Cyfrwng Welsh Media 2008 Holds Annual Seaside Resort Conference at Aberystwyth University May 1-2, Follows Gala April 27 BAFTA Cymru Awards

[Pictured above: Aberystwyth overlooks the Irish Sea.]

CYFRWNG 2008 CONFERENCE

Aberystwyth University
1-2 May 2008

New Platforms :: Convergence

The Cyfrwng 2008 conference will be held in the National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth, on 1-2 May and this year’s theme is ‘Convergence – Cydgyfeiriant’. During the two day event, a range of speakers, papers and panels will consider how the media in Wales are rising to the challenge of a digital, multiplatform world.



The conference programme will be published on this website shortly but we are urging people to register as soon as possible and to book their place at the conference dinner which will follow the Cyfrwng 2008 award ceremony on Thursday night 1 May.



The dinner will be hosted at the Council Chamber in the National Library but space is limited! Come back to the website soon for full programme details but speakers include:



[Pictured above: Dr David Barlow, University of Glamorgan]




Dr Mike Cormack, Sabhal Mòr Ostaig




[Pictured above: Phil George, National English Language Theatre]




[Pictured above: John Geraint, Green Bay Media Limited]

Rhian Gibson, S4C Director of Commissioning



Janet Lewis Jones, BBC Trust

Prof. Tom O’Malley, Aberystwyth University

Elis Owen, Managing Director ITV Wales




[Pictured above: Prof. Mike Pearson, Aberystwyth University]

Arshad Rasul, Director of Technology, S4C




[Pictured above: Dr Heike Roms, Aberystwyth University]

Mandy Rose, Creative Director: Multiplatform, BBC Wales




[Pictured above: Ceri Sherlock, Multiplatform Commissioning Executive, BBC Wales]



[Pictured above: Prof. Elan Closs Stephens, Aberystwyth University]

Prof. Ioan Williams, Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru

Rhodri Williams, Ofcom Wales

For further information, contact Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones or Rhodri ap Dyfrig on 01970 622533.

Cyfrwng Welsh Media Conference May 2008

BAFTA CYMRU

CYNHADLEDD CYFRWNG 2008

1-2 Mai 2008

Prifysgol Aberystwyth

Llwyfannau Newydd :: Cydgyfeiriant

Bydd cynhadledd Cyfrwng 2008 yn cael ei chynnal yn Llyfrgell Genedlaethol Cymru yn Aberystwyth rhwng 1-2 Mai a’r thema eleni yw ‘Cydgyfeiriant – Convergence’. Dros gyfnod o ddau ddiwrnod, bydd amrywiaeth o ddarlithoedd a phaneli difyr yn trafod sut mae cyfryngau Cymru yn ymateb i her yr oes ddigidol, aml-lwyfan.



Caiff rhaglen y gynhadledd ei chyhoeddi ar y wefan hon cyn hir ond rydym yn annog pobl i gofrestru mor fuan â phosib ac i sicrhau lle yng nghinio’r gynhadledd fydd yn dilyn seremoni wobrwyo Cyfrwng 2008 ar nos Iau 1 Mai.



Y bwriad yw cynnal y swper yn Ystafell y Cyngor y Llyfrgell Genedlaethol ond mae nifer y llefydd yn gyfyngedig, felly cyntaf i’r felin! Dewch nôl i’r wefan am fanylion llawn y rhaglen ond dyma rai o siaradwyr y gynhadledd:

Dr David Barlow, Prifysgol Morgannwg
Dr Mike Cormack, Sabhal Mòr Ostaig
Phil George, Theatr Genedlaethol cyfrwng Saesneg
John Geraint, Green Bay
Rhian Gibson, Cyfarwyddwr Comisiynu S4C



Janet Lewis Jones, Ymddiriedolaeth y BBC
Yr Athro Tom O’Malley, Prifysgol Aberystwyth



Elis Owen, Rheolwr Gyfarwyddwr ITV Wales
Yr Athro Mike Pearson, Prifysgol Aberystwyth




Arshad Rasul, Cyfarwyddwr Technoleg S4C
Dr Heike Roms, Prifysgol Aberystwyth
Mandy Rose, Cyfarwyddwr Creadigol: Aml-lwyfan, BBC Cymru
Ceri Sherlock, Gweithredwr Comisiynu BBC Cymru
Yr Athro Elan Closs Stephens, Prifysgol Aberystwyth
Yr Athro Ioan Williams, Theatr Genedlaethol Cymru
Rhodri Williams, Ofcom Cymru



Am fwy o wybodaeth, cysyllter ag Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones neu Rhodri ap Dyfrig ar 01970 622533.

