University for the Creative Arts Alumni Magazine

/ May 09

Karen Millen in Africa / Tony Hart remembered / New York Fashion Week

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Issue01.

creativeupdate

Welcome

wWelcome

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Many of you may not be familiar with the name UCA or University for the Creative Arts, but we are the country’s newest university and the first to specialise wholly in the creative arts.

We’ve had a lot of names in our 150 year history, the most recent being the University College for the Creative Arts which was founded through the merger of the Surrey Institute of Art and Design and the Kent Institute of Art and Design.

Last autumn we were delighted to learn that we had been granted full university title. This was a fantastic achievement and testimony to the lively research culture at our five campuses in Canterbury, Epsom, Farnham, Maidstone and Rochester.

The newly launched UCA Alumni Association will encompass graduates from all of our campuses and all of our founder institutions, making it a unique club of creative practitioners.

We hope that you enjoy the first issue of Creative Update and would love to hear from you if you have ideas for future issues. To make your suggestions, or to pass on feedback as to what you would like to get out of your new alumni association, please email alumni@ucreative.ac.uk

Professor Elaine ThomasVice-Chancellor

welcome p2news p3

advice p12features p18profiles p26

obituary p36information p37

Welcome to the first edition ofCreative Update the magazine of the UCA Alumni Association

Professor Elaine Thomas | Vice-Chancellor’s welcome | Creative Update 2

News

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3Loyd Grossman | New chairman | Creative Update

Who would Chair a University like this…?

The University for the Creative Arts has appointed broadcaster, entrepreneur and arts and heritage campaigner Loyd Grossman as Chair of its Board of Governors.

The Board of Governors is responsible for approving the strategic direction of the University and planning for its future development. Loyd’s new role will see him helping to shape the institution following the award of full university title.

Loyd said: “The University for the Creative Arts is already playing an important role in making the UK one of the world’s leading creative nations. Nurturing creativity brings huge benefits to every part of our society and I believe the University has a great deal to contribute to the economic success of the UK.

“I am thrilled to be offered the chance to help steer UCA forward at such an exciting time.”

Throughout his career Loyd has been involved with a wide variety of television programmes including, ‘Through the Keyhole’, ‘MasterChef’, ‘Behind the Headlines’ and the ‘History of British Sculpture’. His knowledge of and fascination with food led him to create his own brand in 1995 which became

Britain’s most successful new premium food brand and now has annual sales of £65 million.

A graduate of the London School of Economics, he has been a member of the LSE Court of Governors since 1996 and was a member of the LSE Council from 2003 to 2008.

His lifelong interest in history, the arts and heritage has led to a number of appointments including Commissioner of English Heritage, a member of the board of the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council, Chairman of National Museums Liverpool, Chairman of Culture Northwest and Chairman of the Public Monuments and Sculpture Association. He is currently Chairman of the Churches Conservation Trust.

“I believe strongly in the University‘s mission to ensure that as many people as possible enjoy the excitement and inspiration of the creative arts,” Loyd said.

“Gaining university title builds on an already impressive artistic and academic reputation spread across our five campuses. Britain is very much a world leader in the arts and design and we intend to further enhance our great international reputation in those fields.”

I am thrilled to be offered the chance to help steer UCA forward at such an exciting time

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Loyd Grossman - Chair of UCA’s Board of Governors

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Hanna-Marie Hutchison | Designs for the stars | Creative Update 4

Epsom graduate designs for the stars

Fashion graduate Hanna-Marie Hutchison has designed an exclusive evening dress for television star Joanna Taylor.

Hanna-Marie graduated from the Epsom campus with a MA in Fashion in 2008 and has already begun to build up an impressive range of celebrity clients including Joanna, who starred in Channel Four’s ‘Hollyoaks’ series.

She landed an opportunity to design for the TV star when her boyfriend who works at a Surrey golf course began teaching Joanna’s father. Mr Taylor suggested that Hanna-Marie send him some pictures to show Joanna.

Hanna-Marie explained: “Joanna liked my designs and gave me the chance to design and manufacture her a dress. She is an ambassador for CLIC children’s charity and their annual ball was coming up. I set up a consultation with her and designed and made her a ruby red gown that she wore to the CLIC Ruby Ball.”

Former model Joanna Taylor is the long term girlfriend of Liverpool footballer Danny Murphy. She was featured wearing the red gown made by Hanna-Marie in the diary pages of OK! magazine.

Hanna-Marie currently designs her clothes in a studio at her home in Surrey. She said: “At the moment I work exclusively and only make to order therefore

the whole process including consultation, design, pattern, manufacture, fittings and delivery will last between four and six weeks.

“I am lucky enough to have the space and employment of machinery in my studio at home in Surrey. I live with my parents and without their help and encouragement I would not be here now able to design for a living, and make my dream a reality.”

Hanna-Marie has joined an elite list of designers who work for celebrity clients. She has also created an evening gown for SKY News presenter Lucy Alexander.

Hanna-Marie said: “Working with celebrities over the past year has been very exciting and lots of fun, however it also brings a lot of pressure, particularly when that client is a celebrity who is going to wear a garment to a publicised event; it can become quite a scary task.”

hannamarieh@hotmail.co.uk

Joanna Taylor wearing one of

Hanna-Marie’s designs

Hanna-Marie HutchisonBA (Hons) FashionGraduated 2007

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Working with celebrities over the past year has been very exciting and lots of fun

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Samantha Mark | New York Fashion Week | Creative Update 5

Granny bag steals the show at New York Fashion Week

A graduate from the Epsom campus has been a star attraction at the International Designers Show in New York with her unique range of ‘granny bags.’

Samantha Mark (23) featured in a New York exhibition trade show held in association with Nolcha Fashion Week and asos.com called ‘The Brits are coming’ and featuring top British designers.

Her collection ‘Beautiful young people are accidents of nature. Beautiful old people are works of art’ includes a range of bags, purses and clutches for both men and women. The material is the same material made famous by pensioners’ shopping bags, and was inspired by her West Indian grandmother.

She said: “My grandparents have always shopped with these bags in Wembley and Harlesden; they are a big part of their lives.

“I wanted to create a collection that merged the old with the young and showed the pride I have in my tradition and culture. These garments and accessories reflect several generations merged into one and held together through heritage and culture. I was overwhelmed at the interest from journalists and other designers.”

Since returning from New York, Samantha’s bags have been sold in boutiques across London including Mnini and Beyond the Valley in Carnaby Street, and Koh Samui in Covent Garden.

She has also recently completed a work experience placement with designer Alexander McQueen working alongside pattern cutters and technicians.

Samantha studied at UCA Epsom for four years, completing her BA and MA in Fashion at the campus.

At Nolcha Fashion Week, top designers are chosen to present their latest collections to an audience of press, buyers, and fashion industry leaders from around the globe. Samantha was one of the youngest of 35 British designers at the show, chosen from 140.

samantha.r.mark@googlemail.com

Buy Samantha’s ‘Granny bags’ at: www.farfetch.com

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I wanted to create a collection that merged the old with the young and showed the pride I have in my tradition and culture

One of Samantha’s

unique granny bag designs

Samantha MarkBA (Hons) FashionGraduated 2006

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Animation graduates | Anifest | Creative Update6

UCA graduates take the headlines at Anifest

UCA graduates did themselves proud at Anifest animation festival in Canterbury this winter. Together Farnham and Maidstone animation graduates won all of the major prizes.

