Blog ¶

Who are you and what do you do?

I am a Dj, Graphic Artist, Producer and most importantly food lover. I perform live with Hiphop artists. Recently I was djing for Big dada Artist Juice Aleem on his European tour. http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/album-juice-aleem-jerusalaam-come-big-dada-1765063.html

I also do a lot of art projects with young people. The last was a Hiphop music projects in a young offenders institute where we taught them dj skills, lyric writing and music production.

On the graphic art front I started a project with a new character that goes by the name of P.Chiddy, there will be more from him later this year. I also blog about these things: http://www.moyma.co.uk/site/

What was your route into this job?

My brother got me into Hiphop culture when we were really young. When we hit late teens he bought decks and I taught myself the how to mix and scratch….by ear. No YouTube! I did a lot of gigs at university while studying graphic design and played down the Student Union bar regularly.

They liked me so much I ended up being asked to play the main slot at the Leavers Ball. Goldie was playing in the other room and I played a mix of independent Hiphop and Funk. After uni I worked as a designer for a year and hated it. I was thankfully made redundant and from then I pursued a career in music. Some great things happened since then like winning a BBC New Talent Award and having the privilege of djing in a lot of different places worldwide.

What companies/ organisations are doing really interesting things at the moment?

http://www.qubeseven.com/, http://www.associatedminds.com/, http://www.arearecordings.com/

Which tools of the trade could you not do without?

I cant really live without my computer. I say that but it can cause me massive headaches so I would like to live without it sometimes.

What events might we catch you at?

I am in the studio day and night at the moment working on projects so I don't get a chance to go to anything. Its cool though I have some cool stuff being cooked up.

How do you keep up with what’s going on in your industry?

I read some blogs but their is so much going on so I don't try and keep up and just carry doing my own thing. Hugh Macleod said it best : 'Ignore Everyone.'

Who or what inspires your work?

Other people who have really learnt their craft whether that is painting, dancing, music. You can see when some has someone has got skill when their work has a clear voice.

Do you have any recommended resources for people trying to get into your industry?

Youtube has a lot but it can be a bit sporadic, www.djtechtools.com has some good stuff on djing and music production. Future music is a good resource as you get a free dvd with the mag which really good sounds, tutorials and interviews.

Describe your office/ workspace decor in five words…in short

'minimal abode of aural pleasure.'

What would you like to see more of in your industry?

More artists taking control of getting their work out their rather than waiting for 'the big A&R deal.' All the tools are there to get your stuff out. 

Performing arts ranges from acting, to dancing to live art projects, and there are of plenty of opportunities to get involved and find support for developing ideas in the Midlands.

• DanceXchange provides artistic support, education, performances and participation opportunities, and advocates for dance at all levels.

• Youth Dance England works towards creating opportunities for young people in dance, in and out of a school setting. They also offer advice, training, support and resources to both young people and those who have developed, or are thinking about developing, a career in dance.

• Dancescape is a development organisation for Solihull, Coventry and Warwickshire.

• The Stage provides industry news, events, advice, classifieds and audition listings

• Box of Frogs is an improv group held in Moseley every Tuesday night.

• The Traditional Arts Team have a range of social meets and workshops in performance, music and storytelling around the West Midlands.

• Sampad is a development agency for South Asian arts, they also offer work placements and opportunities for performance and artist development.

• Live Art Development Agency offers offers resources, professional development initiatives, and projects for the support and development of live art practices and critical discourses in the UK and internationally.

• Fierce Platinum Scheme supports live artists with a platform to present work in progress, and to develop individual learning plans, provide artist-led workshops and one to one mentoring from a practicing artist.

• Community Dance provides professional development with resources for funding and useful contacts within the dance industry.

• Motionhouse are based in Leamington Spa and offer professional development and training for dance artists and dance teachers, along with student placements.

