RTS London

RTS London reflect on this year's RTS Cambridge Convention

Reed Hastings and Kirsty Wark (Credit: RTS/Richard Kendal)

The late-September event was hosted by the University of Westminster, and chaired by media producer and consultant Aradhna Tayal. It featured Bloomberg media reporter Joe Mayes, London Centre Chair Phil Barnes and James Cordell, a London committee member and first-time attendee at the convention.

The panel noted that one of the key themes throughout was the rise of streaming and whether the already established subscription video on demand (SVoD) companies – with more set to enter the market – will dominate the UK broadcast industry.

Eleven teams battled it out at RTS London's annual summer quiz

Eleven teams faced five tough rounds of questions, including a music segment in which the host covered theme tunes from hit shows such as Friends, Mock the Week and Absolutely Fabulous.

“Shame of Thrones” bagged the prize for best team name but “Free Bag” secured first place in the quiz, which included teams from BBC Studios and the Film & Television Charity.

“It was great to see such a great turn out for our second RTS London Quiz and we were pleased to see a great time being had by all,” said RTS London Chair Dan Cherowbrier.

RTS London hear how to make the most out of music

Alex Jones and Matt Baker in The One Show (Credit: BBC/Ray Burmiston)
Currently, he argued, this doesn’t always happen – with composers and programme-makers often failing to sing from the same song sheet.
 
Hexel recalled a quote from Rachel Portman, who won an Oscar for her score for the 1996 movie version of Jane Austen’s Emma. “Many good directors are bad at giving good direction to composers,” she said.
 

Ticket to timetravel: How Timewasters became a comedy hit

Samson Kayo (Horace), Kadiff Kirwan (Jason), Daniel Lawrence Taylor (Nick) and Adelayo Adedayo (Lauren) in Timewasters (Credit: ITV)

Timewasters has charmed critics and attracted healthy audiences with its mix of jazz, time travel and good jokes. Notably, it also has an all-black leading cast but, according to its creator, Daniel Lawrence Taylor, it is, “first and foremost”, a comedy.

RTS London get to the basics of creating a successful podcast

Josh Adley, head of business development at audio producer Wisebuddah, was in conversation with The Media Podcast presenter Olly Mann, and explained the attraction of podcasts.
 
“You can listen to podcasts anywhere via your mobile phone – during your commute, while driving, in the gym, while cooking. Podcasts are tailor-made for mobility and multitasking, which make them really relevant to how people live their lives today,” he said.
 

Students wow industry pros at Channel 4 for the London Student Awards

Julia Hardy, Muki Kulhan and the crew of Chopsticks!! (Credit: Paul Hampartsoumian)

“The standard of entries for 2019 was very high – several jurors said that you could ‘broadcast that tomorrow’ about many of the films we watched,”  said Aradhna Tayal, the Chair of the awards.

“Many seized the opportunity to use their work as a means of challenging and addressing real-life, taboo topics,” she added. “The jurors were in agreement that the entries this year demonstrated the ways in which art can be both important and meaningful.”  

Technology trends are discussed at the Consumer Electronic Show

Digital producer Muki Kulhan chaired the event, which featured three managing directors: Ken Blakeslee (WebMobility); Mark Harrison, (the Digital Production Partnership) and Nigel Walley (media consultancy Decipher).

Blakeslee discussed products featured in his online review of the show, whatcaughtmyeye.com. “I’ve chosen enabling technology that offers consumers new ways of doing things,” he said, pointing to the number of companies mixing established technologies and assembling new tech for  different sectors.