UCA Farnham graduate, Craig Wilson took the Grand Prize of £1,000 with his film ‘Human nature’. Meanwhile Tom Senior from UCA Farnham won the Audience Choice and Technical Achievement awards. BA (Hons) Animation arts graduate Bo Fan picked up the festival runner up prize for his film ‘Phone Booth Trio’. Bo, who is from China, now works for an animation studio in Shanghai.

Anifest, which is now in its second year, is funded by Canterbury Council and draws competition from across the South East of England. This year the festival welcomed several special guests from the world of animation including Gulley, the director of the series ‘Shaun the Sheep’, and Curtis Joblin, designer of children’s animated characters Bob the Builder and Frankenstein’s Cat.

Creative Update spoke to Craig Wilson and Tom Senior about their wins:

What did the prize at Anifest mean for you?

Craig: My win came as a real surprise, I only found out a week later. I remember receiving an email from a friend congratulating me on the festival, but she didn’t mention any win, so I thought she was just pleased I managed to get my film into the festival.

Tom: It was great to win two awards at Anifest, especially the Audience Choice award. It is nice to know that people appreciate what is the culmination of months of hard work.

Do you have any advice for new graduates moving out into the big bad world of animation?

Craig: What you put into the course is what you will get back. I put a lot of time and effort into my four years at UCA, especially in my final year. I must have been running on a one to two hour power nap a day, just so that I could complete my film.

It was extremely tough but the end result was definitely rewarding. Great to see my hard work paid off.

Tom: Stay positive. Don’t expect to find the job that you want straight away. Go to animation festivals, try to get work experience at studios and meet people who might be able to find you a job.

Do you still keep in touch with any of your peers or lecturers from UCA?

Craig: I have spoken to my course lecturers regarding the win at Anifest. There are a few people I keep in touch with mainly from my course.

Tom: It’s important to keep in touch with people, especially when you first leave uni. You need to start networking as much as possible and staying in touch with friends and teachers is a part of this.

So where are you heading next?

Craig: I have returned to Africa. Since returning I am feeling more at home with each passing day. I have just completed a documentary filmmaking course. So I will probably stay in Africa for now and work on documentary filmmaking creating conservation films with the odd animation project on the side.

Tom: I would like to apply to do an MA in Animation. This would be a great opportunity to make more films and learn more about animation filmmaking.

For more information on Craig Wilson check out his profile on page 30.

‘One nice family photo’ by Tom Senior

Tom Senior BABA (Hons) AnimationGraduated 2008

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Ashley Howard | V & A ceramics collection | Creative Update 7

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Farnham potter to teach the world to throw

A senior lecturer in Ceramics at UCA Farnham has been asked to teach basic pottery skills for an audio visual presentation to be used in a major renovation of the V&A ceramics collection.

Ashley Howard spent a day filming lessons in preparing clay and throwing an earthenware pot for a film to be shown at the new galleries which reopened in September 2008.

The V&A redisplays its vast ceramics collection which is the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Extensive new galleries will tell the story of world ceramics with 3,000 objects on display from the earliest Chinese pottery to contemporary ceramic art. The exhibition will show masterpieces dating from as far back as 2500 BC, exploring the links between the world’s great ceramic traditions.

Mark Jones, Director of the V&A, said: “The V&A’s ceramics collection is one of the greatest glories of the Museum. With these new galleries, it is set to become the world’s leading resource for international ceramics.”

For the first time, the V&A will also create a gallery exploring ceramic production, which will incorporate a workshop area where techniques will be demonstrated and visitors will be able to make, decorate and fire their own ceramics. It is here that Ashley Howard will teach hundreds of thousands of visitors basic pottery skills.

Ashley said: “It is a great honour to have been asked to help the V&A in this way. I am very proud to help make ceramics more accessible to the public, and filming was good fun.”

Ashley teaches at the Farnham campus and has exhibited his own ceramic creations all over the world.

“ ”

It is a great honour to have been asked to help the V&A in this way. I am very proud to help make ceramics more accessible to the public, and filming was good fun

Ashley Howard at work

Ashley HowardPathway leader in Ceramics

Know Hope documentary | Tel Aviv | Creative Update 8

Five second year BA (Hons) Film Production students from UCA Farnham have returned from Tel Aviv, Israel, where they collected footage for a documentary film about Israeli street artist, Know Hope.

All second year students of the Film Production course are required to make an 8–10 minute documentary film about a subject of their choice.

Daniel Croucher, from Norway, Roland Bodenham from Maidstone, Wayne James from Borehamwood, and Liam Shove and Ian Jackson both from Darlington, met the Israeli artist for three days of filming in the heart of Tel Aviv.

During the shoot the artist known by his graffiti name, Know Hope, designed and assembled an iconic cardboard sculpture as the film crew documented the public reaction to it afterwards.

Know Hope is known to some as Israel’s answer to street artist Banksy. He came to the fore after his street installations and artwork began to appear throughout Tel Aviv. Know Hope says his work represents the everyday struggles of life. His growing fame led to shows throughout the United States and Europe.

The film’s director, Roland Bodenham said: “Know Hope is an exciting emerging talent, we thought it was vital to catch him at this point in his career. He represents a side of Israel that is never portrayed in the media; this kind of free speech and creativity is something that you never normally hear in the news.

“We had an absolutely incredible time filming in Tel Aviv. It is such a modern city and yet has a very rich culture of street art. Locals were fascinated by what we were doing, and many of them wanted to feature in our film.”

Producer Daniel Croucher added: “We are planning to make an extended film up to half an hour long that can be released at film festivals. We would love to return to Israel and collect more footage in the future as well.”

The film crew have edited their film down to ten minutes and it was shown at the University to an audience of fellow students.

Students film Israeli street artist in Tel Aviv

“ ”Know Hope is an exciting emerging talent, we thought it was vital to catch him at this point in his career

The documentary team filming in Tel Aviv

Know Hope’s work

BA (Hons) Film Production

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BA (Hons) Film Production | Rescued Bentley | Creative Update 9

Six BA (Hons) Film Production students from UCA Farnham have rescued a 1990s Bentley Turbo R from a breakers yard in Market Bosworth, Leicestershire, making it the star attraction in their final year graduation film.

‘Departure’ is a 15 minute film set during an uncomfortable journey to a funeral for a well-to-do eccentric character named Frank, and will be mainly set in the back seat of the Bentley.

The film captures the awkward and amusing interplay between Frank’s sister, boyfriend, and son who are thrown together for the journey to his funeral.

The film’s producer Kyle Pedley explained: “The car is a prison of sorts, trapping these characters in an awkward environment, with people they don’t want to be with on a very emotional day.”

The six students have a budget of £4,800 and have cast professional actors to play the main character roles.

They found the blue Bentley at Flying Spares, a specialist vintage car breakers yard in Market Bosworth and hired it for the week to film with. It cost £822 to hire, with two thirds of that amount covering the cost of towing it up and down the M40.

