A 2-day intensive workshop aimed at creative businesses and individuals who are based in the Greater Manchester region working in the Games and interactive entertainment subsector.
About this event
Do you work in the Games Industry? Are you looking for a way to get your vision noticed and take the next step? Look no further as this March Creative UK: Manchester present a brand new workshop designed to take you through Brand Development, Publisher Pitching and Talent Management facilitated by course leader Gina Jackson OBE and a selection of industry experts.
The Games Lab: Secrets from the Insiders is an unmissable intensive workshop aimed for anyone based in the Greater Manchester Region and working in the Games and interactive subsector looking for professional insight into this fast-paced industry. Participants will gain industry knowledge that covers building a sustainable business model and the demands and challenges facing content makers in the current climate. Gina and her guests will be giving expert advice on building a sales pipeline, business planning, how to add staff to your business and how to pitch and present your story and brand.
The workshop programme will comprise of 5 eye-opening sections that will be covered over 2 days:
- Case Study with Huey Games
- Decision Making with Gina Jackson
- Recruitment and Culture with Sarah Brewer
- Pitching and presenting with Stephen Hey
- Publisher Panel
When and Where:
The in-person workshop will be taking place over 2 full days on Wednesday 15th and Thursday 16th March 2023 at Chamber Space 2nd Floor, Elliot House, 151 Deansgate, Manchester M3 3WD
Catering: Refreshments and lunch will be provided on both days.
About the Course Leader:
Dr Gina Jackson OBE, SKILLfull has over 30 years’ experience working in the UK video games sector in both games development and games publishing roles covering console, PC and mobile. She is an experienced trainer for games development and publishing, has worked with Accelerators across the UK and UK funding organisations.
About the guest Games experts:
Rob Hewson, Huey Games. Veteran Lead Designer and Game Director turned CEO & Creative Director of developer/publisher Huey Games who combines work for hire with original IP creation and kickstarter-funded projects.
Sarah Brewer, Fresh Seed. Sarah Brewer has spent years in Organisation Design and Development, Operations Management and HR. Having mostly worked in SMEs, she is familiar with the challenges and opportunities that this brings. She doesn’t speak in corporate terms and feels there’s a complete disconnect between HR practices and people management. Fresh Seed are people and culture specialists to the creative sector.
Stephen Hey, Hey Stephen Hey. Stephen’s career spans PR, advertising account management, product marketing management and latterly the role of Marketing Director at EA studio, Chillingo. Now, he is plugging his marketing experience into Indie developers and publishers as HeyStephenHey – a marketing consultancy dedicated to video games.
Joshua Garrity, Secret Mode. Josh is an experienced games Scout having worked for indie publishers Team 17, Fireshine and now Sumo Group’s Secret Mode. Josh has signed titles like Core Keeper, Gord and Shadows of Doubt
Eligibility Criteria:
Due to funding restrictions, to be eligible to apply, you must be:
- Based or trading in Greater Manchester
- A registered SME or freelancer with the ability to produce your companies house registration number or UTR (Unique Trading Reference) number
- Employ fewer than 250 staff
- Turning over less than €50m
How to Join:
Register your interest in attending this workshop by signing up via the form below and the team will be in touch with you directly to confirm your place. Places are limited and therefore participants must be able to commit to both dates outlined above. The deadline for registrations is on Monday 13th March at 3pm. Places on this workshop will be allocated on a first come, first served basis (subject to eligibility criteria).
About the Programme
This Intensive workshop is brought to you by Creative UK: Manchester – a programme designed to provide specialist support to SME’s, sole traders and start-ups across the whole creative sector who are based in the Greater Manchester region with the aim of supporting the businesses at every stage of their journey. The programme is fully funded through the European Regional Development Fund and the programme is delivered in partnership with Manchester Growth Hub and Northern Powerhouse.
If you have any queries about this workshop, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with Nadia.Adofo@wearecreative.uk