AIM: ATRiuM Intelligent Media

Chapter Arts Centre Cardiff

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries

mwoods[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Queer Advantage, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

2 Week Gaelic Immersion April 14 - 25th, Cape Breton Gaelic Society Nova Scotia

[Pictured above: Oi Polloi were the first punk rock band to record a single Carson in Scottish Gaelic.]

2 WEEK Gaelic Immersion
Speak and understand more Gaelic with this intensive 2 week course!



WHEN: Monday APRIL 14 to Friday APRIL 25
10am till 4pm 1 hr lunch break

WHERE: Cape Breton Gaelic Society
296 George Street, Sydney

Instructors: Angus MacLeod and Beth MacNeil



The classes will be in the TIP (Total Immersion Plus) methodology.

It is total Gaelic immersion during class time. You learn through hands-on interaction with the tutor and fellow students.

You will learn practical and useful language in a fun and comfortable setting.



The tutors have a wonderful sense of humor which makes your learning experience more enjoyable.

It is recommended that you bring a recording device as there is no reading or writing taught.

Gaelic show about Cape from 70's



By listening to your recordings at home you will learn and progress much faster.

Bring your lunch, tea and coffee will be provided.



[About this video: this is a very old show called Se' Ceap Breatainn Tir Mo Graidh which was prodiced by scottish television about Gaelic in Cape Breton. It is the only footage I've ever seen of Joe Neil MacNeil and other old timers. This segment features Maxie MacNeil and his daughters as well as a Gaelic mass in Glendale. Its a rough copy. ]

For registration or more info
call Peggy Gillis 902-828-2218



WEEKLY CLASSES

WHEN: Every Saturday until April 12 (with the exception of Easter Saturday March 22)
10am till 3pm 1 hr lunch break

WHERE: Cape Breton Gaelic Society
296 George Street, Sydney

Instructors: Beginners Beth MacNeil
Intermediate Shannon MacDonald
Advanced Angus MacLeod
The teaching method used is TIP (Total Immersion Plus).
Bring lunch, tea and coffee provided.
Call Peggy with any questions
828-2218

AIM: ATRiuM Intelligent Media

Chapter Arts Centre Cardiff

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries

mwoods[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Queer Advantage, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Robert Carlyle stars in Justin Kerrigan's feature film 'I Know you Know' Now Shooting in Bridgend and Port Talbot, Welsh Valleys

[Pictured above: Emmy nominee Robert Carlyle stars in Justin Kerrigan's newest film currently being shoot in South Wales.]

Emmy nominee Robert Carlyle, who found fame in 'The Full Monty' and 'Trainspotting' and whose credits have since included 'Carla's Song', 'The World is Not Enough' and '28 weeks later' is currently filming Cardiff born, Justin Kerrigan's new feature film 'I Know you Know' in Bridgend, and Port Talbot.



Carlyle takes the lead role of Charlie in the coming of age drama, in which a boy relishes the excitement and challenge of his father's espionage work; until the 'spy game' turns real.

Jamie, a young teenager, is fascinated by his father Charlie's espionage work until the world of spies becomes all too real.

Charlie lives in his own reality—an undercover agent, always on an important mission, always on the move.



Life for Charlie is highly charged and on the edge.

He is unpredictable, explosive, yet kind hearted and fiercely protective of his Jamie who hero-worships his father until he slowly begins to understand that his father is occupying a quite different reality.

Making his screen debut alongside Carlyle as Jamie is Cardiff school boy, Arron Fuller who was picked to play Carlyle's son in the movie.



The 13 year-old is a pupil at lady Mary Secondary School, Cardiff.

Kerrigan is best known for his 1999 hit 'Human Traffic' for which, amidst several other awards, he won a BAFTA Cymru Award for Best Director and was nominated for a Carl Foreman Award for the Most Promising Newcomer at the BAFTA 2000 awards in London.

Human Traffic Trailer -- Miramax Films



Kerrigan is working alongside the experienced and award winning producer Sally Hibbin of Screen East sponsored Parallax Independent, whose extensive list of credits include 'Yasmin'.



'Liam' starring Ian Hart and 'Carla's Song' that was directed by Ken Loach and starred Robert Caryle. He also appeared in her 1990 hit 'Riff Raff', winner of the Cannes Critics prize.



'I Know you Know' has the financial backing of the Film Agency for Wales, on behalf of the Arts Council of Wales National Lottery and the Wales Creative IP Fund, managed by Finance Wales on behalf of the Welsh Assembly Government, in association with Limelight, Post Republic and the Screen East Content Investment Fund.

Worldwide sales are being handled by LA based, The Little Film Company, helmed by the acclaimed sales agent, Robbie Little.