In making the most out of the car, the students have been advised by the University’s studio manager Chris Pinnock, who made his name in industry as a cameraman for director Steven Spielberg in the film ‘The Empire of the Sun.’

‘Departure’ will be screened at the University for submission as a final year graduation film. The film crew includes, Kate Herron (director), Kyle Pedley (producer), William Darkin (cinematographer), Jo Beatrice-Bond (writer/editor), Ben Ring (sound) and Lisa Whetmore (production designer/art director).

Retired Bentley’s final spin in student film

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The car is a prison of sorts, trapping these characters in an awkward environment, with people they don’t want to be with on a very emotional day

Film Production students

BA (Hons) Film Production

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Christine Lobb | First @ 108 public art commission | Creative Update 10

Alumnus shortlisted for public art commission

Christine Lobb, an MA Fine Art graduate from Canterbury, has been shortlisted for a £10,000 commission of public art to be situated outside The Royal British Society of Sculptors (RBS) in London.

The First @ 108 public art award has been created by RBS and sponsored by the Canary Wharf Group. It aims to offer emerging sculptors the chance to develop experience and confidence.

The five shortlisted sculptors exhibited their work at the RBS in January, giving the public a chance to comment on the sculpture they like best.

Christine’s proposal is based on her research which explores the paradoxical ideas of fragility and protection. It took the form of a net draped around a welded stainless steel frame. The net is made from stainless steel wire rope which will have retro reflective thread wound into it.

She said: “Retro reflective materials most commonly play a role in road safety. I proposed to use the qualities of retro reflective micro-beads to create momentary sculptural drawings that interact with the light provided by passing vehicles, street lamps, window lights and natural light sources. I used a net as a symbol for something that may either protect or trap, questioning the boundaries between protection and over protection.

“The First public art commission is notoriously difficult to gain, commissioners are looking for evidence that the artist will be able to deliver. They cannot risk wasting their money.”

If she wins, Christine’s work would be displayed outside the RBS building from September 2009. She would also receive guidance from an experienced public art mentor.

As an artist Christine would like to continue her sculptural research to inform future proposals for public realm commission work. It is her ambition to gain recognition and represent Britain at international arts events.

www.christinelobb.co.uk

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The First public art commission is notoriously difficult to gain, commissioners are looking for evidence that the artist will be able to deliver. They cannot risk wasting their money

Christine Lobb with her shortlisted design

Christine LobbMA Fine ArtGraduated 2006

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Tiina Hakala and Adam Rowe | Saatchi Gallery | Creative Update 11

Rochester graduates to design jewellery for Saatchi exhibition

Furniture Design graduates Tiina Hakala and Adam Rowe have been commissioned to design jewellery for the Saatchi Gallery, to coincide with a new exhibition.

The pair launched their laser cutting jewellery business in 2008. Tiina said: “It started as a fundraising project for the New Designers Show, people loved it so we decided to take the risk and attend trade show Pulse last June.”

The trade show gained them interest, so in September they rented a studio and bought their own machinery. Their firm, titiMadam, is now a successful business with around 58 retailers in Europe. They hope to branch out into a home range in May of this year.

Tiina added: “We would like to include household items like lamp shades, carpets and candleholders as we both studied furniture design.”

The Saatchi Gallery ran the exhibition ‘Unveiled’ until May, featuring new art from the Middle East.

titiMadam were given an outline by the gallery and have designed a number of necklace ideas, one of which will be retailed in the Gallery’s shop.

For more information please go to: www.titimadam.com

Tiina and Adam also have their own websites:www.tiinahakala.com www.adamrowedesign.com

David Beckham was lucky enough to meet two UCA Epsom students on a BA (Hons) Fashion internship in Milan. He couldn’t resist the opportunity to ask for a picture and some tips on what he should be wearing off the football pitch.

Tiina Hakala modelling titiMadam jewellery

(Below)Lucy Alyes and Maxine AhernBA (Hons) Fashion students

Tiina Hakala & Adam RoweBA (Hons) Furniture DesignGraduated 2008

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Mike Rymer | Breaking in | Creative Update 12

You have to break into the production industries. You don’t sneak in unnoticed, or slide in at the top from another place – it has to be something sudden, violent and shattering. This puts a weight of expectation on new graduates that, if not realised quickly, can soon lead to disillusionment… or desperation.

So how do you go about making that kind of impact, and is it all it seems?

If you wanted to break into the music industry as a recording artist you might embarrass yourself at the first round of an X Factor audition, spit in the face of Simon Cowell, then score some equipment, record a demo in your garage and send it to record labels. As a filmmaker, in the absence of Film Factor (not that there haven’t been approximations – see Fox’s ‘On the Lot’), you can blag a camera, edit a movie on your laptop and send it to agents.

What do agents want?

They want to be able to sell you. For this they need selling points which will get you noticed by content producers: examples of work which demonstrate your ability to handle different styles of narration, evidence of achieving quality under various conditions, and pedigrees such as awards and significant collaborations. Don’t expect work to land in your lap, agents may get you a meeting, but securing the work is down to you. You don’t have to have made ‘Laurence of Arabia’, but you do have to stand out and be eligible for the kind of work that they can pitch you for and make a commission on. For this reason, few people will be taken straight from university. You will need experience of the industry you wish to enter.

Dispelling the myths

A large part of getting a foot in the door of any industry is becoming familiar with its processes.

Based as it is on illusions of continuity and disavowal of the machine that conjures ‘the magic of the movies’, moving image is reluctant to give up its tricks. However, there are some well travelled paths to gaining experience. Although a tradition of apprenticeship into the crafts was dismantled long ago, there is still plenty of scope to start at the bottom. When you’ve made your thousandth cup of tea and are wondering what wearing that ridiculous hat at graduation was all for, you may well be forgiven for feeling frustrated. Still, in an industry of craftsmen you may gain favour by shedding the expectation of walking to the top brandishing your academic papers. Show me someone who turned up on a set and said “I have a degree in Multimedia Arts, let me direct something,” and I’ll show you why film sets have large security guards.

What’s my degree worth?

If you’re anything like me, what you have gained from your university course is the liberation of critical thought, the skills to articulate your creativity, and an inhuman tolerance for being sleep deprived. On leaving education it is up to you to make these skills count.

If you have completed a course in an aspect of production you may have uncovered the tenets of story structure, the mechanisms of the set, and the craft of post production. You will be initiated into the concepts and looking to apply this knowledge in real world situations… for money.

Gaining Experience

Spending time as a runner won’t hurt but make sure that there is time afforded by your employers for training. As a bottom feeder, being upwardly mobile will help keep you sane, and this can be a key leg up to internal promotion. Post production houses will expect prospective editors, colourists and digital artists to learn the business and understand the workflow. Many success stories will have been assistants dealing with the library, running out for lunch and digitising at night before being given small projects to work on.

Mike RymerMedia technician

Mike Rymer

Images by Dana Wilson

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Mike Rymer Breaking in

Mike Rymer | Breaking in | Creative Update 13

About the author:

Mike Rymer (29) is a media technician at UCA Epsom, and a freelance filmmaker. He graduated from the University of Buckinghamshire in 2001 with a BA (Hons) in Film and Media with Video Production, before spending a year and a half as a runner, camera assistant and assistant director. In 2005 he achieved a Distinction for his MA in Film at the International Film School Wales (a Skillset Screen Academy). In 2007 he was an assistant director to Peter Greenaway on the Venice Film Festival Golden Lion nominated feature ‘Nightwatching’.

