Industry leaders from the worlds of media, music, games, events and esports are coming to campus to inspire college and degree learners at our annual creative industries conference, Industry Week. Guests will deliver a series of talks, workshops, masterclasses, live performances and games jams the week beginning Monday 6 March.
Alysia Judge, one of the UK’s premier speakers and broadcasters on gaming, Richard Graham, editor of Golden Globe Award-winning Netflix TV show, The Crown, and one of the most successful British dance music artists of the past 25 years, Sister Bliss, join a cast of 80 industry stars lined up for intimate sessions, held in person and online.
Now in its 17th year, Industry Week runs from Monday 6 March to Friday 10 March and will see a celebration of International Women’s Day, the return of Confetti alumni now successfully working in the industry, and a live competitive gaming tournament in Confetti’s new £5million esports complex, Confetti X.
Music guests
Through her collaborations with Dido, Boy George and Cat Power, and as part of one of the defining electronic acts of the last three decades, Faithless, Sister Bliss has deservedly established herself as one of Britain’s most iconic and long-lasting female electronic artists in the world. She will be joined by The Prodigy manager, Nick Halkes, to discuss her astonishingly successful career as a DJ, electronic artist and composer, and walk students through how to navigate and sustain a career in music.
Grammy award-winning producer and mixer, Danton Supple, will be interviewed about his career on stage in our Metronome venue. From Coldplay to Kylie, Danton will provide insights from his career, looking at key recordings and techniques in his work.
Confetti students will also gain access to a walking encyclopaedia from the world of modern recording, Ken Scott. Veteran music engineer and producer to classic artists, Ken, has worked with everyone from The Beatles, Elton John and David Bowie, to Pink Floyd, Supertramp and Duran Duran, garnering multiple Grammy nominations, a Clio award, and millions of record sales in the process. He will take students through his 60-year audio career, throwing in some stories about the big names he’s worked with, along with some special behind-the-scenes audio treats thrown in.
The world’s best podcast-about-songwriting hosts, Sodajerker, will also be on hand to share their insights from interviewing songwriting legends such as Paul McCartney, the 1975, Paul Simon, Noel Gallagher and St Vincent, Beck and Diane Warren. Their session will dissect what makes a great song.
Media guests
Editor of the award-winning fictional dramatisation of the Royal Family, The Crown – Netflix Top 10 in 88 countries – Richard Graham, joins the bill, plus Director of Animated Films, Simone Giampaolo. From student to Director himself, Simone will present a making-of his BAFTA-nominated short film, ‘Only a Child’. Producer, director and writer duo, Len Brown and Bridget Bosely (Netflix and Paramount Plus) will make an appearance, as will motion capture film and videogame actor, and founder of the exciting Creature Bionics company, Ace Ruele.
Further media guests include BAFTA-winning illustrators and writers, The Brothers McLeod, UNiDAYS Graphic Designer, Tommy Key, award-winning Nottingham Designer & Illustrator, Jess Bright, and a panel of successful content creators across media, music and games (Olivia Taylar, Mimi The Music Blogger & Tianna Mercedes).
Games and esports guests
One of the most prominent names in gaming entertainment, Alysia Judge, will be on hand to share wisdom from her career working as a journalist, presenter and producer. Alysia Judge has been invited on Channel 4 News, the BBC, and Al Jazeera as a video games expert, while her written work has been published in The Guardian, BBC, IGN, PC Gamer, and The i.
Representatives from games giants Sumo Digital and EA Games will be offering valuable insights into the global gaming industry, and Animation Producer at Cloud Imperium Games (Squadron 42 and Star Citizen), Steve Austin, will bridge the gap between industry and education, providing students with top tips on how to prepare for landing their dream job.
We are also thrilled to be welcoming experts from the world of esports – including Augmented Reality (AR) sport, HADO, top Ginx Esports TV host, Adam Savage, and live video production experts, Ross Video, will be beaming in from as far afield as Los Angeles. We’ll also be hosting a special esports invitational, Women in Games Jam, and our new world-class esports complex, Confetti X, will demonstrate its high broadcast standard with a student-led Tekken 7 tournament.
Do It For Real
We’ll be welcoming back former students who are now forging illustrious careers working on projects such as Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning – Part One, Dead Island 2, and Disney’s forthcoming Marvel TV series, Secret Invasion, starring Samuel L. Jackson and Ben Mendelsohn. They will be sharing their experiences of life after Confetti with the current student body.
Our Chief Executive, Craig Chettle MBE, explains how Industry Week is one of the most exciting and valuable teaching experiences that a student can have.
“Every year since 2006, we’ve worked hard to bring leading figures from the creative and entertainment industries together for Industry Week, and the line-up just keeps getting better and better! The incredible insights and opportunities our students get into real careers help make Confetti such an attractive place to study.
“The Confetti philosophy is Do It For Real, and Industry Week offers our students an unrivalled chance to learn from those working at the top of their game. Students can attend sessions directly relevant to their course and also pursue their other passions which might inspire new career paths.
“We are delighted to be able to provide another hybrid programme of events this year and again, we’ve cast our net far and wide to present the most relevant and inspiring industry guests from around the world.”