[Pictured above:Pauline Burt, Chief Executive of the Film Agency for Wales]

Pauline Burt, Chief Executive of the Film Agency said:

"We operate our lottery finance as a talent fund rather than a location fund, placing a particular focus on Welsh born and/or resident writers, directors and producers.



We have been involved in the development of Justin's feature, which is close to his heart and for which he has a particular and engaging vision, and we are delighted to additionally contribute significantly to the production financing to help get this film made.

The Twang - Two Lovers -- Also directed by Justin Kerrigan



This story is original, touching, evocative and has, in our opinion, the potential to travel at an international level and put Justin firmly back on the talent map for filmmakers of international repute.

Additionally of course, we hope that the film can be a showcase for a previously undiscovered talent, in the form of Arron Fuller."

"This is one of seven features that we're currently supporting with production finance – each of which is distinctive, and we have a further 15 features in development, each of which have key Welsh talent that we're keen to platform to the wider film industry."

Linda James of the Wales Creative IP Fund, said:

"The commercial potential of 'I Know You Know' as a film destined for a global marketplace is a reflection of its star power with Robbie Carlyle in the lead, and the talents of Cardiff-born writer/director, Justin Kerrigan, and producer, Sally Hibbin.



We are delighted to have been instrumental in the film happening and from the footage that has been shot to date, It already looks to be a jewel.

"The export potential of projects, the inward investment to Wales and the development of Wales' Creative Industries all feature in the investments made by the Wales Creative IP Fund."



"The film is the 15th investment made by the £7million Wales Creative IP Fund which has invested £4.7million million since it was established in May 2005."

"We would like to acknowledge the support of CIRIC at Swansea Institute and in particular two of their staff Chris Buxton and Chris Holtom.



CIRIC supports economic development in the Objective One area of Wales through their support of creative practitioners. They have been a huge help," finished Sally Hibbin.

CIRIC is funded by The Welsh European Funding Office (WEFO), Swansea Institute and private sector finance to re-invigorate the creative industries sector within Wales.

The Film Agency for Wales is funded by the Arts Council for Wales, the UK Film Council and the Welsh Assembly Government, via Creative Business Wales, the latter of which was set up to support, encourage and increase the range and number of films being produced in Wales and to foster the abundance of creative talent in Wales.



Read more here:

Film Agency for Wales

AIM: ATRiuM Intelligent Media

Chapter Arts Centre Cardiff

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries

mwoods[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Queer Advantage, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2008 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Scottish Parliament Poised to Debate BAFTA Oscar Controversy Over Alleged Snub of Gaelic Language Feature Film

{Pictured above: publicity still from the Gaelic Language feature film, Searchd: The Impossible Pinnacle (2007).]

Scottish film director Simon Miller has put out an appeal for help, as it's been reported to Celtic Cult Cinema that the Scottish Parliament is poised to debate BAFTA Oscar Controversy over the alleged snub of the Gaelic Feature Film 'serachd: The Impossible Pinnacle (2007).

Simon Miller's Gaelic language feature film opens across Scotland this week, just as the BAFTA Oscar nomination controversy has caught fire.



It’s a film specifically about storytelling, and about the firm location of old stories in particular landscapes."

"A fitting theme for the first ever feature film in Scottish Gaelic."

[Quoted above from the programme book of the Edinburgh International Film Festival 2007]

What the critics are saying:

"Gorgeously-realised blend of magic realism and family drama" THE HERALD
"Dramatic, funny, spectacular and steeped in Gaelic mythology" THE LIST
"Glows with warmth and humanity" THE OBSERVER
"Visually breathtaking" BBC



Simon Miller writes:

"As you may have seen in the Seachd group blurb on facebook BAFTA (The UK's film academy) has failed to put forward any non-English language films for the Best Foreign Language Film category at next year's Oscars - which includes Seachd."



"THERE IS SOMETHING YOU CAN DO TO HELP, PARTICULARLY THOSE OF YOU FROM OUTSIDE THE UK..."

"Of 18 Western European countries invited by the Academy to put non-English language films forward for the Oscars, the UK is the only one to fail to do so."



"BAFTAs decision is sensless and really could not have been made on some measure of the "quality" of the film, given the strong early reviews we have had (“excellent” The Sunday Times, “breathtaking” BBC, “tender, graceful…gorgeously-realised” The Herald, “worth shouting about” The Scotsman, “dramatic, funny and spectacular” The List, and “an astonishing production” Eye For Film). And surely they wouldn't have put forward such obviously English language turkeys as they have in recent years if quality really was the issue?"





"BAFTA is an institution designed to promote British film - in whatever language - and their decision feels dangerously close to censorship and it will mean - ultimately - that less people will get to see the film in the UK internationally."