His debut 35mm short film drama ‘SICK’ has received 14 awards and six nominations from 46 festival selections across 20 countries and eight US States. It is endorsed by the Samaritans, festivals worldwide, and under offer from two of the UK’s leading short film sales agents. Further to this it is being trialled up and down the country for educational use in psychology, film, counselling and nursing disciplines.

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Show me someone who turned up on a set and said “I have a degree in Multimedia Arts, let me direct something”, and I’ll show you why film sets have large security guards

Director Sam Greenwood

Advice

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continues >

Mike Rymer | Breaking in | Creative Update 14

How do you get in? I sent letters, about 90 in fact and received four replies. One of them, a production and distribution company in Soho, offered me an interview after which I did two weeks unpaid work experience before being offered a paid runner’s position. You’ll find their addresses in production directories such as ‘Kemps’ or ‘The Knowledge’. Call them up and ask who you should write to - a personally addressed letter is much more likely to get read. The BBC Jobs website has information about available placements with them. Research the companies you’d like to work for as many have work experience placements. Working Title runs a hotly contested annual call for interns.

If it’s a crew job you’re after then camera departments have a clear route from trainee to assistant, loader, focus puller, second unit DP and director of photography. Diary services (also found in the production directories) will hold your diary of work for you and attempt to keep you busy on any jobs that come in. You can also register your profile on directories such as Film London’s crew database, Broadcast Freelancer, or contact your Regional Screen Agency. The Film Council’s regional agencies distribute finance that can support training or offer production assistance through carefully prescribed schemes and try to get to know them through their mailing list and events.

Filmmakers, any time you have to access the internet can be well spent. The 4 Talent site is brimming with incentives. Film communities such as Shooting People will keep your finger on the pulse of events and provide access to a culture of collaborative production with other budding filmmakers.

If you’re a writer then write, send samples to literary agents, enter competitions and generate ideas. I read scripts and wrote reader’s reports while working as a runner so don’t think its all about the Earl Grey. Send on-spec scripts or samples, and if interested they will reply with a brief. The BBC claim to read all speculative scripts – see the writer’s room website for more information.

Protect yourself

Unpaid or voluntary work experience is a way in for many, but don’t do it for free for long, and make sure that they pay your expenses so you don’t end up as an uncredited investor. Know your rights and don’t allow yourself to be exploited for your dreams – at least no more than is comfortable. Read the ‘Pact Work Experience Guide’ and consult industry union BECTU for the latest in best practice guidelines. Check out the yearly BECTU Freelancer’s fair at BAFTA for information on how to go it alone.

Doing it for yourself

With the proliferation of distribution and exhibition tools that can be accessed from home via the internet, it is now easier than ever to create content and get it in front of a global audience. Withoutabox, Short Film Depot and Reelport are some of the festival submission systems which allowed me to get my film out there. The guerrilla filmmaker can now post produce, distribute and monetise their work from their bedroom like never before, but what has more currency than anything in this endeavour is your time. When the sound of people breaking in is all around you (you’re not being burgled, just robbed by the cult of celebrity) it can be hard to concentrate, but right now, with time on your hands, is the occasion to earn your place.

Breaking in might not be all it’s cracked up to be

For the debut feature director who has made a noise but not a sonic boom, there is a consensus that in many cases it is no easier to make their second feature than their first. In a climate where a venture capitalist mentality among investors would see ten low budget debut films financed in the hope of one runaway success, there can be a culture of clamouring for the next undiscovered maverick rather than supporting a second timer who has marginal appeal. If your Film Factor audition goes well, and you are picked from obscurity to lead the new brat pack then more power to you, but avoid the cult of celebrity because it enjoys failure as much as success and doesn’t care which one you are.

“Unpaid or voluntary work experience is a way in for many, but don’t do it for free for long, and make sure that they pay your expenses so you don’t end up as an uncredited investor

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Mike Rymer | Breaking in | Creative Update 15

Action!

Low angle shooting

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“ ” The guerrilla filmmaker can now post produce, distribute and monetise their work from their bedroom like never before

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Mike Rymer | Breaking in | Creative Update16

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The truth is that when a talent explodes onto the public radar, the sensation of them having broken in is felt most keenly by their audience, augmented by their marketing. The talent themselves haven’t gone from watching Tarantino box sets one day to commanding multimillion dollar budgets the next. This has instead been the result of concerted and sustained endeavour. You don’t break onto the summit of Everest, you have climbed diligently upwards, putting one foot in front of the other until ascending has become habit.

Further information

Advice and supportwww.skillset.org

Fundingwww.ukfilmcouncil.org.uk/shortfilms

Production directorieswww.kftv.com www.theknowledgeonline.com

For production jobswww.mandy.comwww.grapevinejobs.co.ukwww.broadcastfreelancer.co.uk

For communitieswww.shootingpeople.org www.talentcircle.org

Opportunitieswww.channel4.com/4talent www.bbc.co.uk/writersroom

Preparing to track

The crew in action

(Right)Actor Joanna Alexander

Preparing for filming

17

Fashion Promotion and Imaging

Jules Findlay, course leader for BA (Hons) Fashion Promotion and Imaging at UCA Epsom, has had a varied career encompassing creative disciplines from animation to fashion design.

A former animator for the BBC, her fashion career has seen her working for companies such as Agatha Ruiz de la Prada, Loewe SA and Clothkits Ltd.

She has put together a series of portfolio tips for Creative Update readers trying to establish a name for themselves in the fashion industry.

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Start off with one of your best images/illustrations

The best project work should follow

There should be one conceptual project in your portfolio

A fashion awareness; stylists, photographers, shops,designers are all relevant, with the ability to be informed by at least three of each

Sketchbooks are always relevant as they show how you work and at least two books should be included

FPI looks for strong 2D visual images and also written work

Presentation is important, clean off the dirty fingerprints,straighten edges

The portfolio should read like a book in terms of workflow and projects

Consider the last page, as that’s the page that is usually openthe longest. It should be a strong piece of work that can be talked about

There’s no need to put in the kitchen sink, but enough goodwork to talk about and perhaps some idea of progression

Jules Findlay

Jules FindleyCourse leader BA (Hons) Fashion Promotion and Imaging

{portfolio tips}

Jules Findley | FPI portfolio tips | Creative Update

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Animation graduates | Love is in the air | Creative Update18

(Right) Adamand Ralitsa

Love is in the air

We have spoken to two couples

who both met while studying

animation and have not only

been lucky in love but lucky in business

together as well.

Adam Bailey and Ralitsa Kiskinova met on the animation course at UCA Farnham and began working on projects together at the start of their second year.

They now run a successful business CLI-Productions from their home in Sofia, Bulgaria billed as “a 2D animation studio, specialising in traditional and digital animated short film, TV series, and commercials, web design and illustration.”

They have an exciting variety of international clients such as the BBC for whom they are currently working on some educational children’s shows, the Comedy Central animated series ‘Lil Bush’ and projects with NBC amongst many others.