(Image by Hey nadders)

The vast amount of sectors in the music industry means there are heaps of ways to find your way in. From promotional to creating the music, here are a few resources and organisations you might want to check out for news and opportunities.

• BBC Introducing supports unsigned, undiscovered and under the radar musicians.

• BBC Academy offer online courses and guides in radio, along with face to face courses.

• BBC Placements have plenty of opportunities for work experience in radio and sound departments.

• British Services have lists of radio stations in the UK, which can be browsed by County.

• Gig Guide have a decent list of recording studios around the West Midlands.

• Brumcast releases podcasts of Midlands underground music.

• Birmingham Jazz is a development agency, representing and promoting contemporary jazz in Birmingham.

• Supersonic Fest is run by Capsule, and each year has opportunities for volunteers.

• Rhubarb Radio is a station run from Digbeth, made up of over 100 volunteers, from presenting, production and web content to training new volunteers, this is a great way to gain experience, plus get involved in the community.

• Sampad is a development agency for South Asian arts, they also offer work placements and opportunities for artist development.

• Birmingham Live offer opportunites for budding music jounralists to write gig reviews.

• Punch Records offer workshops and seminars related to the music industry, along with internships at Punch.

For regular meetups and networking events in Birmingham, you may want to check out some of these;

• Birmingham Music Network works with the local community to stimulate growth, inspire, and share knowledge, through networking opportunities and events. They hold a regular networking event on the last Thursday of the month.

• Creative Networks brings together all parties involved in screen-based and sound media in the West Midlands, promoting both successful business development and collaboration.

• Moselele is a Moseley Ukelele group who meet twice a month.

Next week we'll be offering some resources for the performing arts.

(Image by zteamie)

In the realms of new media, there’s a whole load of digital sectors which may take your fancy, whether it be web design, programming, gaming or social media, there are plenty of opportunities to make the most of the current surge toward online and digital innovation.

• Ideas Tap are a creative network and funding body for emerging talent. They also provide information on jobs and opportunities in the creative industry.

• Skillset provide resources for interactive media and gaming, such as training, courses and funding opportunities.

For an industry which is heavily online, with a reputation for sitting behind a laptop, there are a surprising number of offline meetup groups, ranging from casual drinks to user groups with a focused agenda. Here some of the groups and organisations around the West Midlands;

• Multipack is a community of web developers and designers from across the West Midlands who meet every second Saturday of the month

• Digital Playground run fortnightly pub socials in Digbeth for those involved in the digital creative industries in Birmingham.

• Paradise Circus is a space for discussion amongst Birmingham Bloggers, who also hold monthly meetups at various pubs around the city.

• Tech Wednesday is a monthly tech meetup for like minded digital geeks in the Birmingham area.

• Flashmidlands is a Flash Platform User Group, focusing on the advancing techniques and features of Flash, Flex, AIR, and FMS platforms, as well as their supporting technologies.

• Birmingham Perl Mongers provide help and advice to Perl programmers from Birmingham, the Black Country and the West Midlands, and also hold tech meetings.

• Black Country Open Source Society promotes the benefits of Free Open Source Software and support its use in small business.

• fizzPOP is a hackspace for people with a wide range of skills and interests, bound by a common interest in tinkering with stuff to make something new.

• Game Central is the regional games network for the West Midlands, providing news on events.

• Hacks/ Hackers brings together journalists and hackers to help each find inspiration and think in new directions, bringing together potential collaborators for projects and new ventures.

• Midlands Macintosh User Group is a non-profit user group run for and by Apple fanatics in the West Midlands. They meet monthly with refreshments, a presentation and raffle.

• PHPWM meetings are free to attend, and open to anyone - but they're probably only of real interest to PHP programmer.

• Python West Midlands hold meetings for tutorials, group programming and social events.

• West Midlands Ruby User Group a new social/learning group for people in/around the West Midlands who are interested in everything Ruby and/or Rails.