"YOU CAN HELP CHANGE THAT..."

"We have been able to gather a great deal of support to help overturn their decision within the film industry in the UK, and also from the Academy who have written to BAFTA asking for an explanation. And we have just learned that this issue is on the agenda to be debated in the Scottish Parliament on Thursday this week."

"HERE'S WHAT YOU CAN DO TO HELP..."

Read the entire story here:

http://film.guardian.co.uk/features/featurepages/0,,2177934,00.html

Searchd: The official Website

Read more here:

A CALL FOR HELP TO OVERTURN OUR GAELIC FILM'S OSCAR SNUB!

AIM: ATRiuM Intelligent Media

Chapter Arts Centre Cardiff

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries

mwoods[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase

© 2007 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Queer Advantage, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2007 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

New Club Starting for Cardiff ATRiuM Arts & Media Students, Faculty and Friends

AIM: ATRiuM Intelligent Media

We are an open and inclusive collective of student artists and student entrepreneurs who band together for social contacts, artistic education and stimulation, entertainment and all things pertaining to the advancement of our dreams and careers in media, journalism, film, television, sound and video recording and distribution, set design, costume design, lighting design, concert, online innovations, photography, architecture, mixed and multi-media and dramatic performance.



AIM -- ATRiuM Intelligent Media

Are you a member of the AIM / ATRiuM Intelligent Media? Why not? It’s free and some your friends are joining – so what are you waiting for?

Just what are the Five Primary Aims of AIM / ATRiuM Intelligent Media?


Our Five Primary Aims


1) We are an open and inclusive collective of student artists and student entrepreneurs who band together for social contacts, artistic education and stimulation, entertainment and all things pertaining to the advancement of our dreams and careers.



2) We devise and launch events and projects related to media, journalism, film, television, sound and video recording and distribution, set design, costume design, lighting design, concert, festival and special events promotions, online innovations, presentational graphics, photography, architecture, mixed and multi-media, dramatic performance, public speaking, performance art, individual or collaborative projects and other diversions.



3) We assist each other in developing and perfecting our art forms and professions.

4) We sponsor, attend and promote artistic, educational and social events, including imagined, narrated, fictional, real and virtual.



5) We assist one another in developing our artistic and professional portfolios, and we share these creations at various networking opportunities; with all these activities, we commit ourselves to the promotion and refinement of our own as well as our colleagues’ artistic portfolios and professional dossiers.



Is AIM a political or religious organization?

While it’s true that our ultimate goal is WORLD DOMINATION balanced with INTRINSIC FULFILLMENT nuanced with MEANINGFUL / MEANINGLESS PLEASURE enhanced by INCREDIBLY GREAT STYLE / LACK OF STYLE, and the inevitable material / spiritual gains / losses that accompany these goals, AIM respects the fact that we’re all on similar / different and interesting / mind-numbingly-boring paths; to this end, we neither affirm, deny or espouse any one political view or religious / non-religious, irrational / rational viewpoint.



Is AIM an arts club, a social fetish, a secret society, or a Cult of Personality?

It’s all of these things and none of these things. It has never existed and it has always existed. If it ceased to exist tomorrow, in the GREAT UNIVERSAL SCHEME OF THINGS, hardly anyone would care.



How do I join?

Email our Faithful Leader and Esteemed Founder, Dr. Mark Leslie Woods at mwoods[at]glam.ac.uk

AIM: ATRiuM Intelligent Media

AIM -- ATRiuM Intelligent Media, Cardiff, Wales, U.K. on Face Book

What happens next?

When Dr. Mark collects a sufficient number of interested students’ names and details, he will announce an initial organizational meeting.

He’ll probably call or write to you before the end of October 2007, just in time to plan your Halloween costume.



Please include at least your name, alias, email address, mailing address, interests, Zodiac sign, your favourite ice cream flavour and hat / rollerblade size. Dr. Mark will use his extraordinary intuition to guess in which century you were born.



Where will the meetings be held?

The first meeting will be held at either ATRiuM or Ty Pont Haearn in the Cardiff City Centre. ATRiuM students and Ty Pont Haearn residents will host the first meetings to assist the launch of our collective.



Later meetings will held in Newport, London, Aberystywth, Port Meirion, Castle Harlech, Salisbury Plains, among the Roman ruins of Caerleon and the Norman ruins of Ogmore Castle, online, via pod-casts and video-conferences, in eventually in Copenhagen, Seattle, Los Angeles, New York, Miami, Toronto, Prague, Southern Italy, Barcelona and Amsterdam.



Conversations will take place in the past, present, future, conditional, imperative, pluperfect, and in other dimensions.



Can anyone be a member of this collective?