Adam says: “Our contrasting styles and personalities complement each other and have helped us build such a strong working partnership. We thrive on each other’s ideas and make sure any differences do not get in the way of our work.”

Inspiration for their work comes from a wide range of sources which differ for both of them. Ralitsa has more of a traditional style and a love of fluidity. Adam’s work is dynamic and thought-provoking. However, they both share influences from their UCA lecturers, especially Lesley Adams and visiting tutor Tony Fish.

It must be hard to be living and working together constantly but Ralitsa told us: “Spending so much time together makes hard moments more manageable and being able to come together and overcome a problem is the beauty of our relationship. Maybe us both being Librans helps.”

well at least in the animation department

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www.cli-productions.comwww.adoodlebailey.comwww.rkiskinova.com adam@cli-productions.comralitsa@cli-productions.com

Adam Bailey & Ralitsa KiskinovaBA (Hons) AnimationGraduated 2007

Animation graduates | Love is in the air | Creative Update 19

Aaron Wood (25) from Sunbury and Katie Steed (24) from Harpenden, also met while studying animation at UCA Farnham, and began dating in 2005. Through their new animation company Slurpy Studios, they are hoping to put the originality back in to British animation.

Aaron said: “In the past, animators were more willing to experiment with different techniques and styles. In our research at the University’s Animation Archive, we came across films made with scissors and an origami dog, or made entirely with felt tipped pen, and sometimes the animators just cut up whatever was to hand and moved it around the screen!

“Animation studios have become unwilling to experiment and to take risks, and instead try to constantly repeat the Disney formula for success.”

So far Slurpy Studios has already had over 50 festival screenings and won a number of awards. Their short film, ‘Death by Scrabble’, has been picked up for a distribution deal with Network Ireland Television after it was nominated for the Royal Television Awards, Best Student Animation.

Despite being less than a year into the business, Aaron and Katie have already finished a music promo, a title sequence and two animated inserts for ITV, three website commissions, six web banners, and are currently developing a pilot for an environmentally themed TV series.

Aaron and Katie live and work together, and practically live in each others pockets but they say working with a partner works well for them.

Katie said: “It is hard to work and live together; mostly because animation is so labour intensive that it sometimes gets to midnight and we look up and realise that we’ve not left the house or seen anyone else all day.

“We don’t argue over the animation very much, because we have quite well defined roles within the production, and we both trust each other in those roles. Aaron generally does the clever bits, and Katie does the pretty bits. Our arguments mostly arise over whose turn it is to make the tea!”

One of Aaron and Katie’s recent projects has been a music video to help relaunch the career of guitarist Sam Roman, who has played on the same bills as Lemar and Jamelia, as well as legendary funk superstar Don Blackmon. Slurpy studios has also made the music video for Sam’s EP ‘The Singer/Storyteller EP’ which will be released in the coming months. www.slurpystudios.comaaron@slurpystudios.com

We knew we made a good team. In the studio, we complement each other very well

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(Left) Aaron Wood and Katie Steed

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Aaron Wood &Katie SteedBA (Hons) AnimationGraduated 2004 & 2007

Love struck animatorsaim to restore great British tradition

Karen Millen | Gateway School of Fashion | Creative Update20

Students of the Gateway School of Fashion at work

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Karen MillenBA (Hons) FashionGraduated 1981

Karen Millen | Gateway School of Fashion | Creative Update 21

Karen Millen creates African fashion school for young people affected by HIV

We’ve designed a foundation course with an emphasis on basic skills and creative vision that we believe will allow students to find their own niche

Fashion designer Karen Millen has worked with charity HOPEHIV and staff from her former college to create a fashion school for young South Africans affected by HIV.

The Gateway School of Fashion is located in the city of Pietermaritzburg in a workshop that used to make coffins. It offers a unique one-year fashion training course where students can learn design skills alongside the techniques required to produce the garments.

Open to those affected by the HIV epidemic, the school aims to equip its students with the skills necessary to build a career in the fashion industry, thereby improving their own and their families’ lives. The first cohort of 20 students enrolled in January 2008.

Karen said: “I’m totally overcome by the passion and latent talent of the first intake of students and it would be a dream come true if one of them developed into an international designer.”

Working alongside Karen is Sheelagh Wright, course leader in Fashion Management at UCA Rochester, who actually taught Karen when she studied at the campus in the 1980s.

Sheelagh said: “We’ve designed a foundation course with an emphasis on basic skills and

creative vision that we believe will allow students to find their own niche.

“Fashion and design is an industry with traditionally high entry barriers. We hope that this course will help students overcome some of these hurdles and fast-track promising students. To this end, discussions are ongoing with the Durban University of Technology to look at ways for the Gateway School of Fashion course to facilitate access to further study.”

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Karen Millen | Gateway School of Fashion | Creative Update22

I’m totally overcome by the passion and latent talent of the first intake of students and it would be a dream come true if one of them developed into an international designer

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Karen Millen | Gateway School of Fashion | Creative Update 23

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(Left) Gateway School of Fashion students

Karen Millen opening Gateway School’s fashion show

Karen Millen backstage at the School’s fashion show

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Karen Millen | Gateway School of Fashion | Creative Update24

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ts Mncwabe Sizophila (aka Zoe)

Gift

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ZoeSheelagh Wright teaching at the school

At 18 Zoe is the youngest student at the Gateway School of Fashion. She lives in an orphanage which only grants her a place on the condition that she is in education, meaning that the project has saved her from being a street orphan and trying to scrape a living from unskilled jobs.

One of 12 children, Zoe has lost her mother, a sister, and her sister’s baby through HIV.

Zoe says: “I have had a very good year, I have learnt a lot of new skills. I have learnt from my mistakes, which I have made, this helps me grow within my work. I really enjoyed being on this course and of course having gentle, loving people around us.”

On completion of her studies, Zoe was one of five students selected to work in a fashion incubator associated with the Gateway School project, thereby allowing her to continue to live at the orphanage.

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Karen Millen | Gateway School of Fashion | Creative Update 25

Mbhele Lungile (aka Prudence)

Luthuli Ziphonzinhle (aka Gift)

Gateway School of Fashion group photo

Given away by her mother at birth, Prudence was raised by her auntie with whom she currently lives along with four cousins. Aged 20, she has now been accepted onto a BA Fashion Design programme.

She says: “When Sheelagh taught us how to make a pattern it was like God heard my prayers because I really love making patterns. Sheelagh explained to us in a way that you understood and it made me so excited, it was like tasting cheesecake.”

After completing the course and demonstrating excellent skills in fashion design, pattern cutting and sample making, Gift was selected to be an instructor on the course. It is hoped that she will travel to the UK this year to shadow staff at UCA Rochester.

www.hopehiv.org

Gift is the oldest Gateway School student at 27 years old. She lives in a five room hut with her mum, four siblings, and two nieces. She has a daughter aged six called Love.

Gift says: “Love lives with her father because of the situation at home. I’ve decided to let her go so that she can get a better education because her father is working.

“The one thing that comes first in my life is my family and my little girl who is everything to me. In the future I see myself as a better person, living a better life and able to provide food for my family, education for them and to help other members of the community like employing some of them when I have a business. I wish everyone can have a better life.”