• Birmingham Interation Design Association believes that the human condition is increasingly challenged by poor experiences, and so intends to improve this by advancing the discipline of Interaction Design.

• Birmingham Linux User Group hold monthly meetings, usually on the third Thursday of the month.

• Coventry Linux User Group meet twice a month for a technical and social meet up.

• Redditch and Bromsgrove Linux Users Group alternate thier monthly meetings between Redditch and Bromsgrove.

• Warwick University GNU/ Linux User Group is a special interest group within the University of Warwick Computing Society.

• Birmingham Bloggers is a space used to talk about web and social media things, plus they hold monthly bloggers meets

• Birmingham Social Media Cafe is a place for people interested in social media to gather, get acquainted, chat, plot, scheme, and share, which meets on the last Friday of the month.

There are also plenty of Social Media Cafe's further afield, if you can help build this list, please let us know of your local meet-up;

• Black Country Social Media Cafe 
• Coventry and Warwick Social Media Cafe
• Solihul Social Media Cafe - Lets be Social
• Lichfield Social Media Cafe
• Derbyshire Social Media Cafe
• Oxford Social Media Cafe
• London Social Media Cafe - The Tuttle Club
• Manchester Social Media Cafe
• Bristol Social Media Cafe
• Cardiff Social Media Cafe

For those who are not as familiar with the uses of social media, but want to get on board with online resources, or have an idea but want to know where to start implementing it, aside from the above, you may want to

• Social Media Surgery pops up at various locations around the West Midlands, as well as further afield, offering advice to community groups, charities and local active citizens.

• Hello Digital consists of digital media events in the Midlands enabling participants to explore the modern world and open doors to new possibilities.

• Digital Brum also provides listings of upcoming events which are relevant to the digital sectors in Birmingham.

Next week we'll be offering some resources for getting into the music and sound based industries.

(Image by fdecomite)

Who are you and what do you do?

Steven Walls, Creative Director, Tomorrow People. We are full service agency with offerings across both print and digital. Our client list is diverse from a selection of national brands to SME’s. Our aim is always to create well considered responses to client briefs with the end results delivering a positive ROI for our clients.

What was your route into this job?

I started Tomorrow People straight out of university. In retrospect probably not the easiest route in getting started but at the time I was just hungry to get going.

What companies/ organisations are doing really interesting things at the moment?

Looking locally It has to be Clusta and 383 Project. Both have shown fantastic growth and their client list says it all.

Which tools of the trade could you not do without?

The Adobe suite and Google Docs.

What events might we catch you at?

I was recently a judge on the Graphic Design panel for B-Hive 2011, which was immensely enjoyable. The TPM team will be at BYPY 2011 and I have recently been invited to join the committee for Creative Republic 2011. In addition there is the Birmingham Future initiative regarding Community Development that we will be getting involved in through 2011.

How do you keep up with what’s going on in your industry?

There are a number of blogs and websites I follow.

Have you got any tips for dealing with difficult clients?

Be understanding and constructive however having an open forum throughout the project with milestones, project aims and a clear sign off procedure should be enough to keep both agency and client happy.

What’s a recent novelty site/ app that’s been been circulated round the office?

The new MENSA app was thrown about the other week and the results are staying secret.

Who makes the tea at Tomorrow People?

Myself although the TP team will no doubt disagree.

Have you got any tips for potential employees?

Research your intended company thoroughly, be considered about the work you present and be yourself.

Photography might seem like a bit of a lonely job, but whether you work commercially or as an art/ creative photographer, there are a number of groups and projects to get involved in.

• 4am project is a collection of photos from around the world taken at 4am, and is open to contribution from absolutely anyone. There are a number of events and meetups which happen in the Midlands as part of the project as a nice way of bringing people together.

• Birmingham Photospace is a voluntary organisation dedicated to establishing a permanent space for photography in Birmingham. They also post updates on photographic exhibitions around the midlands.