Well, the collective intends to include all interested residents of Ty Pont Haearn and other local student residences, communes, and shared living arrangements in the Cardiff City centre area.



Students or faculty can be affiliated with ATRiuM, UWIC, Coleg Glan Hafren, Cardiff University, Swansea University, Swansea Institute, Newport School of Art, Media and Design, or other institutions. Enthusiastic, dynamic and artistic friends and families of these students are also welcome to join.

What will be the social and political ethos / mythos of this collective?



Our collective will vacillate between historical notoriety and contemporary obscurity. We will foster greatness and encourage Misfits and other Outcasts. Invariably power struggles, nepotism, clicks, sub-groups, spin-offs, copycats, crass commercialism and other controversies will overtake our collective.



Does any of this strike your fancy?

Read more here: http://aim--atriumintelligentmedia.blogspot.com/2007/09/new-club-starting-for-cardiff-atrium.html

AIM: ATRiuM Intelligent Media

Chapter Arts Centre Cardiff

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries

mwoods[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase

© 2007 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Queer Advantage, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2007 Dr. Mark Leslie Woods

For October More Experimental Films Screened at Cardiff Chapter Arts

You are invited to a screening of a short film
(a collaboration between various CCI staff):

CROSSING (2007)
Dur: 24 ½-minutes
Directed by: Wyn Mason & Ian Wiblin
Music by: Ben Challis & Rob Smith

A man and a woman take a short cut across a scarred landscape. Despite treading the same ground and seemingly sharing the same space, they remain quite separate, absorbed in their own emotional worlds. Without the aid of dialogue to unlock the characters’ thoughts, viewers can only scrutinize the locations they journey through. Slowly, step-by-step, through closely observing the shape and texture of rock, the lie of disregarded railway sleepers or wind blown grass, we begin to delineate the contours of their inner landscapes.

The film is accompanied by live music.

Exhibition: Experimentica
Venue: Chapter Arts
Date: Saturday 20th Oct 2007
Time: 4 pm

Chapter Arts Centre Cardiff

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries

mwoods[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase

© 2007 Mark Leslie Woods

Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Queer Advantage, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2007 Mark Leslie Woods

For Immediate Release: The New Welsh Blog Awards 2007 Organizers Announce Internet Competition Launch Today

Pictured above, Red Dragon Logo for the Welsh Blogs Awards and an image capture of the Welsh blog 'Blamerbell Briefs', recent winner of the prestigious "The Centre de Formation des Journalistes (CFJ) and CNN" -- "CFJ/CNN European award for the best student news blog"

For Immediate Release: Welsh Blog Award Organizers Announce Competition Launch

Wales, United Kingdom. His name is Sanddef (pronounced San-they) and he's fluent in at least four languages and lists Quantum Physics among his hobbies, as well as being a student in Bangor.

But online his blogosphere mates know him as the affable 'Ordovicius', and these days, with a blog by the same Latin name, he's dedicating a discrete amount of his energy to creating and launching the first Welsh Blog Awards 2007, or as it's called in Welsh, Yr Academi (the event and group are bilingual, Welsh/English).

Ordovicius

It's still not clear whose brainchild the Welsh Blog Awards is, but the online rumour mills also point to another Welsh wunderkind, Dr. Daniel Cunliffe at the University of Glamorgan. Cunliffe has a blog called Datblogu.com.

Datblogu.com

Other Welsh bloggers have already joined the group and are putting their energies and ideas into the launching the event.

Chris Cope is an American who taught himself to speak Welsh, and is now doing a degree in Wales, after relocating with his wife to South Wales.

Chris Cope

Another Welsh blogger involved in the awards is Cardiff University journalism student Ciaran Jenkins, aka "Blamerbell Briefs.com."

Blamerbell Briefs is the Welsh blog mentioned above, which is exemplary of the fine blogospheric world being generated by the tiny Celtic nation of Wales.

CFJ/CNN writes: "Ciaran's blog has become one of the most popular blog in the region of Cardiff. Politicians intervene on it, Medias respect it and the author is pretty amazed by his success which he would not have envisaged a few months back."

Blamerbell Briefs

Alan is a Welsh ex-pat in Brazil, fluent in Welsh and Portuguese, with a blog called Y Ddraig Goch, or Welsh for "The Red Dragon", the iconic symbol of the Welsh nation, going back to Roman times.

Y Ddraig Goch

Mark Woods lives in Miami Beach but has spent the past four years in Wales completing a Ph.D. in Film.

Woods says, "My film students forced me to become a 'New Media expert' since now we regularly digitally format and load our short films onto sites like YouTube and Yahoo Video. In today's world, Blogging and Film Studies go hand-in-hand."