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Ross Jenkins | Alumni profile | Creative Update26

CAREER SO FAR (Opposite)Ross Jenkins

‘The Ultimate Collection’

London Fashion Week 2007

I graduated in 2006 and was nominated for the Gold Award at Graduate Fashion Week. In the same year I won best mens line and best traditional line in the UK Urban Fashion Awards.

2007 saw some great showcases of my work, Alternative Fashion Week in March and my biggest achievement so far: London Fashion Week in September. My collection was called ‘The Ultimate Collection’ and was based on the theme of wrestling fused with Eastern European men. It continued my experiments in challenging proportions and playing with unusual layering.

Inspired by the sport of wrestling I presented my vision for all-in-one men’s garments and once again showed underwear worn as outerwear. Intermixing leather and lycra with punky metal detailing and lace-up seams gave my sportswear my usual rough and tough edge.

Collaborating with womenswear designer Gwen Ash aka GAAsh, we showcased our collections simultaneously. It’s great to work with another passionate creative and bounce ideas off each other.

The show was a huge learning experience and was the first time I properly realised that I was running a business.

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Ross Jenkins

Ross Jenkins | Alumni profile | Creative Update 27

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Ross JenkinsBA (Hons) FashionGraduated 2006

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Ross Jenkins | Alumni profile | Creative Update28

My collection was called ‘The Ultimate Collection’ and was based on the theme of wrestling fused with Eastern European men

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Images by Joseph Sinclair - www.josephsinclair.com

Ross Jenkins | Alumni profile | Creative Update 29

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I believe fashion shouldn’t be throw away

INSPIRATION

EXPERIENCE AT UCA

ADVICE

CURRENT PROJECTS

My new collection is a completely different to anything I have done before, but my experimental style continues. I’m using fabrics I haven’t worked with and am looking into more experimental methods of garment construction.

This collection is non-seasonal. I believe fashion shouldn’t be throw away and that the seasons are disappearing. With the current economic climate and the non-seasonal aspect, I would like to launch in an alternative way to the catwalk show towards the end of this year. I am also working on an accessories and underwear range. Watch this space!

Another project is the creative direction and styling for a photography book called ‘Bored with Plastic’ with photographer Joseph Sinclair. Inspired by men who have something quirky about them and bored with the plastic ken doll image, the book draws its inspiration from and will use those men that I am inspired by.

Having now completed a business course, I have been working on getting my products right and establishing my brand. Realising what my identity is as a brand has allowed me to transfer my skills into other ideas like the book and my sideline collections. I also hope to launch rossjenkins.com soon which I am very excited about.

My Inspiration is quite varied, it can come from other people and experiences. These can be historical, current affairs, other people’s stories, major events or tragedies. I start with my point of inspiration and then surround myself with anything to do with what I am inspired by.

This is where I learnt a lot of my technical and practical skills. The best thing at UCA for me was the great tutors. They helped shape my way of thinking through encouragement and opening my mind to a wider way of thinking. I did some great work experience which is the best way to learn about the industry. Actually, I also loved the library at UCA Epsom, it’s got everything!

Being a student is probably the time when you’re going to be able to be most creative. So just go for it and be limitless. Make the most of your access to equipment, facilities, advice and support from your tutors. Just be different and new, there is no point in doing what others are doing.

studio@rossjenkins.com

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Model Arian Levanael

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Craig Wilson | From Anifest to Africa | Creative Update30

The film he worked on whilst there is called ‘Large Matter’ and is a six-minute piece based on his return to the continent. It focuses on his fascination with elephants. The title relates to the sheer size of the animals, and also the increase in poaching and the return of the ivory trade.

Craig said: “It was a gruelling and intense one-month course that took me through the process of creating a documentary film, from planning, pitching, raising funds, shooting it, editing it and selling it.”

Craig screened the film in December 2008 and received some very positive and promising feedback from the CEO of Wild Talk Africa, The Wildlife Film Academy.

He added: “This experience was very enjoyable and my time out in the field seemed to fly by, I am hoping to get a taste of the professional side of documentary filmaking.”

Craig is still in South Africa. He has recently completed a 1,500km road trip around the Western Cape in a 1970s VW Beetle. The aim of the road trip was to explore the area and improve his photography. He told us “this place is plagued with beauty”.

He is now looking for an opening in the documentary filmmaking sector, has a few proposals in the pipeline, and is currently in talks with a number of filmmakers and journalists.

For more information or to view some of Craig’s work, go to: www.muddpuppie.com www.flickr.com/photos/29629492@N07/www.virtual-safari.tv/video/840/large-matter/

After winning his category in Anifest, former UCA Farnham student Craig Wilson travelled to Africa to complete a documentary film making course at The Wildlife Film Academy in Capetown.

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Craig WilsonBA (Hons) AnimationGraduated 2008

Craig Wilson filming in Africa

This experience was very enjoyable and my time out in the field seems to fly by. I am hoping to get a taste of the professional side of documentary filmmaking

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Tim Butt | Olympic break-dancing | Creative Update 31

Farnham graduate hopes to dance his way to GOLDTim Butt a former Fine Art student from UCA Farnham has been leading his break-dancing team in competitions worldwide. Later this year, the group he founded will compete in Beijing in an event associated with the Olympics.

Tim (27) from Woking began dancing in his spare time whilst studying at the Farnham campus in 1999. He originally signed up for Graphic Design before switching to study Fine Art.

Tim still practices at the University up to three times a week and has plans underway to kick start a Farnham break-dance society.

He won the opportunity to go to Beijing after his break-dancing group called the Bad Taste Cru, won a national knock out tournament in 2008. Tim is hoping to do well in the competition in Beijing and says the convergence with the Olympics is an indication of its future as a sport. He said: “In the future I think Bboying will be as big as Skateboarding or BMX and I am sure one day it will become an official Olympic event.”

Tim also performs with a professional group Funkstylerz and has won contracts to dance in TV adverts for fitness label K Swiss, Marriott Hotels, and joined up with US Hip Hop chart toppers the Black Eyed Peas for a private UK function. He said: “Dance jobs are highly competitive and very well paid. It’s not unheard of to earn £50,000 for a few weeks work if it’s for a high profile TV campaign.”

“Seeing the effects of hard work and dedication helps young people to create a positive approach to life in general. It’s also such a positive forum for expression and the physical health benefits are there too. You can’t get good overnight but its great fun and the hard work really pays off. That’s a really important lesson for many young kids on the streets today,” he said.

He added: “In my experience culturally the UK looks down on those who are different. I think the average person is conditioned to be a certain way and so breaking the mould is a scary prospect. But creative pursuits are good for the soul, it’s always healthy to broaden your horizons and expectations of life.”

Bboying has grown in popularity in recent years with the increased popularity of Hip Hop music. It is growing in terms of numbers of those taking part and also the size and nature of competition. Globally, it has a huge following in the USA and in South Korea where many even describe it as the national sport.

www.funkstylerz.co.uk

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Tim Butt - Fine Art graduate turned break-dancer

Tim ButtBA (Hons) Fine ArtGraduated 2004

Laurence Wood | Kung Fu champion | Creative Update32

From martial arts to creative arts

Following the award of university title Laurence Wood, former Head of College at Canterbury, has been appointed dean of art design and architecture. Aside from his academic life Laurence is a Kung Fu senior instructor and former Seal Lung light-heavyweight champion of South London. Laurence (51) still trains and teaches Kung Fu, and has senior instructor status with the British Seal Lung Kung Fu Association with whom he achieved nine grades between 1986 and 1990 when he was awarded a black belt. In 1990, Laurence was crowned South London light-heavyweight champion before continuing his training to an advanced level. In 2007 Laurence became a fifth degree black belt making him one of the most senior instructors in the country.

