Above: Huw Marshall speaking at a similar event in Aberystwyth in November

RTS Wales Event Report:
25th September, Tiger Tiger, Cardiff.

Launched in 2012, S4C's £ million Digital Fund supports digital content, primarily in the Welsh language, which can generate a commercial return on investment.  The Welsh language channel's investments range from £1,000 to £150,000.
 

​Elin Morris (right), S4C's Commercial and Corporate Policy Director, and Huw Marshall (left), S4C's Digital Manager, explained how the fund operates to an enthusiastic audience of digital content producers and games developers eager to get funding for their ideas.

Morris said, "We want to see ambition - products with their roots in Wales but with the potential to go global".  Marshall explained that there is currently a paucity of Apps in the Welsh Language, but he enthused about the potential for co-operation with global partners such as Microsoft.  He said, "We're a bilingual nation and there is great potential to use Wales as a test bed to develop content for international audiences".

Last year S4C developed Enaid Coll (based on the popular game, Master Reboot) which was the first Welsh language version of a console game.  Co-funded with the Welsh Government, the concept has been picked up by CBBC who are currently talking to the Cardiff based indie, Cube Interactive, about a spin-off project.  Marshall said that S4C is looking for a console game linked to this year's centenary of the birth of Dylan Thomas, adding that, "the X-Box is big in Wales but we'll also port our content to PSP and Wii as well".

An additional presentation about the fund, in conjunction with RTS Wales, was held in Aberystwyth University on 6th November.