Woods has a Welsh American Genealogy blog. Woods is using his background as a former owner of a public relations service in Miami, to help promote the fledgling group online.

Welsh American Genealogy

Woods says, "When I got to Wales I looked around and it reminded me of Microsoft in Seattle. The high quality of life, the mountains, the mild, wet weather and the obsession wth coffee bars and computer geeks is just like the Pacific Northwest, only it's in Western Europe!"

Woods says' "The group is in their early days and is looking for corporate sponsors and new members. Anyone can volunteer. We'd like to see local merchants and tourism companies from across Wales, all being encouraged to donate prizes and cash to assist the group."

Various social events and networking parties are being discussed, along with a showcase 'Awards Night'.

Many other Welsh bloggers, not mentioned here, have already helped to launch the awards project. Categories reflect the national bilingualism of Welsh and English, and include comic, political and cultural topics.

Group members tell how this is a reaction to other British blog awards centered mostly in London, which leave out the Welsh aspect, or miss the local talent.

Woods points to a similar situation with the film industry in Wales:

"There are the British BAFTA Awards and there are the BAFTA Cymru (Wales) Awards, and both are important to the worldwide valuation of films in Europe and abroad."

"The Welsh Blog Awards could easily grow to a similar global prominence as BAFTA Cymru," Woods predicts.

To join the Academy you will have to open a FaceBook account and then visit
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2393167778

Welsh Blog Awards 2007

NOTE: YOU WILL HAVE TO JOIN THE 'WALES' NETWORK

Bloggers who for any reason are unable to join this group but who wish to join the Academy should email Sanddef aka Ordovicius(at)gmail(dot)com

The Welsh Blog Awards 2007 have decided their set of categories and announced how you can become part of the "Academy" which enables you to nominate and vote.

Group Info: Yr Academi: The Welsh Blog Academy

Type: Internet & Technology - Cyberculture

Description: Bydd aelodau'r academi yn gallu enwebu blogiau ar gyfer y Gwobrau Blogio ac wedyn yn gallu bwrw eu pleidlais.

Members of the Welsh Blog Academy will be able to nominate blogs for the Welsh Blog Awards and later will be the ones who vote for the finalists.

Contact Info:
Email: Ordovicius(at)gmail(dot)com
Website: http://welshblogawards2007.blogspot.com/

Yr Academi: The Welsh Blog Academy

Press Contact:
Mark Woods, Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries, University of Glamorgan

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries

mwoods[at]glam[dot]ac[dot]uk

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh Music, Film, and Books Symposium, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Visit the UK Film Studies and World Cinema and Music Import Showcase

© 2007 Mark Leslie Woods

Smart & Sexy? Your Queer Advantage is waiting!

Rumbles in the Dragon's Belly? Plagued by delays, Welsh Studio promises news coming soon

The start of building work on £330m film studio complex, dubbed Valleywood, has been plagued by repeated delays.

According to icWales:

Valleywood dream moves step closer to becoming reality
May 30 2007

by Abby Alford, South Wales Echo

ACTION could finally be called on the much-hyped £300m Valleywood film studio after years of delays.

The Echo understands a major announcement signalling a significant step forward will be made in the next couple of months.

A source close to Dragon International Studios, which is chaired by film-maker Sir Richard Attenborough, said the contract for building work on the £50m first stage of the project in Llanilid near Bridgend – five giant TV studios known as silent sound stages – is due to be awarded.

“We haven’t got a definite date for an announcement but the tenders for the work are in,” said the source.

Work is expected to start on site once the name of the firm that has won the contract is revealed. Today, Ogmore AM Janice Gregory, a long-time supporter of the studio project, said: “I am glad that things appear to be moving on and I am sure it will allay the fears of many people locally who were worried that things were a bit too quiet.”

Lord Attenborough publicly announced in July 2005 – after an earlier delay to hunt for rare dormice – that the complex on the vast 760-acre former opencast coal mining site would be completed by spring this year.

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2007 Mark Leslie Woods

Film4's Irish movie "Garage" premiering in Canne's Director's Fortnight

The last time Film Four was operating at peak, Welsh filmmaker Karl Francis and others made numerous films about life in Wales. Will there be money for Welsh films, again, this time?

According to Variety Magazine:

Film4 back to business
Company has films screening at Cannes, $65 mil deal
By ADAM DAWTREY

Five years after U.K. pubcaster Channel 4 cut its movie arm back to basics, Film4 is finally firing on all cylinders again.

The company is advancing on all fronts, with Lenny Abrahamson's tiny Irish movie "Garage" premiering in Director's Fortnight, Harmony Korine's "Mister Lonely" in Un Certain Regard, the $25 million Gotham satire "How to Lose Friends and Alienate People" pre-selling strongly in the market, and a $65 million deal just closed with DreamWorks for its biggest ever project, Peter Jackson's "The Lovely Bones."

