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COMIX TELFORD — Calling All Comic Heroes!

For the first time, budding young comic artists in Telford have the chance to learn from Marvel/DC/DC Thomson pro’s.

For the first time since it started five years ago, Hi8us will deliver its internationally successful and innovative Comic Art talent scheme in Telford! Comix Telford is a talent finding competition for budding young comic artists. The aim is to discover and nurture talented artists and support them to get into the comics industry with the help of world-class comic professionals such as John McCrea (X-MEN, SPIDERMAN, THE HULK) and Hunt Emerson (THE BEANO, WALL STREET JOURNAL, FORTEAN TIMES). The scheme is COMPLETELY FREE thanks to Telford & Wrekin’s Find Your Talent programme and the only thing applicants need to do to be considered is send in copies of their most recent comic strips and complete a short application form. The DEADLINE for submissions is to be confirmed. Please check www.hi8us.co.uk for details. Submissions still open as of 20/07/09. Comix Telford will prioritise 16 to 19 year olds living or studying in Telford.

From July ’09 to October ‘09, 20 finalists will get the opportunity to train with the lead professional comic artists on the scheme John McCrea and Hunt Emerson as well as a wealth of other professional talent including Laura Howell (THE BEANO, THE GUARDIAN), Asia Alfasi (IMAF WINNER, BEST NEW MANGA, BLOOMSBURY GRAPHIC NOVELIST) and Andi Watson (GEISHA, BUFFY) amongst others. The invaluable experience of the professionals will be used to support and develop the talents of those on the scheme, giving them all the essential training, tips and tricks relating to the art of comics as well as a route into the industry by providing access to publishers and editors. The scheme will culminate in the trainees having their first comic book published and launched at the British International Comics Show in October.

Hi8us Midlands is part of an established charity with an impressive long history of utilising the skills of experts to guide aspiring artists and media producers, with professional results. “We run a range of arts & media projects in a range of communities up and down the country; we come across a great deal of untapped talent and this scheme is just one way of meeting the needs of the gifted individuals we know are out there.” Kulwant Dhaliwal, Hi8us Midlands Director. “I think this is a wonderful opportunity,” comments John McCrea “when I was breaking into the industry I would have loved the chance to be on this project”.

This scheme is fully funded by Telford & Wrekin Council’s Find Your Talent programme. Julie Jones, Creative Arts Manager at Telford & Wrekin Council said “Our aim is to support and nurture talented young people, we know they’re out there!”

Applicants need to submit examples of their best and most recent work. We are looking for good photocopies of 2-4 pages of original continuous comic strip (no posters), preferably without lettering.  Submission guidelines can be downloaded from www.hi8us.co.uk. To book a place at the recruitment session and/or get an application pack, contact: Kulwant Dhaliwal on 0121 753 7700 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

-ENDS-

NOTES TO EDITORS

1. This scheme will start in July. The first workshop will take place on Wednesday 22nd July from 4.30 pm to 7.30 pm and will run for a total of 10 Wednesdays until mid-October. As well as 10 professionally led workshops the finalists will also attend the British International Comic Show in Birmingham October 3rd to 4th.

2. Hi8us has a unique record of award winning production for film and television. Over the last 15 years the company has pioneered participatory youth drama for broadcast, piloted new media technology as a tool for young people to create interactive drama and supported a series of talented young people to enter the film, media and broadcasting industries.

3. HI8us develops and delivers a range of arts and media projects collaborating with young people. Since 1999, Hi8us has taken its experience of media, education and training to create innovative new media and online educational tools.  Significantly, funded by Nesta, Hi8us has developed edrama, an online tool that provides an immersive educational experience. Hi8us is pioneering the use of multi-user software to deliver an absorbing and engaging educational experience for educators and young people alike. www.edrama.co.uk

4. For further information on current Hi8us projects please visit: www.hi8us.co.uk

5. John McCrea was born in Belfast in 1966, all John ever wanted to do was draw: specifically comics, and a product of his primary school days was the Bionic Emu. In the midst of dropping out of a degree in Art and Design in Belfast, John hawked his steadily maturing work around the UK comic conventions and the British comic editors: at 2000 AD, and British Marvel. His first professional job was on the cartoon adaptation the Centurions before he went on to work on Action Force (British GI Joe), BLAAAM! And eventually drawing a few Future Shocks stories for 2000 AD. The big break came in 1988, when Garth Ennis (then 18 years old) wrote 'Troubled Souls', and a Northern Irish artist was required. A productive partnership was born between John and Garth that has lasted more than 10 years. They collaborated on For a Few Troubles More, Judge Dredd, the Demon and 'Hitman', to name a few. John also works for Marvel and has illustrated for many of the classics, including Spiderman, Batman and X-men. Visit dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/way/xmi94/Biography.htm for details.


6. Hunt Emerson has drawn cartoons and comic strips since the early 1970s. He has published around thirty comic books and albums, mainly with Knockabout Comics (London), including 'Lady Chatterley's Lover', 'The Rime of the Ancient Mariner', and 'Casanova's Last Stand'. His characters include 'Calculus Cat', (the cat that hates television), 'Firkin the Cat', (a strip of sexual satire that has run in Fiesta magazine since 1981), 'PussPuss', (yes - another cat!), 'Max Zillion' and 'Alto Ego', (a jazz musician and his saxophone), 'Alan Rabbit', and many more. His comic strips have been translated into ten languages, and he has been awarded several Comic Strip prizes. His work appears in publications as diverse as Fiesta, Fortean Times, and The Wall Street Journal Europe, and he has also worked widely in advertising.

7. Find Your Talent http://www.findyourtalent.org/pathfinders/telford_wrekin.html:

“Telford is one of the 20 fastest growing areas in the UK with a current population of 160,000 and an expected 23,000 new homes over the next 20 years.  Within the West Midlands the Index of Multiple Deprivation ranks Telford 8th most deprived of 34 local authority areas.

“Our pilot will support local economic and social regeneration strategies by widening participation in cultural learning to ensure both a greater demand for cultural activities and a higher level of training and skills to support the local creative economy.  We will use the successful model trialled by our Cultural Hub (see www.telfordculturezone.com), which relies heavily on partnership work, bringing in high quality providers from around the region to work alongside young people and to help local artists and organisations develop their skills.

“Our pilot will change the way young people and their families feel about the arts and culture, their own community and Telford as a whole. It will create a lively exciting environment   for young people and will help develop young people who are more confident about trying new cultural experiences and enthused about sharing those experiences with others.”

For further information about Find Your Talent in Telford please visit the website:
http://www.findyourtalent.org/pathfinders/telford_wrekin.html

Comix Telford was commissioned by: Julie Jones, Creative Arts Manager, Creative Arts, Telford & Wrekin Council, Children and Young People
Strickland House, The Lawns, Crescent Road, Wellington, Telford TF1 3BX: