August 2017

Archive for August, 2017

Hiring: Manga / comic book artists for a 10 week young people’s project

Knowle West Media Centre is running a 10 week manga / comic creation course for young people this Autumn (from 13th September) and we’re looking for a dynamic and talented artist/facilitator to lead the course.

The course will cover storytelling, design, digital and traditional comic styles, and creating a one-sheet comic ready for launch at South Bristol Gaming & Anime Expo in November.

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Ideally you’ll have experience of youth work and designing creative courses for young people, alongside having passion and experience for comic book creation. Sessions will take place on Wednesdays from 4.30 – 7.30pm, working with young creatives aged 10-19.

We will be contacting and arranging interviews with applicants via phone/skype on a rolling basis, so if this is something you’re interested in doing please get in touch with enquiries@kwmc.org.uk by midday on 4th September and include up to 150 words explaining your experience, why you want to be involved in the project and provide links to your work.

The fee for the course facilitator is £600. An enhanced DBS check will also be required.

Good luck!

Change Creators: XLR Collective Rehearsal

This week the group sat down and talked through what we have all been doing the past week. We also had a small brief about how life coaching will work and our commitment to it. The group also did a value excise where each member wrote down 1. what they value about themselves/ what they think they are good at and 2. what they value about the person sitting next to them to the right. So we each went round and said out loud what we had written and gave the other person the sticky note to keep. The idea was to get us to pin point what we feel we are good at and to think how we can use that more for this project. It was also a nice reminder to each other that we all appreciate the talents that each individual in the group has.

With the other half of the session the group recorded draft versions of our songs so we have references for when we record them properly. Also the two members of the group who produce sat down and shared their work with the vocalists and got some ideas going ready to record on Friday.

Written by Olivia Sully-Karlis

Follow us at:
www.hackaheckle.org.uk
www.facebook.com/xlrmusicuk/
@xlrmusicuk @change_creators
#xlrcollective
Insta: @xlrmusicuk

A Musical End to The Summer

The third and final instalment to our 2017 summer programme for young people launched with a bang – literally!

After an adventurous Animal Photography course that took us to Bristol Zoo Gardens and the activities of Tech on the Table, featuring a walking, talking robot courtesy of At-Bristol, the Hack a Musical Instrument workshop included making instruments from scratch, composing songs, and a live performance to mark the launch of Luke Jerram’s Play Me, I’m Yours project. Over the course of two days, young people and adults came together to enjoy the unifying power of music.

Day One

With excitement high, we welcomed a band of young people ready to bring some tunes to the surrounding area…Project Manager Dot began the session and introduced those who would be volunteering and lending a musical hand. After a few “icebreakers” it was time to start building instruments. The activity saw rainmakers made of tubes with rice and pasta inside, maracas and even a full drum set put together with plastic tubes and old vinyl records.

The day got even more lively when Adam Amer from Chango World came to deliver an upbeat drumming session with the group. Chango World aim to deliver engaging, memorable and accessible musical experiences to a diverse range of people and their time with us didn’t disappoint.

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: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

Day Two

Having laid a solid foundation of music on Day One, the second day took things a step further with an introduction to song composition. The young people created their own recordings using the music production app Logic.

Decorating the set for the Play Me I’m Yours launch was next, which included hanging decorated vinyls around the outdoor piano and setting up their proudly self-made instruments in preparation to play to parents, KWMC staff and a host of other keen listeners.

Showtime came just after 4pm when BBC Points West came along to film the first pianists using the piano. The young people performed alongside pianist Nick Bignall – and were featured on the 6pm news programme!

In just two days the young people successfully built instruments, created songs and even performed live. All of the young people who gave feedback said they would “definitely recommend KWMC to a friend”. We hope to see them – and you! – next term when our after-school sessions start up again.

Visit the Jump Studios page for more details.

Tech on the Table is a smash hit

“Everyone is just ready to try something new; they are curious and motived”

Our Tech on the Table summer activities launched on 8th August with another group of excited 10-16 year olds ready to embark on a creative journey. Two days almost didn’t seem enough for a course that included building robots, interacting with At-Bristol’s fully functioning NAO robot and the Minecraft sessions that continue to be a hit. With some help from our friends at Digimakers from the University of Bristol as well as a handful of other friendly volunteers, it was finally tech time.

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: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

: Image: Dean Ayotte

Day One

If you walked into KWMC on 8th August you’d have felt the energy of over 25 young people ready to tackle tech like few of them had ever done before! Meeting in the building’s main studio space, KWMC’s Dot Baker explained what was going to be happening over the two days.

Harry Gee, who currently works on robot education products with the help of Bristol Robotics Lab, led the Pi robot building session. Those who attended learned how to assemble, code and activate the machine, before seeing it in action. Other sessions included gaming and digital design and our great team of young volunteers had the young people fully engaged.