Q & A with Laurence Wood: Where do you live? Eastling, Kent

Do you still fight competitively? No. Although they say you are never too old, competition fighting (full or semi-contact) requires considerable conditioning training that I don’t have time to do right now. I also couldn’t afford the time off work to recover from the strains and injuries!

Where do you train? I learned my Kung Fu when I lived in London, and trained at Seal Lung Kung Fu schools around West London and in Surrey. When I was first a black belt I also attended some cross-training with Lau Gar’s world champion Kevin Brewerton in Watford, and one exhausting day at the Nunez Kickboxing Academy in New York. That was a good while ago. I currently run a small class in my village at Eastling, and was running a class last year at UCA Canterbury too. I also train at home.

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Laurence Wood in training

Laurence WoodDean of art, design and architecture

Chris Pinnock | UCA Farnham film studio | Creative Update 33

How do you balance martial arts with creative arts?There are creative elements within most martial arts, or indeed within any sports if you are really engaged with them. Creative arts practice relies heavily on critical reflection and so does making progress in martial arts training. Once you have acquired a reasonable number of physical techniques and developed your body to deliver them, most development is then concentrated on the capacity of your mind and your ability to use it.

Using your mind embraces logic but also intuition. It is not just about notions of control of your mind. Some martial artists also talk about the knowing and the unknowing mind. Sometimes when fighting you try to lose any conscious control of your mind so that you can react faster. Some artists and designers go through a similar ritual of trying to empty their minds so that ideas flow more freely. There are rich fields of Chan and Zen thinking that many western and eastern artists tap into, as do many martial artists, in varying degrees. Are your students and staff careful not to upset you at university? I wish!

Has there ever been a Kung Fu society at UCA? Yes, there was a weekly evening class at Canterbury until last year, (since 1999!) but at the moment I have a new baby daughter so I can’t spare the time. My class in my village is the only one possible, though a number of UCA Canterbury students used to attend that class too.

UCA Farnham’s film studioThose of you who graduated some time ago might not be aware of the recent enhancements undergone by the film facilities at UCA Farnham.

Chris Pinnock, who manages the film studio, explains:

Let’s go back five or six years, to when I first arrived at what was then known as The Surrey Institute of Art and Design.

I had been asked by the cinematographer Freddie Francis to operate camera on his forthcoming masterclass, which turned out to be a huge success. Later that day Noski Deville (senior lecturer), along with Claire Barwell (course leader), asked me if I had any ideas about improving the studio and general camera and lighting facilities at Farnham.

Well, I confessed that apart from the obvious need of things like lighting correction filters, and a larger selection of lamp heads, there was a dire need for more course funding in this area, which I’m pleased to say, with the appointment of Paul Coyle as Executive Dean, and the continuous drive for university title by Professor Elaine Thomas and others, this has now been largely achieved.

We believe we can now offer students a much more comprehensive degree course, with the aid of improved mixed lighting sources from daylight HMI lamps to Fluorescent Kino flo banks. We also show our commitment to film in the form of super 16mm format cameras, and high definition digital cameras and post production facilities.

These will, I believe, send graduates out into the transparent and exciting world of filmmaking, with a clear image of their own futures.

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Chris Pinnock - technician tutor Film Production

Chris PinnockTechnician tutor in Film Production

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Using your mind embraces logic but also intuition

Julie Coakley | Blind glass artist | Creative Update34

Julie lost her sight after contracting meningococcal meningitis in January 2008. She spent 12 days connected to a life support machine at the Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester, and a subsequent two weeks in a special rehabilitation unit before returning to her studies just five weeks after her initial collapse.

Julie’s illness has left her completely blind, and unable to distinguish dark or light. She has total deafness on her right side and 30% deafness on her left. She also sustained nerve damage to both hands and suffers from chronic headaches.

Initially, doctors did not believe that they could save Julie’s life, and after she regained consciousness she had paralysis in much of her body and was told to expect to spend at least five years in a wheelchair unable to walk at all.

Julie said: “I felt invisible and alone in a vacuum, trying to comprehend what had happened to me: Was I really totally blind and profoundly deaf?”

After five months of rehabilitation Julie was able to walk unaided and now speaks without a slur. She has to take 84 tablets every week to maintain her recovery from meningitis and its subsequent ailments.

On returning to university some five weeks after her initial collapse, Julie continued her artwork. The Three Dimensional Arts department adapted machinery, and the art workshop area, to meet her disability requirements.

She was assisted in much of her work and devised a system of cutting glass using the undamaged second finger and thumb of her right hand to score and then snap the glass into small pieces.

Julie was originally scheduled to be showcasing her artwork in the New Designers Show in Islington in July 2008. She decided that she would attend the show despite her disability.

She said: “I started to adapt my designs for the work that I would be exhibiting at the Design Centre in Islington. I had to turn this negative situation around.”

Julie began working on a trilogy in March which consisted of three screens each measuring 2m x 0.5m. Each screen depicts a stage that she experienced in her initial weeks of blindness.

She explained: “The first screen ,‘Blind Fear’, incorporates dark reds, blacks, and shadowy greys. The second screen which is called ‘Blind Courage’ is made up of blues, turquoises, and greens: colours which come from my memories of beach holidays in which I felt rejuvenated. The last screen is made in the most beautiful array of spring flower colours and is called ‘Blind Love’.”

She added: “Every day as I work I am developing new methods that enable me to work with my disability. I truly feel that I am learning every day.”

Julie’s husband and two sons aged 18 and 19, supported her in her return to university. Her eldest son Patrick assisted her to collect her graduation certificate. She told us: “With the help and support from friends, tutors and family, I was able to complete my dream of not only graduating with a first but also making some impressive pieces of work.”

Since graduating Julie’s main focus has been rebuilding her life and learning how to live as a blind person. She has continued her work, making small items of tableware and is in the process of setting up a studio at home.

www.juliecoakley.com julie@juliecoakley.com

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Glass artist Julie Coakley caused a stir when she graduated in Three Dimensional Design last summer, and not just because she had achieved a first class degree.

Britain’s first blind glass artist creating home studio

Julie Coakley | Blind glass artist | Creative Update 35

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Julie Coakley - with her final year work in Three Dimensional Design

Julie CoakleyBA (Hons) Three Dimensional DesignGraduated 2008

Images by Henry Browne - henry@henrybrowne.com

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I felt invisible and alone in a vacuum, trying to comprehend what had happened to me: Was I really totally blind and profoundly deaf?

Tony Hart | Obituary | Creative Update36

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1925 - 2009Staff at the University for the Creative Arts were extremely saddened to learn of the passing of artist and TV personality Tony Hart earlier this year.

