Our programme

Four creative sectors

Our enterprise programme spans four creative sectors, which together include the major part of the creative industries. When you’re planning your school’s enterprise education week or other activity, you can mix and match Sure Futures modules from all four sectors. The modules have been designed to run stand-alone, in combination (to produce a performance or product that involves elements from different sectors, for instance) and/or in collaboration with other schools. We can also customise them to meet special requirements. The end result will be a creative enterprise programme that’s right for your school.

Music

The music industry is changing fast. The big record labels aren’t the powerhouses they used to be, and new technology, the internet and sites such as MySpace mean that musicians can have much more control of the creative process. This in turn allows innovation to thrive. And the industry isn’t just about performance – there’s a host of technical, management and production roles.

The modules we offer will bring the full range of the music-making process alive, from creation to production, and will deliver a tangible end product in the form of a CD or music video. Our hands-on workshops cover topics such as music technology, songwriting, performance, creating a band and setting up a music label.

Broadcast media

By participating in our radio, film and TV activities, young people will get a rich insight into some of the UK’s most dynamic, fastest growing industries. Whether they run a radio station for a day, make a short film or use cutting-edge digital media to create an interactive piece for the web, young people will gain knowledge, experience and transferable skills valued by employers and in further and higher education.

Your students will work as a team alongside experienced professionals, using industry-standard equipment to create a high-quality video, podcast or radio broadcast. Along the way they’ll learn about every element of the production process. Meeting deadlines, juggling the budget, generating creative ideas and going on location to record interviews will help them recognise and develop a range of workrelated skills and experience, from problem-solving and decision-making to leadership, presentation,
numeracy and finance.

Production and stage

Tight deadlines, budgets, difficult decisions and tough negotiations are all familiar to anyone working in production for stage or screen. Whether you’re organising a national tour, a local performance, an international festival or a Hollywood blockbuster, you’ll need to plan your budget, secure funding, assemble and motivate your team, divide tasks, market your product, manage health and safety, and monitor your progress. On top of all that, you need to create a high-quality artistic product and manage that difficult sponsor who wants everything yesterday.

Our experienced practitioners will support your students as they devise and manage a performance production – completely new or linked into an existing event – from beginning to end.

Visual arts

The contemporary visual arts together form a dynamic, multidisciplined arena that mixes design, installation, photography, film and fine art skills. Students taking these modules will see imaginative ideas developed into real products that captivate audiences. Just as freelance artists must respond to a brief, write detailed proposals, manage costs, collaborate with others and promote themselves and their work, so students will have the opportunity to realise ambitious ideas on a strict budget.

Working alongside specialist creative practitioners, they will – for example – explore art linked to industry, study artists’ career paths or learn how to plan an exhibition from scratch. In activities such as the Carnival Spectacular students work to a brief and a deadline, applying visual arts practice to creating an exciting event. On every visual arts module, they will gain essential practical and creative thinking skills.