‘Music is the one and only magic the human race has.’
Big George Webley charismatically addressed an enthusiastic and captivated audience with a brief introduction of his tale to date, from being woken up to music as a six year old when music was seen as a ‘cultural necessity’, to leaving school at the age of 14 to slog up and down the motorway playing clublands nightmare, on to the evolution of disposable music in the 21st century.

Big George described how ‘luck’ has played an integral part of a career spanning across four decades with highlights such as West End Shows, appearing on the hit David Letterman show in the US, to composing the hugely popular soundtracks to shows such as 'Have I Got News for You' and 'The Office'.

Providing a number of hilarious quips, our guest speaker entertained the crowd with a range of stories and experiences from himself and a friend taking over a radio station by jamming the signal, to his successful tongue in cheek audition for a Bob Dylan sound-a-like which he was actually hosting, to actually being thrown out of the great Steven Spielberg’s office!

The issue of royalties for composed music was also addressed with reference to the Performing Rights Society and how royalties are generated per minute of airtime. Copyright of soundtracks was described as integral to getting paid for the music composers generate.

Bringing a sense of realism and caution to his presentation, Big George reiterated that music is not a fair business. Many times he has had to take ‘a hit’ in order to win contracts and sometimes even work for free. Composers and artists trying to break through in the music business should understand that smaller jobs may sometimes, through generating contacts and a slice of luck, lead to larger contracts and opportunities. Pay is not always guaranteed and when it is, may be minimal. Big George detailed how composers and musicians are sometimes at the mercy of larger producers, an example he further highlighted through an instance where he had no choice but to sign a contract in thirty seconds by a independent production executive, or not be paid at all!

Big George provided further sound advice on how to pitch for and win contracts. With an approach he aptly named, but which is unprintable, Big George explained how he had won many opportunities through an emphatic introduction and then sitting quietly, smiling and nodding, agreeing with everything he was told. His exact words were ’Never miss an opportunity to keep your mouth shut!’

He conveyed the importance of knowing whom you are pitching to (Researching the person(s) thoroughly) and being VERY positive about your work and your achievements. A key trick, he noted, is to record the closing credits of the shows and programmes you are interested in. Ascertain names and details of Researchers and Associate Producers and find them by whatever means necessary (within reason and legality!) in order to raise awareness of your skills and profile. Sometimes the best jobs are not necessarily those that pay the most handsomely.

‘Wearing money on your sleeve’ was another key marketing ploy as described by Big George. He spoke about the importance of always appearing to be busy and not making it blindingly obvious your calendar is free for the next few years with no assignments or contracts! The importance of branding yourself was further highlighted to create your own unique identity and perhaps niche in the music business.

Of course, at the end of a very entertaining evening a captivated audience asked a number of interesting and thought provoking questions which were answered in Big George’s unique and witty style.  Finishing off at the i-Bar the attendees, full of vigour and enthusiasm, networked and chatted for the rest of the evening.

Thank You
After a fascinating and thought provoking evening that was aimed at every strand of the creative industry, tic would like to thank Digital Central for sponsoring our speaker Big George Webley for this event and Big George for all the hard work he put into the delivery of one of our best and most entertaining Creative Networks events.

LOW COST Short Courses Currently Available i4 Skills courses at UCE Birmingham Technology Innovation Centre (tic) provide a low-cost way to realise the full potential of your creative talents.

All courses are delivered over three full days (9:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.), at Millennium Point in Birmingham City Centre.

For more information or to book a course phone 0121 331 6400 email course.enquiries@tic.ac.uk or visit www.i4skillsonline.com.

Out of Hours is a monthly networking and socialising event for people in the cultural sector based in Wolverhampton and the West Midlands where you can make new contacts, re-establish old ones and find out what’s happening in the region.

• The following are the confirmed speakers for event:
• Anthony Hughes from Digital Central
• Chris Thompson from DA Recordings
• Paul Birch from Revolver Records
• Clare Edwards from LSC & Gigbeth Festival
• Phil Savage from Major Key Studios

*Please note that Musicians Union will not be attending this event.

