Debut Creative Industries Festival a success
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Published
07 October 2024
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Hundreds of creative minds flocked to the University of East London for the inaugural Creative Industries Festival, a multi-day event boasting workshops, performances, and a careers fair, alongside inspiring sessions with industry heavyweights, including Canva, Bow Arts, London Higher, creativeLDN and many more.
Driven by a desire to improve connections between emerging creative talent and sector-leading organisations and individuals, Alison Lowe MBE, Director of Careers and Enterprise at UEL’s School for Arts and Creative Industries, pulled together a diverse festival programme designed to spotlight the depth and breadth of the sector and encourage people to share their knowledge and expertise.
She said,
We all tend to work in silos and … think we know what's going on in other businesses and what people do but often we have a very limited idea and there's loads of organisations that we don't even know exist. The idea for me was to bring people together to [show] them … how we can collaborate, work together, [and the] benefit in lots of small organisations coming together to actually do something bigger, more fun, and more creative."
Ms Lowe was joined by the Deputy Mayor of London for Business and Growth Howard Dawber who opened festivities, praising both the event and London’s booming creative sector. Also on the schedule was Canva for Education’s EMEA Regional Lead, Petia Maximova who provided valuable insight into the skills needed by those working – or wanting to work – in the creative industries to succeed in the professional world.
The festival, which involved 31 industry partners and sponsors, served as a collective call for collaboration, emphasising the importance of championing the creative arts, beyond the traditional understanding of the sector, which Ms Lowe said was expanding in both scale and scope.
She said, “People often think of creative industries as this very limited element – it’s a performer, singer, dancer, musician, fashion designer – but actually creativity is through every single business. An entrepreneur is a creative. So, the value of creativity and really pushing creativity is absolutely huge for the sector. It is about … connecting creativity and business so that we can grow … because that's where innovation is going to come from.”
Breakout sessions throughout the three-day programme at UEL’s Royal Docks Centre for Sustainability allowed attendees – of which there were more than 750 registered – to gather in smaller groups and discuss specific topics in depth, including greenwashing in the fashion industry, advice for getting your foot in the door as a newcomer, and navigating the trials and tribulations of the screen industries.
A discussion on the new cultural quarter in Stratford and its value in driving diversity in the creative economy, drew a strong audience, with the panel featuring UEL Dean of Arts and Creative Industries Dr Rosemary Stott alongside Professor Dominic Hingorani, Jas Hothi, Sanaz Amidi, and John Newbegin OBE, London Mayor's Ambassador for the Creative Industries.
The on-campus part of the festival drew to a close with a series of live performances, showcasing some of the incredible musical and theatrical talent coming out of east London, and rounding off an inspiring three days of creative discussion. Reflecting on the inaugural event, Ms Lowe said the festival would “definitely be coming back” for 2025, bigger and better.
She said, “I'm absolutely thrilled with the response that we've had for the festival – from the amazing partners, the sponsors, and all the participants that have come along. Everybody has loved the opportunity to network, to chat, and to find out [about] all of the amazing creative industry businesses we have in east London, and this is just going to be the first of many.”
The creative celebration follows an extraordinary few months of results for the University's School of Arts and Creative Industries with the school ranking first in London for teaching and learning opportunities and improving on its 2023 ratings across every marker measured in the recently released National Student Survey (NSS) 2024. The survey also saw UEL’s dance programme once again recognised as the top option for students in London, ranking number one across several metrics.
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