Experimental Performance at The Vaults

Wednesday 9 December
6pm onwards

Graft present an evening of experimental performance from three emerging UK artists.

This exciting event is to launch ARC, a new monthly event in which regional curators will be invited to present new and existing works in The Vaults’ unique space.

Alongside new commissions by Institution of Meaningful Interaction; Mark Baldwin; and Sarah Ruff, graft present an experimental open mic zone for new performance, and performance surgeries for emergent practitioners.

For further details, please email arc.birmingham@googlemail.com

Tindal Street Press look for Publicity and Marketing Assistant

Our friends at Tindal Street Press are looking for a Publicity and Marketing Assistant:

An exciting opportunity to join Birmingham’s prize-winning independent fiction publisher and work within a small energetic team three days per week or equivalent.

We seek an organised graduate with promotional flair and a passion for reading, who must be enthusiastic about marketing literary fiction.
Previous PR, marketing or publishing experience desirable. £14,000 pro rata 0.6

The successful candidate will focus on marketing and publicity work and gain a broad understanding of the publishing industry.
Tasks will include:

Assisting in creating imaginative marketing and publicity campaigns for our books

Writing marketing copy, sales material and press releases under direction

Pursuing press coverage by phone and by email

Building network of publicity and trade contacts; organising mail-outs

Working closely with authors to generate ideas; accompanying them to events, festivals, etc.

Creating and managing marketing and publicity schedules and ensuring deadlines are met

Significant responsibility for editing website: writing news articles, event promos, updating books and author pages, generating feature ideas, synchronising new content with social networking sites like facebook and twitter

Updating sales material for sales reps at our London-based sales and distribution force

Assessing manuscripts alongside editors – for commercial appeal and potential marketing ideas

Managing submissions alongside editors

Representing Tindal Street Press at launches, book events, trade fairs, etc

There will be opportunities for training and development, and to develop some editorial experience with manuscripts. There is potential for the role to grow over time.

Please apply with CV and letter of application to Alan Mahar, Publishing Director at editorial@tindalstreet.co.uk or Tindal Street Press, 217 Custard Factory, Gibb Street, Birmingham B9 4AA.

Closing date: 30 October 2009.
Interviews are planned to take place on 12 November.
To start mid-December or beginning of January.

BYPY is looking for a Creative Agency

Something interesting that has come into our inbox…

‘Birmingham Young Professional of the Year (BYPY) is looking for a creative agency to work on the design for the event’s 10th anniversary next year.

We are looking for an agency that can put together BYPY 2010’s overall design concept, as well as the tickets, programmes, winners’ certificates and other incidentals.

Ideally the successful team will also be able to create the opening sequence, which will be broadcast on big screens at the event, and take responsibility for producing video content for use on the night and on the BYPY website.

We would like a little help with our BYPY website too! It’s a tall order but if you want to be part of one of the premier events on the Birmingham calendar and you can fulfil all or any of these requirements, then your business could benefit from exposure to hundreds of the city’s professionals.

There will be an opportunity for the chosen business to appoint a representative to the BYPY Committee, becoming more involved with Birmingham Future and working with the team on all aspects of the event. If you would like further information then please contact the Birmingham Future office. The deadline for submission is 2nd October 2009.’

Final Call for 7 Youth Dancers

Recently into our mailbox is this ‘great opportunity for 7 youth dancers to become part of Nutkhut’s BOLLYWOOD STEPS by Simmy Gupta as part of Town Hall’s 175th birthday celebrations on 9th and 10th October in Victoria Square, Birmingham.’ Details below:

YOUTH DANCE AUDITION

SUNDAY 6TH SEPTEMBER, TOWN HALL BIRMINGHAM, 12NOON

We are looking for 7 experienced youth dancers (aged between 18 – 25) to perform alongside the professional cast in ‘BOLLYWOOD STEPS’. You will be part of the production, spectacularly positioned on the peristyle of Town Hall (in between the columns along the outside of the building) reflecting the performance on stage.

Time Commitment

Rehearsals

Sunday 13th September 10am – 5pm

Saturday 26th AND Sunday 27th September 10am – 5pm

All youth dancers are required for (times to be confirmed):
Dress & Technical Rehearsal
Thursday 8th October

Performances
Friday 9th October (1 performance, evening)
Saturday 10th October (2 performances, afternoon and evening)

If you would like further information please email sabrakhan@hotmail.com or call Sabra on 07946 382489

PUNCH Internship

Our friends at Punch have a great opportunity for a marketing intern…here are the details:

We are looking for an intern to help us with our day to day marketing activities, in particular working the social and digital media networks – you will be busy blogging, updating our social networking groups and utilising our local and national press contacts.

In reward we will train you with the marketing tools you need to succeed, provide you with hands on experience and pay your travel expenses. We will ensure you get the very best out of your internship and will welcome you into our friendly, busy yet fun office based in the Custard Factory in Birmingham.

You’ll get to assist with putting together the marketing strategy for our projects, creating on and off-line publicity materials, building our distribution networks and online presence and getting involved in our PR campaigns.

During your time with us you will pick up new skills, experience what it’s like to organise a packed programme of events and of course get insider information and valuable knowledge to kick start your career in arts and music marketing.

We expect the internship to last between 3 and 12 months (negotiable).