For more information about the programme and Out of Hours, contact plot@light-house.co.uk.

I'll stand corrected - but I don't believe ANY previous Digital Short has ever had a full classified DVD release as a SOLO title. Therefore, we are pleased to announce that Expresso is to be released on DVD with full BBFC Classification - and help a great charity at the same time!

Lastindependent.com are donating all of their production profits from Expresso to a great charity - and it even has a "Coffee" connection - so what could be better?

Macmillan Cancer Support holds a fund raising event each year (in September) called "The World's Biggest Coffee Morning", where thousands of people meet for coffee mornings all over the UK and enjoy themselves while raising millions of pounds for Cancer support. www.macmillan.org.uk

This year to support this event we want THOUSANDS of people to watch Expresso, and on the special DVD with foreword by Dame Judi Dench they can find out more about running their own coffee morning in aid of Macmillan.

TO HELP US CREATE A STIR OF OUR OWN AND CREATE ADVANCE INTEREST FOR COPIES OF THIS DVD PLEASE FORWARD THIS EMAIL TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW AND ASK THEM TO DO THE SAME.

The DVDs will be available soon; check out www.expressofilm.com or email DVD@Expressofilm.com and we will keep you posted about how to get your own DVD once they are available.

Film-makers from across the region have been invited to submit their latest work for inclusion in the Midlands’ Cinem@tic 2007 short film festival. Short-listed entries will be shown on the giant screen of the region’s only IMAX Cinema, in Birmingham this October.

Organised for the fifth year by the University of Central England’s Technology Innovation Centre (TIC), Cinem@tic is supported by Birmingham’s New Technology Institute (NTI) and the IMAX Cinema Birmingham.

Entries of no more than 10 minutes in length are sought in Cinem@tic’s drama, documentary, animation and experimental categories. A panel of local professional judges will make awards in each, as well as for the best student film and overall ‘most innovative film’. A ‘people’s choice’ award will also enable the festival’s audience to vote for their favourite film.

Anyone wishing to submit a film is asked to send preview copies, together with a completed registration form, on VHS or DVD format by Friday 24th August 2007. All submissions must be suitable for a general audience. Master copies of short-listed films must be supplied in miniDV, DVCAM, DVCPRo, Betacam SP or Digital Betacam format.

The Cinem@tic festival takes places on the evenings of 16th and 17th October in the IMAX Cinema at Birmingham’s Millennium Point. Entry is free and open to the public; however seats must be booked in advance. Anyone wishing to submit a film, or reserve seats, is asked to contact Nina Parmar on 0121 331 5400 or via email to cinem@tic.ac.uk or visit http://www.tic.ac.uk/cinematic.

On the 19th July 2007 we saw the biggest, brightest and best of Birmingham’s creative talent coming together for the 2007 Creative City Awards. Held at the ICC, this was a fantastic opportunity for creative businesses to showcase and be rewarded for the dedication, hard work and commitment they have put into the creative industry over the past year.

Form left to right: Dave Taylor, Sue Beardsmore, Paul Murphy, Ha Vu Smith, Michael Ford, Rob McLaughlin, Arun Bajaj, Paul Trigg, Steve Smith, Clive Dutton, Sarindar Singh Sahora, Mohamed Zahir, Ian Nield.

Hosted by TV presenter Mary Nightingale the event went on long into the night and provided an ideal opportunity to talk about the creative work that projects like Media Vault, Market Maker and the entire i-Media team are helping develop at the moment.

Celebrating the thriving creative cultural economy that Birmingham is becoming recognised for, the awards, which were developed and presented by Birmingham City Council, saw many of tic’s partners, collaborators and clients walk away with awards. From Big Button to Gas Street Works the creative companies that tic has assisted over the past few years were rewarded for the dedication, drive, business and creative skills they have demonstrated.

DA Recordings

The Outstanding Innovation Award is sponsored by Media Vault, an ERDF funded project run by UCE Birmingham's Technology Innovation Centre (tic). This year it was awarded to DA Recordings for outstanding technical innovation.

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