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The Guardian
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Guardian
‘I want them to feel like I felt when punk rock happened': encouraging young creatives to think big
'When I was at school, nobody asked if I'd consider a career in the performing arts,' recalls multimedia show director Willie Williams. 'The focus was very much on practical subjects like engineering, which just wasn't where my interests lay.' In the end, he followed his instincts and, today, designs and directs live shows, collaborating with household names such as U2, Adele, David Bowie and The Rolling Stones. 'Punk happened – and the message in the air for that brief period was that anybody can do anything,' says the Sheffield native. 'It was a perfectly timed message, giving me the confidence to think: 'This is what I want to do, let's go and do it.'' So Williams did exactly that, moving from Sheffield to London where he began working with musicians to help create on-stage visuals to accompany each performance, and went on to co-found the creative design agency Treatment Studio. 'My goal with live shows has always been to show people something they haven't seen before, or to help them imagine something completely new,' he says. He's now sharing that expertise with students in his home town by collaborating with Sheffield Hallam University's new Sheffield Creative Industries Institute. He plans to work with students to help inspire and hone their creativity in what is very much a two-way partnership – the university is helping him solve real, practical problems in his field of work. 'We're finding all kinds of areas where we can work on together,' he says. 'For example, putting on such enormous live shows [Treatment Studio designed and produced all of the visual content for Adele's 2024 residency in Germany, which featured an LED video wall 220 metres wide] means we're starting to hit real issues with data management. The amount of storage we need, for example, is staggering. So together, we hope to explore ways to make that possible.' Originally founded in 1843 as the Sheffield School of Design, Sheffield Hallam University has always had a creative heart. Its new Creative Industries Institute teaches everything from acting, film and TV, to architecture, digital media and art and design. All of which means that after graduation, students find themselves working as fashion designers, radio broadcasters, content creators, animators, or, like Williams, becoming the multimedia show directors of tomorrow. Housing such a wide variety of disciplines under one roof is a major advantage, says Roger Bateman, the institute's director. 'The institute is structured in such a way that we have fashion students aligned with architecture students, for example, so we're not tied by traditional structures. As director, I want to see performers and fine artists working with students studying graphic design or fashion. That means we can all work together in exciting, innovative and creative ways.' There's also a strong focus on employability and entrepreneurial working after graduation. 'Students are taught about employability in the curriculum at every level because we know employers want skills like problem solving, creativity and collaboration,' says Bateman. Students are graduating into a sector where growth has vastly outstripped the UK economy as a whole, positioning the creative industries as a driver of economic growth in government eyes. The sector employs more than 2.3 million people and, in 2021, generated £108bn, according to a 2023 report from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport [pdf]. But before Sheffield Hallam's students emerge to take their places in this thriving world, they will have had their creativity honed by the university. 'There's a narrative around some people being naturally more creative than others, and that's probably indisputable, but you can absolutely enhance creativity. How do you change your behaviour to be more curious about the world? To be more playful when thinking of new solutions, or to look at different ways of approaching problems? These are all perspectives we support our students to explore.' More traditionally 'hard' skills are equally important, even for creatives. 'Skills like project management, budgeting, collaboration or intellectual property for example, might not sound exciting but they're vital. Looking at whether creative ideas work from a sustainability perspective rather than just a profit perspective, or honing technology and digital literacy skills, which enable you to understand the software you may need to use in your industry. And, of course, now there's generative AI – exploring whether that's something that can be creatively harnessed in your chosen field. 'With the work I do with concert touring, we're constantly trying to show an audience something they've never seen before, which inevitably involves inventing something new,' says Williams. 'And because that's a huge part of what universities are set up to do, it makes this relationship really exciting. 'When I talk to students about their ideas or future plans, I want to make them feel like I felt when punk rock happened – a feeling of confidence and genuine excitement about creating something special. Because ideas don't come purely from technology or textbooks, they come from being inspired.' Discover more about the Sheffield Creative Industries Institute
Daily Mail
30-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mail
Millions of Netflix users could face an eye-watering £1,000 fine for using new feature
The countdown to Netflix 's Tudum Live is officially on, with just two days to go before the highly-anticipated event hits our screens. The show - named after the sound that plays at the start of every Netflix movie - is described as 'Netflix's biggest fan party', and will feature several live performances. While you might be excited to watch the show in real-time, doing so could land you with a hefty fine. The problem is that you still need a TV Licence to watch live shows - even if they are being shown on a streaming service like Netflix. At a newly increased price of £174.50, paying for a TV Licence isn't cheap. However, it is still a lot less than the fine you might face for not having one. 'Not paying for a TV Licence could lead to a £1,000 fine if we find that you have been watching, recording or downloading programmes illegally,' TV Licensing explains on its website. 'The maximum fine is £2,000 in Guernsey. Plus any legal costs and/or compensation you may be ordered to pay.' Typically, you don't need a TV Licence to watch streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, or Disney+. However, you still need a licence to watch live programming regardless of whether you are using a streaming service or not. TV Licensing explains: 'You need to be covered by a TV Licence to watch live on streaming services - such as ITVX, Channel 4, YouTube, Amazon Prime Video, Now, Sky Go, Netflix and Freely. 'You don't need a TV Licence if you never watch live on any channel, pay TV service or streaming service, or use BBC iPlayer.' That means you won't be at risk of a fine if you only use on-demand services, but will be in breach of the rules if you tune in for a live event. The cost of a TV Licence recently increased by £5 per year, rising from £169.50 to £174.50 on April 1. While you can pay this in one go, most people choose to spread the cost by Direct Debit - this works out at £14.54 per month. If you don't pay your TV Licence, you could face a huge fine. 'We could visit your address to confirm if you need a TV Licence,' TV Licensing warned. 'If we find that you have been watching, recording or streaming programmes illegally, you risk prosecution and a fine for not having a TV Licence of up to £1,000 plus any legal costs and/or compensation you may be ordered to pay.' These same rules apply to all streaming services, including those accessed by the Amazon Fire Stick. This device is used to access services including Netflix, Prime Video, Disney+ and Apple TV+ but Amazon has recently added several live channels. This includes BBC One, BBC Two, BBC Three, BBC Four, CBBC, CBeebies, BBC News, BBC Scotland, and BBC Alba. However, watching any of those channels will require a TV licence, just as if you were watching through any other type of device. So, if you're planning on watching any live events or television from your home, be sure to double check you have the appropriate licence in order to avoid a fine.
