A hi-tech digital TV studio has been built at a Black Country college to help students break into the film industry. The £100,000 new studio and Apple Mac suite is at Halesowen College’s Coombs Wood campus.
The college is also hoping to be able to rent the studio out to industry and says that it has already attracted interest from Channel 4. Halesowen College media lecturer Stuart McConnell said: “The two camera digital TV studio give students a whole range of amazing opportunities.
“Halesowen is one of very few colleges across the country to have this equipment; usually, students have to wait until they go on to university before they have access to such resources.”
He added: “In time, we hope to be able to hire out the facilities for industry-linked projects including film and PR work, and already have a director who worked on the Hollyoaks TV series interested in the studio.
“These are exciting times.”
Students who will be using the studio include First Diploma in Media Studies, National Diploma in Media and TV and National Diploma in Media with interactive studies.
Mr McConnell added: “Given the studio and its location, we are now able to cover all aspects of animation and TV production.”
The industry-standard digital TV studio was installed at a cost of £100,000.
TV and film director Sarah Walker is an ex-student at Halesowen College who is among professionals returning to work with students at the studio.
She said: “The students get a real idea of what it is like to work within the industry, whether it be the controlled British TV circuit or what it is like to be an independent film maker just going out with your friends and creating interesting pieces of work.
“How to work in a group and communicate with your peers is another skill they work on as, although a director drives the main vision of a project, filmmaking is very much a collaborative medium.
“Students also learn that creativity is not bound by expense and that a really great idea can go a long way.”
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