This year’s Celtic Media Festival: The International Summit of Sound and Screen, is less than a month away. Running from 4 – 6 June in Cardiff and supported by Creative Wales, S4C and BBC Cymru Wales, attendees have an incredible programme of events to look forward to.
Day 1’s highlights include the opening ceremony of Celtic Media Festival 2024, where the first Torc Awards for Excellence of the event will be given out which will be followed by a Welcome to Wales in the Senedd showcasing Cardiff’s beautiful Cardiff Bay.
Delegates will also have the chance to Join the BBC's friendly guides for an exclusive behind-the- scenes award-winning tour of BBC Central Square, BBC Cymru Wales’s new broadcast hub in the centre of Cardiff. It is one of the largest and most technologically advanced BBC newsrooms, as well as one of the most sustainable broadcast centres in the world, packed with cutting-edge technology including augmented reality, virtual reality and robotic cameras. As a live and working broadcast centre every visit will be totally unique.
Day 2 will have a blockbuster panel chaired by Rhuanedd Richards (Director of BBC Cymru Wales): Cops and Robbers – Making a Killing in Crime Drama. This will feature panellists Peter McKenna and David Mcloughlin - writer and producer of the hit Irish Crime Drama Kin. Whether focusing on the cops or the criminals, there will always be viewers ready to glue themselves to the next gripping crime drama, no matter the language or territory. But what does it take to stand out in a market that can be oversaturated with similar shows? Guests will hear from those who have had success in cutting through the noise, and making sure for them, crime pays.
Kicking off the panel discussions of the day, with what is sure to be a humorous discussion, Day 2 will also have It’s The Way We Tell ‘Em – The Celtic Sense of Humour (chaired by Interim CEO of S4C, Sioned Wiliam and featuring panellists Simon Nicholls, Leila Navabi, Ian Brown, Marie Macdonald and Lana Pheutan) which is sure to be as informative as it is hilarious, given the level of talent on stage. When it comes to comedy, the Celtic nations and regions have enjoyed National and International success over the years. Is it luck, or do we have a unique comic voice? Are people laughing with us, or at us?
Continuing the criminally good lineup on Day 2 is Is it Time to Kill True Crime? with Meic Parry, Vicky Lee, and Sorcha Nic Eochagáin. As a genre, true crime goes from strength to strength. From podcasts to video streaming hits, audiences, particularly women, can’t get enough. What’s our obsession and why are the Celtic nations so good at it? Celtic Media Festival 2024 brings together a panel of experts to explore the genre, what makes it work, what the pitfalls are and what the future looks like.
Other panels and discussions to look out for include Livelihoods and language: Making your living, where you’re living sponsored by the British Irish Council, Is yours a Mentally Healthy Production?, Where are the Kids? and The Future is Female – The Rise of Women’s Sports Coverage sponsored by Coimisiún na Meán.
Day 3 sees famed Broadcaster Kaye Adams interview Kevin Bakhurst, the Director-General of RTÉ, as he comes to the close of a challenging first year at the helm of Ireland's national broadcaster. From Ofcom to Raidió Teilifís Éireann, delegates will hear from one of the most experienced and influential leaders in public media. Kevin also held a range of senior editorial positions at the BBC, including Controller, BBC News Channel and Deputy Head, BBC Newsroom from 2005. That’s not the only great interview of the day. BBC radio presenter, Huw Stephens will be In Conversation with Dafydd Iwan, a singer-songwriter whose music is now synonymous with Welsh football and the Red Wall. This free to the public event will see Huw take Dafydd on a journey through music, politics and of course, football.
Further highlights on Day 3 include AI in Media Production: For better or worse, Making History - Bringing the Past to Life with Archive (In Partnership with the Wales Broadcast Archive) and A Greener Future. Presenting at this year’s Award ceremonies for the Torc Awards for Excellence are presenters Catrin Heledd and Ifan Jones Evans (winner of Celtic Media Festival 2023 Presenter of the Year Torc Award).
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