“They’re keen and they are up for it!” – Harry Gee

“We really enjoyed today. Everyone is just ready to try something new, they are curious and motived” – The Digimakers student team from University of Bristol

Day Two

Our second day started off with a bang as Beth Cotterell from At-Bristol came to visit, bringing her friend Nell, the NAO robot that so many people have been talking about. As well as all of the young people taking part in the Summer Programme, staff and volunteers came along to Beth’s session too: Nell the artificial intellectual brought young and older visitors together to share a memorable experience. It was a s stand-out moment mixed with a feel-good one: we love a good win-win situation!

Building on the excitement of the NAO robot, the other sessions kept up the high pace of the day. The young people, who had begun to form bonds with each other, got stuck in to digital illustration. At the end of the day it was great to see so many parents staying around to talk to the staff and young people alike about the day, the buzz from the morning undoubtedly still in the air.

Interested in trying coding, robotics or other tech activities? Our after-school groups start back after the summer holidays on 11th September; visit the Jump Studios page or contact us on 0117 903 0444 or social media to find out more!

Change Creators: XLR Collective Gig Prep

In this week’s session, we reviewed our original pieces that we performed at Bristol Harbour Festival to see what we could make even better. We set up [a] stage in the main space [at KWMC] so every little detail was exposed.

Beth’s “Not About That” had slight adjustments to the second half of the chorus, making it more soulful with a variation with the vocals that the guitar follows. We kept the edgy verses which amplify the message of the song.

Our song “Lady” took a few steps down tuning-wise so Millie could really achieve her range without busting her voice. Down-tuning actually gives a more mysterious vibe as well as keeping the jazz influences in the melodies.

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Courtney smashed “Take Back the Night”. Only a few adjustments were made to make this punch more hard, mostly to do with adding more drums!

We also began working on a new song together around Milo’s hip hop idea. Milo started to demonstrate his rap and an improvised jam blossomed into a song. Beth got in with some backup vocals which help add depth to the song. We now need to confirm the structure to get this one rolling.

We also ran [through] the details of the upcoming At-Bristol gig on Sunday 6th August: we still had to source performers and practice our own sets as we decided to split into more individual performances. The band songs will come [in] useful later on, whether that’s for recording or performing at another gig together – tonight was all about getting us on the same page musically and we’re happy to say that we’re getting there!

Written by Molly Perryman

Follow us at:
www.hackaheckle.org.uk
www.facebook.com/xlrmusicuk/
@xlrmusicuk @change_creators
#xlrcollective
Instagram: @xlrmusicuk

Play Me, I’m Yours Knowle West

This summer a world-famous street pianos project will return to the streets of Bristol – and Knowle West will be one of the main locations!

Play Me, I’m Yours is a musical trail of 18 individually-decorated pianos which are installed in public spaces across a city for everyone to play and enjoy. The project, from Bristol-based artist Luke Jerram, first came to Bristol in 2009 and 2017 marks its 10^th year. It has seen over 1700 pianos played in over 55 cities across the globe. Each piano bears the simple instruction Play Me, I’m Yours.

From Thursday 17th August – Thursday 7th September pianos will be at locations across Bristol including Broadmead, the Harbourside, The Mall at Cribbs Causeway – and Knowle West Media Centre.

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: Image Dean Ayotte

: Exterior of Knowle West Media Centre: outdoor piano and bike racks

The Knowle West piano will be decorated by young people taking part in our summer holiday activities. They will be working with emerging artists Jasmine Thompson and Nick Ogri (pictured above) to create the designs and make them a reality. The piano will be unveiled ready for the first performance on Thursday 17^th August at 3.30pm. Join us for a series of performances and free tea and cake!

The piano will then be available to play for the rest of the summer holiday during our opening hours. Drop in between 9am-7pm Monday to Thursday and 9am-5pm on Fridays.

We’re looking forward to hearing Knowle West make music and we’d love to see your photos and videos of the piano, whether you’re playing a classical concerto, writing own composition, freestyling on the keys or doing something else entirely!

If you’re sharing photos and video on social media please tag @knowlewestmedia and use the hashtag #bristolstreetpianos For more information about the project visit www.bristolstreetpianos.co.uk

We look forward to hearing your music – and maybe uncovering a piano superstar in the making…

Change Creators: XLR Collective Coaching Session

This week the group had a refreshing session about coaching. We had some guests sitting in with us whilst we did some activities that involved learning how to actively listen, filling out the wheel of life and learning how to respond in conversation to empower the other person.

It was really interesting and highlighted a lot how important it is to to allow space whilst conversing with someone and to focus less on your response and more on how your response can empower the person – rather than just telling them what to do and force opinions onto them. It’s about allowing the space for people to make their own decisions and you being a support.

Towards the end of the session the group went over our new structure for our campaign. The campaign is beginning to take a different shape and our roles will shift again so we spoke about what we want from the campaign in our last seven leadership sessions and how to take over the social media and decision making. [We] all agreed the focus for the next few weeks is the recording and producing tracks for our EP.

Written by Olivia Sully-Karlis

Follow us at:
www.hackaheckle.org.uk
www.facebook.com/xlrmusicuk/
@xlrmusicuk @change_creators
#xlrcollective
Insta: @xlrmusicuk

Jump Studios’ Animal Photography Course

“It inspired my son to be a wildlife cameraman!”

