools and explore some of their other uses.
- Examine filters in more detail.
- Creating layer sets.
- Creating masks.
- Linking and merging layers.
- Actions
- Using guides and rulers
- Photo retouching

- Introduction to Flash
Wednesday 26th October 2005
9.30am to 4.30pm, Cornwall College, Pool
Charge: £12

This introductory course will cover the following aspects of the programme

- Flash examples- presentation showing the uses of Flash
- The Flash interface- Layout of the interface and descriptions of the various panels
- Creating a new document
- Setting preferences
- Using the toolbox- demonstration on using the various tools
- The timeline- demonstration on the use of the timeline 
- The Library- uses of instances
- Simple animation- how to create a simple animation
- Publishing- how to publish files

- Marketing For Creative Practitioners 
Every Thursday from 3 November - 8th December inclusive
10.00am to 3.00pm daily
Charge: £20
(The course is accredited by Cornwall Business School, which is part of Cornwall College.)
 
Everybody needs to understand and use marketing in some way or another.
 
Whether you are trying to interest a gallery in taking your work, developing audiences for your performances or making an application to a funding body, or attending an interview, you need to be able to market either your work or yourself. Over the years Creative Skills has found that marketing is the main 'area of need' expressed by practitioners during their Development Needs Analysis sessions.
 
For that reason we have developed a new programme, which demystifies marketing for creative practitioners, developed for us by Cornwall Business School. Among the areas covered by the course are how to develop a marketing plan; pricing; effective networking; presentation skills and how to work with the media.

It is run by Jim Seligman, Head of Development (CBS), Head of Programmes for the Chartered Institute of Marketing (CIM) and Institute of Professional Sales (IPS). Jim has also held senior roles in Blue Chip multinationals including Beecham, The Timberland Company, Speedo International, Coca Cola and Pepsi.

The course runs for one day per week over a 6 week period. A wage subsidy of £100 per session is provided for those who attend that are self-employed/freelance. This is also available to employers who are releasing an employee to attend the course and employing a substitute. This course requires 100% attendance

- Theatrical Access and Rigging Training
Course 1 - Monday 7 - Saturday 12 November inclusive
Course 2 - Monday 21 - Saturday 26 November inclusive
9.00am to 5.00pm daily, The Eden Project, St. Austell
Charge: £12
We have been asked by numerous practitioners to provide this training. Because of its nature it is a particularly expensive course for us to run. Each place costs Creative Skills £650 + VAT per head. As a result of our ESF funding we are able to offer places on the course at the greatly reduced price of £100 per head.
Theatrical Access and Rigging (TAR) is an entry level course into rigging and working at height within the theatrical industry.  It is a 6 day programme which includes:
- height related legislation, PPE,
- personal fall protection and prevention,
- exhibition rigging including slinging and working around cranes,
- roped access and a 1 day assessment. 
The independent assessment will be undertaken by an Industrial Roped Access Trade Association  (IRATA) Assessor who will assess delegates to IRATA Level 1.  The IRATA Level 1 qualification is the industry standard for novice roped access technicians.  The programme will include a range of realistic working at height environments.
The programme is being designed and facilitated by Jez Hunter IRATA L3 from RIG Systems, a specialist consultancy in technical safety and rescue.  Jez is a specialist in designing bespoke and accredited working at height and confined space programmes.  He is being supported by Austin McLean-�s specialist lifting team, world renown photographer and IRATA assessor Charles Cooper and specialist riggers from the Eden Project.  Please note, RIG Systems reserves the right to change these details. 
It is a physically demanding and intense programme and delegates are expected to be of reasonable physical fitness.   
If you have any of the following conditions it would preclude you from doing the training for Health & Safety reasons:-
- High blood pressure
- Impaired limb function
- Epilepsy, fits and blackouts
- Diabetes
- Severe Asthma
- Heart disease
- Alcohol or Drug Dependence
- Severe vertigo or a psychiatric condition  
Full joining instructions will be issued 21 days prior to the training programme.

- 80:20 Vision - An Introduction to Marketing
Wednesday 9th November 2005
9.45am - 4.30pm, Cornish Studies Library, Redruth
Charge: £12
 
Pareto's Principle or the 80:20 rule states that in anything a few (20%) are vital and many (80%) are trivial.
 
So, if 80% of sales are generated from 20% of customers who are they, where are they and will they buy your products or services?
 
This course will provide participants with marketing techniques and tools to identify your customers, position yourself in the marketplace and reach your target customers.
 
Your tutor will be Carole Lomas, Business Support Officer for Creative Skills, a member of the Chartered Institute of Marketing with over 15 years marketing experience.

- Creative Skills workshops at the Cornwall Film Festival 2005 (18-20th Nov.)

On Friday 18th November at University College Falmouth-�s Media Centre, Tremough Campus, Penryn Creative Skills are sponsoring 3 practical workshops.

