Kevin Spacey to deliver the 2013 MacTaggart Lecture
Academy Award winning actor, director and producer Kevin Spaceywill be giving the prestigious James MacTaggart Memorial Lecture at this year's Festival. It's been a landmark year for Spacey, who executive produced and starred in the acclaimed break-out Netflix original drama series House of Cards. The series bypassed traditional TV networks and has been seen as heralding a major shift from the traditional model of broadcasting and the way viewers consume content. "As a newcomer to the TV industry I am honoured to be invited to give the MacTaggart Lecture," commented Spacey. "Clearly this has been an exciting period for me personally but also I believe this is a time of huge opportunity, innovation and creativity for all of us who live to tell stories and engage audiences".
Just announced...
David Arnold, multi-award winning composer, will be discussing his career with Edith Bowman. Arnold has composed music for everything from the world stage to the small screen including the Olympics, Sherlock and James Bond. The session will include a live musical performance.
Making Crime Pay investigages what makes the perfect crime drama and what the limitations are in an already crowded genre. Panellists include Broadchurch Executive Producer Jane Featherstone, Luther creator Neil Cross and Mark Billingham, crime author.
Cracking the US Scripted Market explores translating ideas for an American audience. The session will look at audience tastes, commissions vs co-production and dealing with the US networks.
Xbox, YouTube and more: The New Buyers On The Block will look at the new commissioning players who have big budgets to spend on original content. This session covers what they're looking for, how to pitch to them and what to expect from a new breed of commissioners in our increasingly digital age.
Britain's Got Talent... So How Do I Get My Hands On Some? In this session four of the biggest hitters in the world of talent management will tell us exactly how to seduce them and their starriest clients. They'll discuss the shifting power struggles between broadcasters with shrinking budgets, producers with good ideas and agents with 'box office' talent.
New Sitcom Writing Competition, in partnership with the BAFTA Rocliffe Forum, will see the two finalists have their ten minute scripts performed live on stage by a cast of comic talents in front of an industry judging panel. The winning writer will then be picked and awarded a full script development deal with the BBC.
More 2013 Highlights...
Great British Bake Off: Edinburgh Special
Mary Berry and Paul Hollywood host this year's opening session. Live on stage, they will be judging the soggy bottoms and floppy buns of a brave group of TV execs. And as ever, Mel and Sue will be joining them to oversee proceedings.
A Pointless Masterclass: Turning a daytime show into a Saturday night hit
Remarkable Television's Managing Director David Flynn and commissioner Pam Cavannagh, explain how the programme was developed, how it moved to Saturday night, and reveal how Richard Osman - once a jobbing exec producer - ended up on screen.
The Evolution of Puppetry
Award-winning puppeteer, producer, writer and director Brian Henson, will present a creative journey through the development of the distinctive Henson puppetry technique and how it paved the way for many of the puppetry and animation techniques we see today.
Dara O Briain to host the Channel of the Year Awards 2013
One of Britain's best known and best loved comedians, Dara O Briain will be keeping delegates entertained at this year's Channel of the Year Awards. Expect belly laughs and high drama as we celebrate the best in class.
The Undateables Masterclass
The Undateables started amidst controversy but is now a central part of Channel 4's identity and is getting itself ready for a welcome return early next year. This masterclass will talk to commissioner Liam Humphreys and key members of the production team at betty to get to the bottom of how they pulled it off.
The Worst TV Show I Ever Made, And Everything it Taught Me
In a joyous celebration of failure, four brave execs will talk to Wayne Garvie about the worst TV shows they’ve ever made. We’ll see clips of the shows, hear tales of disaster from the frontlines of television and find out what they've learnt from their mistakes.
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