Skill Requirements:

Excellent attention to detail

Excellent written and spoken English

A flair for writing and editing copy

Good knowledge and understanding of Windows packages,

Experience of blogs, social networking sites and promotion websites

Excellent communication skills

Willingness to take on a wide range of tasks

Keen interest in Black, Asian and urban music and art

Ability to work as part of a small, focused and busy team

To apply so the position please send your CV and a supporting statement outlining:

1) why you think you would be suitable for the position and

2)what you hope to gain from your time with Punch

to cynthia@punch-record.co.uk

Sound it Out’s Shine Programme

Sound It Out a social development agency in the West Midlands that uses music as a mechanism for change:

“We were recently awarded £0.5million by the Department for Children, Schools and Families through the Youth Sector Development Fund to deliver a city wide music programme with young people on Fridays and Saturdays until March 2011.

We are looking to employ:

1 Full Time Programme Officer

1 Full Time Office and Finance Assistant

5 Outreach Officers

1 External Evaluator

“

For more info see there website www.sounditout.co.uk or to see the advert click here.

Peach Placement with the Reading Agency

The Cultural Leadership Programme has a new intitative for ‘Peach Placements’ with nine organisations open to emerging and mid-career leaders to encourage “‘learning through doing’, with the expectation that the transition from shadowing to delivering will be a quick one. Each placement will be guided and supported by some of the most respected leaders and organisations in the industry. As part of a cohort of nine placements, there is also the opportunity to network through a series of development and training sessions, enabling wider peer to peer support and learning.”

The Reading Agency, London is one of the organisations and Miranda McKearney OBE, Director of The Reading Agency was a speaker for the Clore Fellows earlier this month.

Some of you may know that our very own Helga is a Clore fellow and for those who don’t know the Clore Leadership Programme does the following:

“The programme is an initiative designed to help develop the skills, knowledge, networks and experience of potential leaders in the cultural sector. We aim to include within the programme the whole range of creative and cultural fields, including the visual and performing arts, film and digital media, heritage, museums, libraries and archives, creative industries, and cultural administration and policy. The programme has been created in response to the difficulties many organisations have experienced in recruiting and retaining leaders at many different levels. At present we have some outstanding cultural leaders in the UK, but they tend to emerge by accident rather than by design. Our programme aims to put some of the “design” in place, so that over time we can create a new generation of potential leaders.”

The Reading Agency are looking for a Development Associate and if you think that could be you click here for the placement description, closing date 4th September 2009.

Fierce! Festival seeks a new leader

“Fierce! can claim to be the Hay-on-Wye of performance art, the Glastonbury of experimental theatre” Daily Telegraph

“If this is Birmingham, I can’t wait to move back” Audience Member

As it enters its second decade of operation, Fierce! Festival enters a new era.

Following the departure to LIFT of its founder and artistic director, Mark Ball, Fierce! Festival seeks a new artistic director to build on the success of this award winning brand, its internationally acclaimed festival and ground breaking development work.

Are you adept at discovering the world’s best artists and presenting their work in unusual places and spaces? Are you an inspiring, enterprising and experienced artistic and cultural leader, with the vision, commitment and international outlook to change the landscape of the arts in the West Midlands? Do you want to build and grow both audience and partnerships that will ensure a bright future for the festival and its year round activity? Then this could be the role for you.

For full details and a job pack please e-mail helga@fierceearth.com or download the pdf here.

Closing date for submissions Monday 8 June at midnight

Fierce! Festival Limited is supported by:

Special offer on desk space at Fierce

Are you a free-lance creative in need of inspiring office space?

We have a desk space for rent at the Fierce Earth office – for a bargain £200 a month (plus VAT) we can offer you:

A dedicated desk space with pedestal cabinet (with filing cabinet if required) – no hot desking here!

1 x computer with access to internet (subject to confidentiality agreement)

PLUS Free wi-fi access for a lap top

Complimentary tea and coffee

Heat, light and utilities

Meeting room facilities (by arrangement)

Phone land line available (by arrangement and for an extra fee)

Excellent City Centre location – with pay car park nearby

Opportunity to work in a creative environment and pick our brains for free

Fantastic networking opportunities and great views of the City!

Desk available from 1 September: 6 month licence agreement with 1 months’ notice either way. First month payable in advance.

If you are interested please contact Helga at helga@fierceearth.com or call 0121 244 8080 to come and see the space.

The Drum are calling for submissions

SPRING SEASON 2009 PROGRAMME
February – April 2009

The Drum Arts Centre is keen to hear from any artists / companies with products that may be suitable and are available for our spring season. The Drum is the longest running Black Arts centre in the UK, please note the programme remit is to programme work that is created by African, Asian and Caribbean artists

All submissions/proposals need to be received by Friday 6th September to be considered. Proposals must include the following supporting information:

· Name, contact details of company or artist(s)

· Biographic details of artist(s) and company

· Synopsis of the piece / gig and details of how it links to the programme

· Running Time

· High quality colour and, if available, black + white images (min 300 dpi at 10cm square, ideally a file size of 1MB or over. )

· Press clippings of previous shows/events (if available)

· Tour Schedule (if applicable)

· Any product, CDs, books, tapes, web links etc

· Any special information to be included

This is not a formal application process, so please contact us with any concerns or queries. Please address all submissions / proposals to Pippa Frith, Programme Coordinator at p.frith@the-drum.org.uk or send them to The Drum, 144 Potters Lane , Aston, Birmingham , B6 4UU Tel: 0121 333 2425

Please note: The Drum is dedicated to developing and promoting contemporary art and culture of British African, Asian and Caribbean communities. The Drum’s mission is to lead and facilitate the development, celebration, performance and exhibition of the diversity of Black arts and cultures for the benefit of all.