1. -�Light for a Fight and Close Contact-� with freelance Director of Photography & lecturer Dave Clarke. Action can be difficult to light-....unless you take this workshop. 10-11.30 am - times may alter please check website www.cornwallfilmfestival.com for up-to-date details.

2. -�Capturing action on camera-� How to capture speed, action-..... and make it look beautiful! Jon Drever is a producer and director of the UKVM Skate Magazine series. 12-1.30pm - times may alter please check website www.cornwallfilmfestival.com for up-to-date details.

3. -�Sound and Movement-� Don-�t ruin your film by overlooking the importance of sound! How do you capture dialogue when the speakers are moving? Low-budget/ no-budget films can-�t do it all in post production! Jon Wills is the sound technician at UCF Tremough college media centre and freelances for various companies. 2-3.30pm - times may alter please check website www.cornwallfilmfestival.com for up-to-date details.

(programme is subject to change)

£10 (a Festival daytime ticket) will get you access to all these 3 workshops plus access to 2 other events on Campus:

The Kodak masterclass (approx 4- 5.30pm) and The Troubador Studios and University of Exeter in Cornwall Surf/ Skate film competition and party with 3 live bands & Rawplug DJ in The Stannary. A local surf feature film starts off the night. Best film wins a surfboard! Ends 1.30 a.m.

A season ticket (£30, £22 concessions) allows access to these events as well as all the weekend premieres etc.. You will still have to reserve your place on these practical workshops with Creative Skills. Season Tickets go on sale at the Falmouth Arts Centre on Saturday Oct 8th 10-4pm and sell out fast.

To join the Cornwall Film Festival database please email: info@cornwallfilmfestival.com. We comply with the Data Protection Act and will send you details of Cornwall Film Festival events. We will not pass your details to a third party unless you request that we do so.

At present Creative Skills is taking bookings without payment, so you will need to reserve your place on each workshop on the attached booking form.
 

- Me, Me, Me
Thursday 24th November 2005
10.00am to 1.00pm, Assembly Room, Hall For Cornwall, Truro
Charge: £12

Sarah Thelwall is a freelance art market strategist and marketing consultant. Her clients have included Antenna Audio, Proboscis and ETA. Previous work includes market assessment of the UK art market (for Arts Council England). She has also worked with a number of fine artists & jewellers in developing self-promotional tools.

How do you develop a successful portfolio career. What do audiences, galleries, buyers and your personal networks need to know about your work? How do you communicate effectively to help you develop your network and career.

This half day introductory workshop for artists and craftspeople is designed to help you decide and focus on your goals for self-promotion and develop new audiences for your work.

The workshop is particularly suitable for practitioners who wish to expand their network and commercial representation beyond Cornwall.

Pre-course work: Make a list of the types of work that you undertake. Read Me, Me, Me on www.artquest.org.uk/mememe

- So You Want to Get into London Galleries!
Friday 25 November
10.00hrs - 4.30pm, Assembly Room, Hall For Cornwall, Truro
Charge: £12

Sarah Thelwall is a freelance art market strategist and marketing consultant. Her clients have included Antenna Audio, Proboscis and ETA. Previous work includes market assessment of the UK art market (for Arts Council England). She has also worked with a number of fine artists & jewellers in developing self-promotional tools.

This workshop aims to increase artists understanding of art market structure, dynamics and trends. In particular, this workshop focuses on ways in which the art market works, the differences between regional, London and international markets and the implications for artists wishing to engage with these markets. More importantly, the workshop will provide direction for artists to plan their own approach to move forward into new markets

Pre-course work: Participants are requested to research 6 London galleries of their choice (commercial/public or relevant project space). Participants will share the findings of their research with the rest of the group to help facilitate discussion.

There is an application process to register for this course: Please send your CV, artist-�s statement, 3 images of your work and your main objective for attending to Creative Skills by Friday 21st October 2005.

News

Project Manager Vacancy

ArtsMatrix, the continuing professional development agency for the creative industries in the South West, requires a Project Manager to oversee the advice, guidance and training services delivered from its seven West Country offices. Post based in Redruth in Cornwall.

Salary £26 - 28k p.a. (pro rata - estimated 0.5 post). Flexibility in working hours necessary. Car owner essential.
Would suit freelancer. Interviews to be held in Redruth on Tuesday 4th October.

For an application pack ( 01209 313200 or
email elizabeth@actcornwall.org.uk
Packs available in alternative formats.
Closing date: Friday 23rd September

PLATFORM is Hall for Cornwall-�s resident adult training theatre company for professional actors and aspiring professionals.  The programme we offer is designed to give actors an opportunity to develop and maintain performance skills through regular practice, both by classes and performances.
 
To participate in these events, it is essential for you to join the PLATFORM database.  You will need to get an application form from Ben Oldfield: 01872 321974.
 
PLATFORM AUTUMN TERM - WEEKLY ACTING CLASS
The PLATFORM autumn term starts on Monday 19th September.  We will be meeting weekly on Mondays between 7 and 10 pm. 
 