• Birmingham Flickrmeets take place on the second Sunday of the month, all levels of photographers are invited to bring a camera and join in with the chosen theme. There is also a Black Country Flickrmeets which take place on the last Sunday of the month.

In terms of career development, be it building a portfolio, selling work or securing an exhibition, here are a few resources to get you started;

• Rhubarb Rhubarb is a development agency for fine art photographers, offering s number of stages dependant on what stage of your photographic career you’re at. They also host a number of events and workshops throughout the year.

• Model Mayhem is a database of models, photographers, make-up artists and stylists, which once you’ve filtered through the seedy profiles, is pretty useful for fashion photographers trying to build a portfolio. There’s plenty of people who will work in exchange for prints, meaning there’s lots of room for collaboration.

• Birmingham Live help and support up and coming gig photographers

• Handmade Birmingham run an independent arts market in Birmingham city centre every weekend, where you can hire a stall from £25 and sell your prints.

• We Are Birmingham sell local artwork and photography, whether you have framed prints or postcards, take your work to one of their review days to get stocked. They also have a gallery and exhibition space below the shop.

• Photography Competitions is a site dedicated to publising open photography competitions and contests from all over the world.

There are also plenty of national organisations and resources which aim to support photographers along with making clear your rights and where you stand with the law

• Association of Photographers is a membership based organisation, who give advice on copyright, one-to-one business advice, along with access to legal support. They also run an awards programme, which is open to both professionals and amateurs.

• British Institute of Professional Photography is an organisation devised to train, qualify and support professional photographers.

• Urban 75 outlines your legal rights as a photographer.

• I’m A Photographer Not A Terrorist helps photographers to understand where they stand with the law and how to deal with police when photographing in public places.

Next week we'll be offering a few resources for working the new media.

(Image by Savara)

(Left - Kirsty, Right - Adrienne. "It's a beautiful portrait drawn for us by a 9 year old boy in Worcester called Lucas")

Who are you and what do you do?

Frilly are Kirsty Hillyer and Adrienne Frances.  

We're a participatory arts partnership... but that doesn't exactly explain what we do. At the moment we have a number of projects on the go including:

• PiCL projects (Stoke's Creative Partnerships branch) - creating an indoor and an outdoor learning environment using recycled materials and enabling children and young people to design the space and create elements within it.
• A project involving multiple partners from Telford & Wrekin and Shropshire where we're working with young people to create artworks which will be exhibited in outdoor locations exploring identity and linking in to Arts Award.
• We're just coming to the end of a pilot project for Birmingham City Council signposting young people to creative activities they can get involved in across the city.
• We've just been selected as participatory artists to deliver a project in Bilston - hurray! Back on home turf!

Alongside project work, we're constantly chasing our tails to apply for more projects across the Midlands and beyond, as well as trying to fit in more strategic planning for the future to ensure the sustainability of our current practice. As we receive no core funding from either Arts Council or anywhere else it means we need to be super proactive in applying for work and we always have to be thinking very carefully of budgets and finances.

What was your route into this job?

Our routes were fairly different. I [Adrienne] come from an artist background - did a degree at NUCA in Visual Studies - began an MA but relocated back to the midlands before completing it. Throughout I pursued paid and voluntary work in community/participatory arts as that's where my heart has always been. Since coming back to the Midlands I've worked with a range of organisations including Wolverhampton Arts & Museums, Staffordshire Arts & Museums, Birmingham Children's Hospital, Newhampton Arts Centre and most recently Multistory where I met Kirsty.

Kirsty studied Art History in Warwick and shortly after graduating worked for The Public. When they went through a process of administration Kirsty was kept on as part of the new team which became Multistory and became Creative Learning Manager in charge of a range of large scale projects and programmes of work.

Last year we were made redundant from Multistory, along with the rest of the artist/delivery team. We were determined to continue with the work we'd been involved in, and knew we worked well together so created Frilly last April and have been reasonably busy ever since! 