After serving in the Gurkha Rifles in the 1940s, Tony enrolled at the Maidstone College of Art in 1950 to complete a diploma in Art and Design.

In an interview with the University last year Tony said: “I was a young officer in the 1st Ghurka Rifles, part of the Indian Army, when India was granted independence. I was home on leave when I was summoned to the War Office to be told that the new Indian Government no longer required my services, as Indian officers were being appointed.

“I had planned for a career in the Indian Army, but now I had to make a new choice. I had always been good at art, and so I decided to explore the possibilities of earning a living as an artist. “My home was in Maidstone, and I was delighted when I was accepted as a student at the Maidstone College of Art. My specialised subject was drawn lettering, which is something that I have enjoyed ever since.

“I have so many happy memories of my days at the Maidstone College of Art, where I was well grounded in all the skills I needed to prepare me for a fifty-year career as an artist on television.”

Tony’s television break came in 1952 after meeting a BBC producer at a party and he was soon signed up as resident artist on the ‘Saturday Special’ programme.

Subsequent TV shows included Playbox (1954–59), ‘Titch and Quackers’, ‘Vision On’ (1964–77), ‘Take Hart’ (1978–84), ‘Hart Beat’ (1985–94) and ‘Smart Hart’ (1999–2000). From the 1970s, he often appeared alongside the animated Plasticine stop-motion character Morph. Professor Elaine Thomas, Vice-Chancellor at the University for the Creative Arts, said: “Along with my colleagues I was deeply saddened to learn of Tony Hart’s passing, and would like to offer my deepest sympathies to his family and friends.

“He made an enormous impact through his television work, encouraging several generations of young people to experiment with artistic pursuits. His varied and productive career helped demonstrate the value of the arts to everyone.” Tony is survived by his daughter Carolyn and two grandchildren.

Tony Hart in his studio - image courtesy of Roc Renals

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Tony Hart

Tony HartDiploma in Art and DesignGraduated 1950

Career enhancement | Postgraduate study | Creative Update 37

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Take your creative career to the next level

If you have not already undertaken postgraduate study, now is the ideal time to think about it. Retraining or upping your skills level can enhance your career prospects and open new doors, and gives you the opportunity to either take some time out from work, or study alongside your work.

Personal development and reflectionPostgraduate study helps you achieve mastery of a specialist area of knowledge and skills. You develop your intellectual, practical and personal skills while creating a unique response to problem solving through creative and conceptual thinking. While working on a postgraduate project you will have time to reflect on your work and develop it further than you ever have before.

Career enhancementEnrich your career prospects through postgraduate study, which will provide you with skills vital in the workplace. You have access to fellow students and staff – an international community of creative individuals - who will form a fantastic network for the future and you will form new links within your chosen industry.

Postgraduate study at UCAWe have a myriad of opportunities for postgraduate study at UCA, including taught – PgCert, PgDip, MA, MBA and Grad Dip - and research – MPhil, PhD – courses.

You will be part of a small group of focused postgraduate students, with one to one personal tuition from our specialist staff, many of whom are practicing artists and designers or are actively involved in research activities.

The postgraduate courses at each UCA campus are interdisciplinary; shared lectures enable you to discuss and challenge ideas within your chosen area of study as well as those of your peers.

In addition, you will have access to our world-leading research centres: the Anglo-Japanese Textile Centre at UCA Epsom, the Animation Research Centre, Crafts Study Centre and Centre for Sustainable Design at UCA Farnham, and the Hasselblad Centre for High Resolution Digital Imaging at UCA Rochester.

Jo Farnell, MA Fine Art

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Career enhancement | Postgraduate study | Creative Update38

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Case study: Sonny Cant, MA Interior Design, UCA Farnham

“I spent five years at UCA Farnham, in which time I completed my Bachelors and Masters degrees in Interior Design. I found both courses extremely beneficial and was supported by staff throughout.

The two year part-time MA allowed me to continue working and studying at the same time. I was able to teach on the BA course throughout my MA as a Graduate Teaching Associate (GTA) which is a real plus on my CV.

I found the freedom of open ended briefs a refreshing change, and the guidance of the tutors was just that: guidance, as opposed to enforcing a university style.

The MA course has strong industry links and organised numerous visits to exhibitions, lectures from industry professionals, trips abroad and a live project which was the design of a reception and exhibition space for the Institute of Mechanical Engineers, in London.

The process of design development, presentations and meetings was an eye opener and helped me to frame my MA in reality.

Skills acquired at UCA are highly sought after in industry and UCA graduates and work placement students make the transition into industry quickly and successfully. Since I joined Brinkworth Design we have taken on four UCA students for work placements and a UCA graduate as a junior designer.

If I had the chance to do it all again I would still choose UCA for its freedom, research and design opportunities, the student lifestyle and the skill set with which it equips graduates.”

Jane Dorner MA Contemporary Crafts

(Ceramics, Glass & Jewellery)

Career enhancement | Postgraduate study | Creative Update 39

Careers ServiceThe UCA Careers Service has provided jobs and placement information to students and graduates over many years. In an increasingly competitive and challenging recruitment market, access to creative arts opportunities has become ever more crucial to the successful career launch of our emerging new talent.

UCA Careers provides an online job and placement service where companies can advertise vacancies, often targeting precisely the kind of people needed in their industries.

Long-term alumni reading this newsletter that are well established in a creative industry may be in a position to offer a boost to current students and more recent graduates. In return, companies often benefit from the fresh outlook, dynamism and technical competence of UCA students and graduates.

Similarly, individual creative practitioners often gain useful reflective insight into their own working practices by becoming a mentor to a student or graduate.

If you wish to post details of a job vacancy or work placement opportunity, or you are willing to offer mentoring, please email: alumni@ucreative.ac.uk

Not established yet?UCA graduates can continue to make full use of the UCA Careers Service for up to three years following graduation. The careers team offers guidance by email, or can arrange personal one-to-one appointments.

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For further information, or to make an appointment call:

01622 620123 or 01252 892619 or email careers@ucreative.ac.uk

For more information or to book an open day visit:

www.ucreative.ac.uk/postgraduate e-mail enquiries@ucreative.ac.uk or call 01252 892883

So what can I study?Each of our campuses – UCA Canterbury, Epsom, Farnham, Maidstone and Rochester - offers a range of postgraduate courses in the following areas:

/ Advertising and branding

/ Animation, computer games and digital arts

/ Architecture and interior design

/ Crafts: jewellery, ceramics and glass

/ Design for theatre, performance and events

/ Fashion and textiles

/ Film and video

/ Fine art

/ Graphic design and illustration

/ Journalism

/ Marketing and management

/ Photography and media arts

/ Three dimensional & product design

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We hope you enjoyed this first edition of Creative Update.

Following our achievement of university title, we are keen to make the UCA Alumni Association as active as possible. We’d love to hear from you with any suggestions on what you’d like to get out of the alumni association so that we can create the kind of network that you want.

To send us your story ideas, comments on the first edition of this magazine, or any more general feedback please email:alumni@ucreative.ac.uk or call 01252 892736

We want to hear from you!

We are updating our alumni database so please email us at alumni@ucreative.ac.uk. Send us your up-to-date contact details and a bit about yourself. We are interested to hear what you are doing.

Update contact details