Free masterclass for aspiring media professionals

From October 2-9 2006 Channel 4's IDEASFACTORY and Belfast City Council are offering a series of free masterclasses for individuals from across Northern Ireland with a passion to develop a career in the media.
From TV Presenting to TV Documentary-Making, Games Production, Graphic Design, Print and Online Journalism and Radio, the week will combine seminars on specific roles within the industry, paths to jobs and funding options, and insider tips from top industry professionals.
The Graphic Design masterclass will offer vision and insights on all facets of the industry from TV to print and online. Panelists will include visiting designer Brynhildur Palsdottir from Iceland; Andy Ellis, Director, Futurecitydesign; Bronwyn van der Merwe, Senior Designer, BBC and Jason Smith, Creative Director of Fontsmith, responsible for Channel 4 fonts.
There will also be a chance to meet guests from assorted design agencies and the Graphics & Visual Communication Department at the University of Ulster.
Kate Vogel, Commissioning editor of Channel 4's Three Minute Wonder slot for new talent and innovation, and Emily Renshaw-Smith Editor of the Channel's FourDocs site, present their expertise on the medium to aspiring filmmakers for the TV Documentary-Making masterclass.
FourDocs is the first interactive broadband 'channel' dedicated to documentary.
For those ready to project their personality to the world, commissioning editors, directors, agents and talent itself will be taking wannabe TV presenters through their paces for the masterclass on TV presenting.
Those with a passion for radio will get the chance to meet Channel 4's Head of Radio, Nathalie Schwarz, over a Belfast breakfast. Nathalie was Capital Radio's former Strategy and Development Director, and is now to driving Channel 4's bid for a licence to run a new national digital radio multiplex.
The Online and Print Journalism masterclass for those with a flair for writing and committed to a career in print or online will offer tips from the professionals including Maggie O'Kane, editorial director of GuardianFilms and Paul McNamee, deputy editor of the Big Issue in Scotland, Maeve Quigley, feature writer for the Irish Daily Mirror, and Nick Carson, Editor of IDEASFACTORY West Midlands and deputy editor of TEN4 magazine.

• Monday October 2 from 2-5pm: Graphic Design
• Tuesday October 3 from 2-5pm: TV Documentary Making
• Wednesday October 4 from 2-5pm: TV Presenting
• Friday October 6 from 9.30-10.30am: Channel 4 Radio's Nathalie Schwarz
• Friday October 6 from 2-5pm: ONLINE AND PRINT

Those interested in taking part should email ideasfactoryni outlining why they would benefit from this experience.
(DS/SP)