Presentation by Amanda Rees, S4C’s Creative Content Director
2017
Kenton Allen takes a look back at TV in 2017
January
I can barely remember what I had for breakfast, so thinking back to January 2017 is a little challenging. From memory, I think we were all discussing whether Jay Hunt was going to host The Great British Bake Off.
Certainly, we were all discussing those Jay Hunt rumours, which must have been about the vacant position of Bake Off chair.
In other news, we were all braced for the Great British Drama Boom and hoping that Left Bank Pictures wouldn’t get any more commissions from SVoD services that hadn’t yet been invented.
The Crown and Sherlock among RTS Craft & Design Awards nominations
The awards recognise the huge variety of skills involved in programme production from editing to lighting, and costume design to digital effects.
BBC dramas lead the way in nominations. Taboo, which stars Tom Hardy is up for six awards, whilst Broken and Three Girls received four nominations each.
Three Girls director Philippa Lowthorpe received a nomination in the Director - Drama category alongside Euros Lyn for Damilola, Our Loved Boy and Julian Jarrold for The Witnesses for the Prosecution, all for BBC One.
RTS Wales Annual Lecture 2017
(Leighton Andrews listening to a question from Geraint Talfan Davies)
"Facebook should be regulated like a utility", former Welsh Government Minister Leighton Andrews told RTS members in his lecture on the 19th October, presented by Bethan Jenkins AM, Chair of Culture, Welsh Language and Communications Committee.
A Transgender Story: RTS Wales takes a look at representation in the media
The documentary, which was made by Swansea-based indie Telesgop, aired in May on BBC One in Wales and a month later in England.
It continues the story told by 2016 doc Swansea Sparkle: A Transgender Story about the biggest transgender event in Wales. This followed three people from the transgender community – including Llyr Jones – in the lead-up to the event.
RTS Wales at the National Eisteddfod 2017
The panel for Ffermio: Aled Elidyr, Richard Rees, Emyr Roberts, Aled Jones, Ffion Rees & Heledd Hardy
Following its success last year, RTS Wales again partnered with a number of Wales-based film and TV organisations in August to hold events at ‘Sinemaes’, a pop-up cinema held at the National Eisteddfod in Bodedern, Anglesey.
Gareth Jones, in Conversation with Euryn Ogwen
"I don't ever write a screen-play until I know the film is going to be made" said accomplished author and director, Gareth Jones, adding that, "we were determined to make the D-Trilogy and we weren't going to wait for a decision by somebody else".
Inside Sky's Election Campaign: Covering the Election with Esme Wren
As part of the RTS Inside Sky’s Election Campaign series, Sky’s Head of Politics, Specialist and Business Journalism Esme Wren, who is overseeing the broadcaster's election coverage, reveals her plans for covering the surprise General Election.
For the broadcaster, getting outside of London is key to covering the campaign, after lessons learned from the Brexit and 2015 General Election coverage where the opinion polls were out of touch with the final result.
"Seeing Is Believing, the Challenge of Fake News"
Speaking at the ffresh Student Film Festival in Cardiff on the 3rd May, he described the challenges facing broadcasters and content providers, quoting BBC Journalist Clive Myrie, recently interviewed at an RTS Wales event, who commented that, "you have to be forthright and call out what might be a lie".
'#swn10' Screening
Toby Cameron, Llinos Griffin-Williams, John Rostron, and Huw Stephens
(Photos: On Par Productions, used with permission)
The 9th of February saw RTS Wales screen the much anticipated two-part documentary #swn10, an S4C commission produced by Green Bay Media and On Par Productions, celebrating the beloved multi-venue Cardiff music festival SWN - the creation of BBC Radio 1 DJ Huw Stephens and promoter John Rostron.