"Peter Carlton, Film4's senior production exec under Ross, believes the banner is moving into a more cosmopolitan phase. "We were very, very British-centred in the first few years, but now we're recognizing that some stories merit an outside eye," he says."

"There's a strong international flavor to many of Film4's upcoming projects -- whether that involves U.K. filmmakers looking abroad for stories, or foreign directors casting their eye upon Britain."

"Film4 is working with Danny Boyle on his next project, "Slumdog Millionaire," based on a novel about an Indian streetkid who wins the local version of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire."

British Film4

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2007 Mark Leslie Woods

11 days of networking, air kissing, dealmaking and backstabbing in the sun-kissed Riviera resort

Cannes film festival hits 60

Bon chance a tous les uns!

Cannes Film Festival turns 60 this year, and the diamond milestone means a long line of stars jostling with lesser-known names of arthouse cinema for media attention and fans' adoration on the famed red carpet.

The opening film gives a taste of both worlds, with respected Chinese director Wong Kar Wai presenting his English-language movie "My Blueberry Nights" featuring singer Norah Jones, Jude Law and Natalie Portman.

The glamourous Wednesday evening gala screening is the start of 11 days of networking, air kissing, dealmaking and backstabbing in the sun-kissed Riviera resort, host to the grande dame of the world's film festivals.

Formidable, n'est-ce pas?

Read About it Here, Reuters NEWS

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Welsh-American Family Genealogy, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2007 Mark Leslie Woods

Llongyfarchiadau i bawb! Screen Academy Wales Student Scores Big BAFTA Win for Short Film

The first Screen Academy Wales student co-production clinched the Best Short Film Award at the 16th Annual BAFTA Cymru Awards Ceremony, which was held on Saturday 28 April in the Cardiff International Arena.

Mummy's Boy, by Oskari Korenius, Nick Davies, Steve Jones, Josh Cowdry and Joe Naftalin (IFSW) and Ed Casey (Film Academy) won in the competition, competing against Scratching by Matt Brown and This Mortal Coil by Wyndham Price.

The film, which was a 15minute graduation project by the International Film School Wales third year BA Film and Video students and Ed, who was completing the MA Film Producing at the Film Academy, University of Glamorgan, was shot over a week at Treowen House in Monmouth during the summer of 2006, and cost £5,000. The film also involved crew members from IFSW and the Film Academy and one of the lead roles was undertaken by Liz Barnett, IFSW BA Performing Arts student.

"As young, ambitious film-makers winning a major industry award like a BAFTA Cymru Award is a dream come true," said Ed Casey.

"We are all very proud of this achievement and very excited about the opportunities such an award brings. It has been a tremendous amount of hard work but it has been worth every minute. Also, we could not have made this film without all of the support we received from our cast, crew, family, friends, Skillset Screen Academy Wales and everyone else who gave us their help when we needed it most. We would like to thank everyone for that support, we surely wouldn't have got to this stage without it!"

The film has garnered international interest with screenings worldwide including Montreal Film Festival and has won awards including the 2007 Best of Festival Award at the Ffresh Student Moving Image Festival. The film will now go on to be featured at the Short Film Corner in Cannes 2007.

The filmmakers have gone on to work in the industry both in the UK, in Finland (Oskari Korenius) and in Africa (Nick Davies has been working with Welsh director Karl Francis) and Ed Casey has been selected by SSAW to attend the MEDIA Funded Wajda Film School in 2007 and is developing a slate of projects.

Read more about Screen Academy Wales here.

Visit BAFTA Cymru

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2007 Mark Leslie Woods

Welsh Director Russell T Davies wins 2007 Siân Phillips BAFTA Cymru award

According to the BBC:

"Doctor Who has won five awards at the Bafta Cymru awards in Cardiff. The hit TV series, made by BBC Wales, was shortlisted in 14 separate categories in the TV and film awards.

"It won the prizes for best drama series and best drama director, as well as awards for costume, make-up and photography direction.

"Producer Steve Robinson competed against himself with three nominations for best documentary - including Iolo Williams Flying with Kites, which won.

"Doctor Who's lead writer and executive producer Russell T Davies also won the Siân Phillips award for his outstanding contribution to network television.

"Christopher Eccleston, who starred in the first Doctor Who series to be produced for 16 years, and co-star Billie Piper were nominated in the best actor and actress categories.

"The series - now into its second run with the new Doctor David Tennant - has also been nominated as best drama in the Bafta awards, which will be held on 7 May in London.

""We are thrilled that the spectacular contribution made by Russell T Davies to television over the past few years has won him such a very special award,"" said BBC Wales head of English programmes Clare Hudson.