The weekly acting classes will address the basics of acting - Voice, Movement, and Acting Technique.  Sessions will be run by Ben Oldfield (Voice and Acting), Elaine Claxton (Vocal Interpretation), and Jeremiah Krage (Movement and physical expression).
 
Places are £50, and are on sale from Tuesday 5th July.  (A 50p Theatre Fund payment will be added to the cost of each ticket sold.)
Places are only available to people who are on the PLATFORM database.  If you would like to book a place, phone Box Office on 01872 262466.
 
PLATFORM PRODUCTION
We will be producing a show in Spring 2006 for public performance.  It is anticipated that the show will tour to local venues.  The show will be cast by audition, and auditions will be open to anyone on the PLATFORM database.  The rehearsal process will be relatively short and intensive.

Spread The Word - the South West-�s first Live Literature Writers Conference - 11am Friday October 21st, 2005 at The Acorn, Penzance. In association with Apples & Snakes, KEAP & Creative Partnerships

Free Event

Spread The Word is a writer-�s paradise; all your needs under one roof. Poets, storytellers, dramatists, fiction writers - emerging and established - can find out about funding, professional development and training, meet and network with promoters and venues, join professional associations like The Poetry Society, Apples & Snakes, have one-to-one surgeries with ACE, SW and attend specialist masterclasses - all in one day!
Creative Address by D.M. Thomas - mini lunchtime feast of words by Murray Lachlan Young - masterclasses by Zena Edwards, Annamaria Murphy and Murray Lachlan Young.

Arts Council England, South West - The Poetry Society - Exeter Phoenix - Live Literature Consortium - text Festivals - Apples & Snakes - Scavel An Gow -Creative Skills - Creative Partnerships - Kernow Education Arts Partnership - Bristol Poetry Festival - Poetry Can - Exeter University - Literature Training- National Association for Literature Development - National Association of Writers in Education - Carn To Cove - Lapidus - Cheltenham Literature Festival - Spiel Unlimited - South West Arts Marketing - The Westcountry Storytelling Festival - The Arvon Foundation - Big Potato, Stone Soup Storytelling - Ways With Words - Peterloo Poets - and many more...

LIMITED TRAVEL BURSARIES UP TO £25 AVAILABLE

Join us and the rest of the UK-�s literati for this unique, one-off opportunity, Spread the Word!

To book your place on the conference, travel bursary and masterclasses, please contact The Acorn, Parade Street, Penzance Cornwall TR18 4BU Box Office: 01736 365520 or email Emma Gibson emmagibson@acorn-theatre.co.uk

TipofyourTongue Poetry Festival October 21st - 23rd October The Acorn, Penzance, Cornwall

A new and exciting festival is taking place in and all over Penzance this October.
TipofyourTongue will be dishing up a tasty treat of words served up in all manner of unexpected ways and places! Why TipofyourTongue? Because it-�s the performance poetry extravaganza that you-�ll be talking about for months to come! Over 30 nationally acclaimed poets including, Zena Edwards, Annamaira Murphy, Matt Harvey, Nathan Penlington, Sally Crabtree, Aisle16, Paul Marshall, Dreadlock Alien, Victoria Field, Phil Bowen, Claire Williamson, One Night Stanza, Byron Vincent, Ann Gray, Andy Brown, Greta Stoddart AND the Apples & Snakes national poetry team.
The Acorn will be transformed in to a word Bazaar-... including a Poetry Fruit machine ,Verse stalls, word t-t-t tombola, surprising side shows, feast your eyes on the latest fashionable fancies with -�wearable words-� made by local schools, enjoy the poetree, and if after all the wonder- wording you feel a little overcome and feeling the poetic pressure, worry not - your poetic temperature can be taken by our emergency medics, Sister Murphy and Nurse Crabtree, who will be administering poetic cures for modern day ills!

Poetry Cafes, Poetry Parlour, Word inspired Art exhibition, Couplets and Cocktails, Poetry Karaoke, Tip Top Party with Top South West DJ Dante and the chance to pen the big Penzance poem! All of this and much much more!
All you need is your imagination!

Tickets for single night performances are: £8 in advance / £10 door - concessions £6.50 advance - £8 door . Also available Special Weekender tickets entry for ALL events £22 / concessions £20 are on sale now from The Acorn, Parade Street Penzance Cornwall TR18 4BU Box Office telephone: 01736 365520.

We hope you find the newsletter useful and remember to send your booking form back as soon as possible if you would like to book onto any of the seminars advertised as they book up fast.

We are planning to send out another newsletter in December advertising seminars into the New Year.

Best Wishes,

Jane Sutherland
Project Director
Creative Skills
The Old Grammar School
West Park
Redruth
TR15 3AJ
Tel: 01209 218879
Email: admin@creativeskills.org.uk
Website: www.creativeskills.org.uk

Creative Skills is part of Cornwall Arts Centre Trust Ltd, charity no 292138

This newsletter is available on request in Braille, large print on disc or audiotape
-----------------------