What companies/ organisations are doing really interesting things at the moment?

We've a big soft spot for the Education team at Ikon - the work they've been doing with young people as part of their IYP programme is especially exciting and we can't wait to see the unveiling of their boat! (yes, we're being deliberately elusive here, but it's not our announcement to make!)

Shire Hall Gallery in Stafford continue to have interesting inspiring exhibitions in a relatively small space which seem to fall outside of a lot of people's radars - perhaps simply because of where they are? They have a fab little shop selling the work of independent makers as well.

We think Mudlark do interesting surprising curious things with technology.

The possible development of WMPAF could prove to be exciting and challenging for all involved!

Aside from this, we feel that the whole arts scene has been holding it's breath for the past few months (maybe even a year) because of all of the cuts etc. looming on the horizon. As a result, the sector has been adrift in a sea of uncertainty which has clearly impacted on the scale and scope of projects being delivered by other organisations.

Which tools of the trade could you not do without?

Macs, email, Canon DSLRs, brown gummed tape, the internet, scarf4art.co.uk, iphones, Berocca, coffee, Bubba the Vauxhall Agila, carbon paper, wire, PVA glue, Poundland...erm, the list goes on!

It's rare we duplicate the same project/ activity so materials etc. change every time - but we have a passion for using recycled materials (hence scarf4art.co.uk) and using things that are already at the venue/ location - eg. we transformed a classroom in Stoke but instead of throwing old furniture away we converted it into shiny new things using a variety of methods including covering/ butchering/ repurposing etc.

We DEFINITELY couldn't cope without our iphones, email, computers and coffee. And Berocca!

(without wanting to refer to him as a 'tool' we also couldn't do without Lee Allen of - who is on hand (because of sharing an office with us) most of the time to reality-check our crazy ideas, point us in the direction of shiny exciting things, document some of our projects when we're at a loose end, and when all else fails, his DIY building skills are second to none!)

What events might we catch you at?

As we're interested primarily in participatory work, we spotted this festival happening over in America: figmentproject.org - and think it looks intriguing and potentially exciting - although this year we may have to give it a miss but make it a priority to see (or take part in!) it the following year.

Kirsty has a fondness for all things ATP - particularly because of her links with Clutter Magazine.

Adrienne is in Yorkshire regularly to visit YSP.co.uk and their amazing exhibitions and craft workshops... but also likes to rummage through other people's tat so can be found at car boot sales, antique fairs, and all things DIY/crafty eg. Bust Craftacular London, and she's SUPEREXCITED about the Renegade Craft Fair coming to the UK for the first time this autumn!

How do you keep up with what’s going on in your industry?

Some obvious places, some less obvious:

• Arts Council Jobs and News email lists
• a subscription to a-n
• being proactive in becoming involved in blossoming networks such as Creative Remedies, Praxis, EMPAF and the future potential WMPAF
• other email lists include Turning Point West Midlands
• Staffordshire Arts and Museums Opportunities bulletin
• Warwickshire's Arts and Museums bulletin
• ENYAN bulletins
• Voluntary Arts Network bulletins
• Mailout bulletins
• CiB - obviously!
• and then other word of mouth information on blogs, Twitter, Facebook etc.

What qualities should new employees bring to the team?

Curiosity, tenacity, endless energy, ambition, dedication, an aptitude and willingness to learn new things on the hoof, to be keen to find solutions not problems.

Probably other skills too, but really the above list is pretty intimidating! Eek!

What would you like to see more of in/around your local area?

Locally, we're lucky enough to be based in Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter which is an amazing neighbourhood which is often overlooked by visitors to the city centre. We've got great cafes, (newly opened!) coffee shops, and a really great community vibe where you really get to know your neighbours.