Photography and wildlife unite this summer in Jump Studios’ latest course for young people. To kick off the 2017 Summer Programme at Knowle West Media Centre we took a trip to Bristol Zoo Gardens with fifteen 10 to 16 year olds from the local area. Some young people were introduced to photography for the first time, while others had the chance to enhance their existing skills in creating, editing and exhibiting original digital photography. With majestic and exotic animals as their subjects, the group embarked on a challenging and inspiring two-day journey…

Day 1: Bristol Zoo

Day 1 started off with the young people arriving at Bristol Zoo and having a DSLR camera introduction from photographer George Hieron. The first lesson of the day was being briefed on how to adjust light settings for the dark caves they would encounter as well as the brighter outside landscapes. Sitting in pairs around a tall tree just inside the zoo’s gates, the group took turns in changing the settings before embarking on their excursion.

Although anyone with a camera phone can capture an image, during the session the young people were able move beyond point-and-shoot picture taking and understand the different capabilities of a DSLR camera (regardless of the level of skill they had with it beforehand.) The group concentrated on composition, focus and lighting to help them produce quality photographs – and having so many different animals and environments to capture on camera helped them test out lots of different skills!

With six hours of exploring and picture taking under their belts, the group finished the first day with plenty of material for the second part of the course which would include exhibiting their work.

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Day 2: Creating the Exhibition

Day 2 kicked off the editing portion of the course. The group discussed how to display the images and the theme they wanted to use. We welcomed Letty from Arnolfini who gave the group advice about how to creatively and strategically produce an exhibition. This part of the day saw the young people incredibly excited, bouncing ideas back and forth about how best to show off their work. In the end they decided to display their images from the least unusual animal to the most unusual. Although the exhibited pictures are unedited originals, the group also had the chance to learn photo editing skills which can be transferred to a range of different contexts.

The ultimate satisfaction undoubtedly came when the group’s parents came in to see their photographs hanging proudly in the KWMC training room; a feel-good ending to two constructive days leaving one parent to say it was “fantastic! It inspired my son to be a wildlife cameraman!”

Interested in trying photography yourself? Our after-school groups start back after the summer holidays on 11th September; visit the Jump Studios page or contact us on 0117 903 0444 or social media to find out more!

Change Creators: Hack a Heckle Campaign Launch

On 22nd July the Hack A Heckle campaign officially launched at Bristol’s Harbour Festival! Catch up with Collective blogger Olivia to find out more:

We were very excited and anticipated this moment for months. Beforehand we were organising, practising and refining our music for our 1 hour set on the Bristol Plays Music stage and couldn’t wait to share it with our community!

On the day of the launch the group had a meeting and organised our plan of action for the day. We began by surveying people in our immediate environment around the stage. We were asking the passing public specific gender harassment questions and had an amazing time connecting to people who were sharing their stories.

Our merchandise for the day was a great help: we had cupcakes thanks to Cakeshop, which were a great way to catch people’s eye and to thank them for stopping to chat with us! We also gave out leaflets which gave them a valuable point of access to follow us on our social media pages, visit our website and tell others to share their stories through our online survey!

It was amazing to speak to so many people and gain so much more insight into their experiences. The group was really inspired by the stories shared and were really thrilled to connect to so many people who care about gender harassment and want to see it stop.

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Around 3pm we began our 1 hour set on Bristol Plays Music stage. We had some amazing advice from Eva Lazarus beforehand about song arrangements for our set. This was incredibly helpful as she gave us ideas on how we want our set to flow from start to finish.

We wanted to begin our show with a powerful introduction to our music so we chose our song ‘Lady’ to be first followed by a cover. We then wanted our acoustic slower piece ‘Hide‘ to be mid-set: this is our debut single and is available to download. This was followed by U + Ur Hand and then our speech and electronic track ‘Emily’.

We had a guest spoken word artist Bex Dudley who spoke some powerful words, and this was followed by some more of our music, then ended with a powerful cover of ‘NO’ by Meghan Trainor. This left our audience with a memorable last message and it tied our set together with a high energy outro. The group learnt a lot that day and it was an amazing launch and experience for future events!

Overall we got more than 80 surveys completed which was an amazing number to reach and we would like to thank every single person for stopping and playing such an integral part of raising awareness of this issue! It was amazing to share our music with you and to get the ball rolling! We have so much more planned: our next performance will be At-Bristol on Sunday 6th August from 1-5 pm where we will be performing, speaking and having special guests perform during our 4-hour set.

So keep up to date with our movements on our social media and website and get your friends and family involved by filling in our survey or sharing your specific story.

Written by Olivia Sully-Karlis

www.hackaheckle.org.uk
Facebook: Hack A Heckle
Twitter: @hackaheckle
Instragam: @hackaheckle

Contact Us

Knowle West Media Centre
Leinster Avenue
Knowle West
Bristol
BS4 1NL
+44 (0) 117 903 0444
enquiries@kwmc.org.uk

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