TV students bring arts and sports to the nation

20 Feb 2019 10:30
Published by: Kian French

Undergraduates and postgraduates create two series for a Sky TV channel

The creative skills of a group of University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) students are being seen on a national scale.

Undergraduate and postgraduate TV production students are producing two series focussing on the arts and sports which are now airing on two Sky TV channels.

Beyond: Arts, currently on air at 8.00pm on Thursdays, and Beyond: Sports, which is transmitted at 10.00pm on Sundays, have been planned, shot and edited by the small team.

Series producer Samuel Liles, an MA television production student, said: “We have created 20 programmes, which are 30-minutes long, to showcase a range of stories and features relating to sports and arts.

“We have been working non-stop since September on this project with a tiny crew but a lot of passion for the shows. Some of the students on the MA had never even used a TV camera before and are now producing professional quality content that is being broadcast on Showcase TV and FrontRunner TV.”

The shows have been created as part of their University studies and they are being produced from the facilities on the Preston Campus.

Samuel, who last year was part of a team which created a TV series on Mixed Martial Arts, commented: “Last year’s project was a steep learning curve but it was a fantastic opportunity and one which I learned a lot from. To be able to draw on that experience to deliver two series covering different subject matters is something I’m really excited about.

“Most students can only dream of getting one opportunity to have their work broadcast to a national audience but to have another chance is amazing.”

Adam Robson, TV production course leader, added: “We are the only University in the UK that is making real regular content for the Sky platform. The value to students is phenomenal: gaining broadcast credits as they learn, being part of a legitimate production crew, travelling the UK meeting contributors and dealing with TV stations directly. We truly are one-of-a-kind and the feedback from viewers has been mind-blowing.”

The shows are running until the end of March. Showcase TV is available to access on Sky channel 192 while FrontRunner TV is available to access on Sky channel 431 and Freesat 250.

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