And the 2013 Advisory Chair is....

 It’s official!  Karl Warner is the 2013 Advisory Chair!  

On his appointment, Warner said: “I hope next year's Festival will be the biggest celebration of creativity and innovation we've ever had. Everyone who attends should come away feeling inspired and equipped with highly valuable, practical insights on dealing with the creative challenges of the future. I'm thrilled to be appointed the Advisory Chair and I can't wait to get started."

Warner joined the BBC in 2007 as an Executive Editor, with an initial focus on BBC Three. He has recently moved to BBC One, where he has been tasked with finding the next generation of Saturday night entertainment formats.  

Karl is responsible for the editorial direction of the 2013 programme from commissioning session ideas to overseeing final production (No pressure). Karl will bring together a committee from across the entire industry to advise and produce festival sessions.

Since joining the BBC, Warner has commissioned and executive produced a wide range of programmes, ranging from John Bishop’s Britain, Russell Howard’s Good News and Michael McIntyre’s Comedy Road Show, to Eddie Izzard: Marathon Man, The Undercover Princes and Junior Doctors. 

Elaine Bedell, MGEITF Executive Chair said: "For the last few years, Karl's worked right at the heart of the industry and has produced or managed some of the UK's biggest shows. He's also worked tirelessly on the committee for the television festival. His energy and enthusiasm is always infectious. I have no doubt that as Advisory Chair, his Festival plans will be big, ambitious - and fun."

And just in case you were wondering what all the 2012 fuss was all about catch up on ALL THE FULL MGEITF 2012 sessions you missed including ALL Meet the Controller sessions, Modern Family a Masterclass....

We are thrilled to welcome Karl on board as this year’s Advisory Chair.  He’s a joy to work with, brimming with ideas and enthusiasm, and I just know the 2013 programme is going to give this year’s a run for its money.  Let’s go!!


Over and out!

When my life flashes before my eyes when I die, I'm pretty sure a few frames will be dedicated to my time at The Network...

Get a place on The Network and you will go places!  Sometimes you might even go to famous places… while dressed as a panda having a series of telephone conversations with a lovely lady panda.  Confused?  Read James Fletcher’s story of what happened to him and fellow Network 2011 delegates Owen Cant and Lisa Robson:

My name is James Fletcher and I was a delegate on The Network 2011. It is my career goal to be a comedy producer, and The Network really gave me a push in the right direction. I had a great few days in Edinburgh, and look back at the memories fondly. When my life flashes before my eyes when I die, I'm pretty sure a few frames will be dedicated to my time at The Network - it was that good. The experience was made even better by the fact that I won a competition, in which you had to submit an idea to VisitScotland promoting the country in a 'unique/quirky' way. 

Skip forward ten months, and I'm stood in front of Forth Bridge. The wind ruffles the fur in my Panda costume. People are telling me it looks magnificent, but I can't see a thing, for the eye hole is ingeniously placed in the mouth, and thus is crap. "The bridge looks amazing! You look so funny in front of it!" I hear, as I look at the large Panda feet I'm wearing.

We filmed in a variety of locations; from old castles, to the caverns below Edinburgh, to golf courses, to portrait galleries, to tea rooms. Places you'd never expect to see a Panda. There's a good reason a Panda has never been to Willow Tea Rooms; the spaces in between the tables is rather small, and trying to navigate through them, blind, without smashing anything, was one of the hardest things I've ever had to do. The Panda's face was always smiling, but the face under it was a sweaty mix of fear and worry.

In August I was invited to the advert's screening at The Network 2012's finale. It was weird being back and hearing Joe Godwin's closing speech.  As he spoke, I reflected on how far I'd come; not physically, as I was sat in the same room exactly as a year ago, so I hadn't gone anywhere in that regard - but experience wise, my CV is looking much better, and I have a tremendous advert for my show-reel which I'm extremely proud of. 

The Network is brilliant because I went from knowing nobody to knowing sixty plus people who all shared the same passion for working in Television. I didn't really make many contacts with industry professionals (as you can tell from this, I have a testing personality) but I kept in touch with many fellow delegates, and then milked their success, as they put me forward for work experience and made me aware of opportunities. I also found out through The Network's mailing list about the BBC looking for volunteers in Edinburgh during August, which I was successful in applying for, and I probably had the best month of my life there, so the benefits of being a Network delegate continue to grow, like a beautiful tree (of television).

--

James Fletcher

You can tweet James @themehospital - he especially likes panda related questions.  

Have a look at Owen Cant's blog for the director's perspective:  http://owencant.com/

Many thanks to Noelle Campbell and Ruma Cummins from sponsors VisitScotland, development mentors David Strachan and Andrew Blackwell from Tern TV, Edinburgh Zoo for loan of the panda costume and all the locations used for filming.  
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ddCNgRhaxw&feature=related