More broadly, we'd really like there to be more open access spaces for artists to experiment and take risks. We don't feel like Birmingham has that kind of facility currently. Adrienne has lived in both Norwich and Bilbao (Spain) both of which have good examples of this kind of thing:

Bilbaoarte - "It provides young creators with the means and infrastructures required to develop their artistic ideas, such as the availability of studio spaces, engraving and silkscreening workshops, digital imaging, sculpture, photography, a film set, documentation centre and projection rooms."

Norwichartscentre.co.uk - Norwich Arts Centre is situated right in the centre of Norwich and so is very easily accessible to all visitors.  Alongside their exhibitions and shows, they have darkrooms which anyone can access via membership and a small fee.  They also offer courses for adult CPD.

Whilst the Mac now has it's artist pass scheme as well as their amazing array of courses on offer, it's location is that bit further afield.  It doesn't feel like there's anywhere else central to Birmingham for artists to go and experiment and collaborate with media or technique.

Who makes the tea at Frilly?

We don't drink tea! We have a filter coffee machine which Kirsty normally pops on when she gets in (usually at the crazy'o'clock time of 7.30am!) and then when we have visitors we make tea if necessary. :)

Who or what inspires your work?

We love being inspired as often as possible. Notcot.org does an AMAZING job of showing us interesting/ inspiring/ curious things on a daily basis, and has lead to us stumbling across the work of lots of exciting artists and designers.

Recently we stumbled across the work of Yeondoo Jung. Their work is SO MUCH FUN and completely embodies our belief that the work of children can be both playful and taken seriously as an artform. Their transformations of children's drawings are intriguing, surprising and inspiring - but wouldn't exist without the childish scribble they begin with.

We reallyreally love Polarbear - we both spent 2 years working with him and early years kids, and we're continually impressed with the work he produces. We especially love the fact that he's awesome at working with little kids (without any snobbery or condescension over doing so), and at the same time is really genuinely COOL!

Whilst we agree on the above two, we also have slightly differing personal tastes.

Kirsty really loves FriendsWithYou - she enjoys their lighthearted combination of fun and spirituality!

Adrienne really loves the DIY/crafty scene - particularly when people do 'unexpected' things with traditional techniques - eg. Gelitin's giant rabbit or knitted vulvas.

Adrienne also really likes combining craft with technology, but not just for the sake of it - some of the work at last year's Lovebytes show was amazing, but some made her just go 'meh'. She reallyreally hates people trying to shoehorn things into a digital arena just for the sake of funding. Or to try to give relevance to something that isn't relevant.

- Take a look at Frilly on Jobplot.

Who are you and what do you do?

I am 23-year-old currently working in the field of graphic design. I like producing design that is simple, appropriate and which communicates directly to its audience.

What was your route into this job?

I have been employed as a graphic designer since graduating from university in 2008. I was keen to get a job within the industry and start learning the processes of working with clients and other designers to meet briefs. The aesthetics of my work is what acquired me my current position, but I have since then developed my design philosophy and refined the work that I produce.

What companies/ organisations are doing really interesting things at  the moment?

Moving Brands - Their approach to branding is very unique and is always results in interesting and effective solutions. The way in which
their work is displayed - telling a story and showing the in-depth, time-consuming process that is taken is a great way of showing the value of branding.
Studio Newwork - They produce a publication biannually called Newwork Magazine. The magazine consists of the latest works from a wide range of artists and creators in the fields of fashion, fine art, design, culture, and politics, all pushing the boundaries of their disciplines.

Which tools of the trade could you not do without?

A pen and a clean sheet of paper. I think no matter how small or mundane the task, it is essential to scribble down initial ideas and layouts. I believe it saves time and engages you to think about what you are doing.
My book collection. Although I like to draw my inspiration from things other than design, I thrive on having knowledge of design and designers; this then makes my book collection extensive and ever growing.

What events might we catch you at?

The Typographic Circle, Glug and any other talks/lectures that discuss the importance, effects and future of design.

How do you keep up with what’s going on in your industry?

Twitter is a great way of keeping up to date with what’s going on and is a great tool if used correctly. I also use various blogs such as Tumblr which I use as a personal journal of all things that inspire and interest me.

What sort of clients do you like to work with?

A client that listens and understands that being a graphic designer is a profession. We the designers are presented with a problem that requires a solution, the best clients are the ones who trust our expertise and knowledge.

Are there any emerging trends that you think people should keep an eye on?

I have noticed a negative trend in logos and packaging over the last few years, which is over simplifying the original design making it less distinctive. Logotypes are constantly being changed from serif to sans serif - the short-lived Gap re-brand is a good example. Packaging designs seem to be trying to follow in the footsteps of Turner Duckworth and simplifying packaging, but it worked for Coca-Cola. I am all for simplicity in design, but not when it weakens it.

What would you like to see more of in your industry?

Designers who don’t just make things look pretty but actually create meaningful and conceptual design.

Describe your office/ workspace decor in five words...

Clean, tidy, minimal, comfy, books.

Ashley's website: www.ashleyobrien.co.uk

- Take a look at Ashley O'Brien on Jobplot.

While you're busy building up a portfolio of beautiful designs and artwork, it's just as useful to make people aware of what you're doing both on and offline.

Aside from a web portfolio, keeping a blog with all your fresh pieces or work in progress, along with a collection of work by others that inspire you, might help give people an idea of the sort of work you do or are interested in getting involved with.

There are also a few regular meet-ups, events and organisations for creative folk in the midlands to socialise with other people in the industry;

• Digital Playground is a Friday fortnightly pub social in Digbeth, inviting professionals and graduates in the digital creative industries to network over a casual beer.

• Multipack is a community of web developers and designers from across the West Midlands who meet every second Saturday of the month

• Likemind is organised by the Supercool team, and is an informal coffee morning which meets on the third Friday of every month. It’s free, with wi-fi and open to anyone.

• Dr Sketchy’s Anti Art School takes places in cities across the UK, challenging traditional life drawing classes by using burlesque models. The Birmingham event is held every two months at The Victoria.

• Birmingham Zine Festival features a selection of artwork from artists connected to the alternative press, along with a wide range of self-published books, comics and magazines.

• Stitches and Hos is a knitting group held at Hare & Hounds on the last Tuesday of the month.

• Extra Special People is an associate membership programme for anyone who would benefit from engaging with a dynamic, ambitious, artist-led environment, with a range of opportunities for support, networking and career development.

• An Endless Supply is a collaborative publishing project, which encompasses curated exhibitions, events and performance. You can get involved by emailing them with proposals, ideas or contributions.

• The Lombard Method is an independently run studio and project space, with an environment for mutual artistic development, learning and networking.

• VIVID provides a resource for artists and curators in the form of commissions, residencies, exhibitions, publications, research, talks and touring activities.

• Coventry Artspace offers studio space with shared facilities, with membership options.

You might also want to broaden your skills and try something new at an evening or part time course;

• mac have a range of courses and workshops, from drawing and painting to jewellery design, with courses at beginner level its a great excuse to meet new people and try something different.

• Botanical Gardens have a few drawing, painting and photography courses.

• BOA @ millennium point is opening to 6th formers in 2011, specialising in digital, creative and performing arts.

Meanwhile, if you have artwork to sell or showcase it's worth getting in touch with these people;

• Handmade Birmgham hold a market in Birmingham city centre, where you can showcase and sell your work by hiring a stall for the day.

• We Are Birmingham own an independent shop selling the work of Birmingham based artists, designers and photographers. They also have a gallery/ exhibition space below the shop.

Next week we'll be offering some resources to help you find work and opportunities in the photography industry.

(Image by geishaboy500)

Who are you and what do you do?

Lee Kemp Managing Director of Fullrange. We're a corporate film production company. Mostly we take business problems and turn them into well-produced, measurable films. Our clients include lots of small to medium local companies and a range of global brands. We were recently named as one of the top 50 corporate production companies in the UK.

What was your route into this job?

I started this company with 3 friends having worked together at another company. In March 2008 I took over from the previous MD.

What companies/ organisations are doing really interesting things at the moment?

I tend to like the big stuff so Cadbury's recent collaboration with yahoo and google to measure offline results from online marketing was superb. It will take a long time to filter down to most companies but it demonstrates that anything can be measured if you apply the right resources. The Old Spice campaign is a particular favourite of mine. I like it as a particular example of a good idea, well executed, that flies in the face of the general truth that social media is a waste of time.

Which tools of the trade could you not do without?

Google. From gmail, to maps, to calendar. My company runs on it and the one instance of downtime we've had in the past two years has been more than made up for by getting it for free or the tiny cost of google enterprise. A surprising amount of conversation in the office goes on via gchat too. Omnifocus is my task management tool of choice. I've just got into time tracking with paymo.biz. I started this because I was making one of my staff do it so I said i'd have a go and its had the peculiar effect of making me dramatically more efficient. It divides my day into tasks and one of my task labels is 'arsing around on the internet'. I can see how much time i've been doing that and get annoyed at myself, so I do less of it now. If i'm recording how I spend my time I find that I want to use it much more effectively. Finally I've just got Default Folder X. It makes saving and finding files on a Mac several orders of magnitude easier. Its such a tiny thing to complain about in the Mac ecosphere but the way Macs offer options for save locations is really dumb. This programme gets around that. In our Monday morning team meetings one item on the agenda is always App of the Week and one of our staff members is a former Apple employee who picks something cool for us to play with.

What events might we catch you at?

I don't tend to frequent too many 'creative networking' events because Birmingham doesn't have any good ones. I could genuinely count the number of useful creative networking events i've been to on the fingers of one hand shortly after I'd pulled that hand out of a blender. They're also not places I'm likely to find my clients. In terms of business networking I've found the Chamber of Commerce to be very useful and the Chamber Executive Club within that has picqued my interest. The Institute of Directors' Young Directors Forum have run some interesting events recently but I get the impression that the IoD don't take people seriously until they're 60. The creative industries needs to look outside itself and go to where the clients are. Birmingham Forward and Birmingham Future provide good local networking, particularly now that they're opening up beyond the professional services.

How do you keep up with what’s going on in your industry?

Twitter's pretty good for showing me new, interesting films but its quite scattershot. Then we have a culture in the office of sharing interesting stuff we find amongst each other which builds on this. I get two updates from the FT every morning as well as Business Desk West Midlands, then when I get into work I browse my RSS feed (Helvetica Reader over google's reader) which has about 20 blogs I'm interested in.

Where do you tend to look for new team members?

We advertise on our blog, Screen West Midlands, the Producers' Forum and on Twitter. This has worked for the last three or four and as a manager, i'm fiercely proud of how well we recruit so I can say that this simple solution works for us.

What would you like to see more of in your industry?

Measured results and solutions to briefs that solve communication problems. Many companies just pander to clients and provide what the client thinks they want.

Who’s in charge of your blog/twitter updates at Fullrange?

I tend to write the blog but my colleague Rachel occasionally adds stuff. Individually all 7 of us have our own personal twitter accounts. People can tweet whatever the hell they like but everyone is mature enough to accept that there's an irrevocable link between somebody who works for a small company and that company. Our main corporate account is @thefrontdoor which tweets about people who visit us, listing who they are what they do and a link to their website. We use it to give our clients visibility. We have two more but they've sort of died recently due to the strength of individual's personal accounts.

Can you give an example of a creative/ memorable portfolio you’ve seen?

I very much admire the work of 383 Project in Birmingham, their growth has been extraordinary and their client portfolio seems to go from strength to strength. I'm also very impressed by Substrakt who've found a niche within architecture that they're consolidating very well.

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