"As well as Doctor Who, Davies' writing credits include Casanova and Queer As Folk."

Read more about Russell Davies at BBC here

Visit BAFTA Cymru

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2007 Mark Leslie Woods

Mae 'euraid' enillydd BAFTA Cymru cerddoriaeth ffilmiau; Welsh BAFTA Film Music Winner is 'Gold'

Michael Beek at the website 'Music from the Movies' writes:
Welsh BAFTA for Murray Gold:

The best music being written for the small screen at the moment is without doubt Murray Gold’s Doctor Who. Every Saturday evening on BBC1 the time-travelling doctor’s adventures are accompanied by a full, blazing orchestral score and the quality of the work, week in, week out, is astounding.

It’s a numbing schedule for the composer, but once in a while a well deserved pat on the back comes along and one such accolade came Gold’s way this weekend. Saturday night (April 28th) saw the BAFTA Cymru Awards, aka the Welsh BAFTAs, which took place at Cardiff International Arena.

Murray Gold took home the award for Best Original Music Soundtrack for the Doctor Who episode ‘The Impossible Planet’, beating himself and Ben Foster for the series’ spin-off Torchwood and David Ayers and Felix Todd for the popular BBC series Tribe.

For those of you wondering why Doctor Who is in the running for Welsh BAFTAs then it’s because it’s produced by BBC Wales and filmed in and around Cardiff, even the music is recorded there. The hugely popular series won in eight of the thirteen categories it was nominated, a great achievement indeed.
Read more here
Visit BAFTA Cymru
Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.
Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.
Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.
© 2007 Mark Leslie Woods

Cyfrwng Welsh Media Conference Friday: Concern Continues over Swansea Trains

Cyfrwng Welsh Media Conference Begins Tomorrow at the University of Wales, Swansea, Singleton Park Campus. All delegates are encouraged to allow extra travelling time, since the trains are still causing delays . . .

National Rail Enquiries

Read more about the CYFRWNG 2007 CONFERENCE

University of Wales Swansea
13-14 April 2007

Devolution and the Development of Media in Wales

The Cyfrwng conference is an opportunity for academics, students and media practitioners to discuss key issues facing the media in Wales.

Cyfrwng 2007 is hosted by the University of Wales Swansea and the conference will address debates surrounding devolution and the media, including the relationship between the media and the Assembly, developments in the task of reporting politics in Wales, issues of regulation, changes in the commissioning process, and changes in national theatres.

Keynote speakers confirmed for this conference include:

Huw Edwards, BBC News
Rhys Evans, Deputy Head of News & Current Affairs BBC Wales
Lowri Gwilym, S4C Commissioning Editor, General Factual
Clare Hudson, BBC Wales Head of Programmes (English)
Elis Owen, ITV Wales Controller of Programmes
John Geraint, Green Bay
Lord Dafydd Elis Thomas, The National Assembly for Wales Presiding Officer
Leighton Andrews, AM Rhondda
Professor Steve Blandford, University of Glamorgan
Paul Jones, Teledu Apollo
Ed Thomas, Fiction Factory
Angharad Jones, S4C Commissioning Editor, Drama and Films
Peter Edwards, Film Agency for Wales
Professor Hazel Walford Davies
Gareth Miles
Michael Bogdanov, Theatre Wales Company
Professor Dai Smith, University of Wales Swansea
Martin Shipton, Western Mail
Spencer Feeney, South Wales Evening Post
Patrick Hannan, BBC Wales
Aled Price, Y Byd
Mary Traynor, University of Glamorgan
Julie Barton
Andrew Jones, GTFM
Rhodri Williams, Ofcom

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai Razing Ziggurats, on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Celtic Cult Cinema on the World Wide Web.

Click here to go directly to my personal blog page called Mordechai's Post-Evangelical-Granola on the World Wide Web.

© 2007 Mark Leslie Woods

McCrory's Stellar Trajectory: Welsh BAFTA to Oscar

Helen McCrory's Stellar Trajectory from Welsh BAFTA to Oscar-winning film:

The multi award-winning actress Helen McCrory has just finished working with Stephen Frears in his forthcoming satire 'The Queen' with Michael Sheen and Helen Mirren, playing Cherie Blair.

On the small screen Helen's first television film, Karl Francis' 'Street life' with Rhys Ifans, won her the Welsh BAFTA, Monte Carlo Best Actress Award and the Royal Television society Best Actress Award, for her extraordinary performance as Jo. The Edinburgh Film Festival wrote 'Simply the best performance this year'.

She went on to win 'Critics Circle Best Actress Award' for her role as the Barrister Rose in the Channel 4 series 'North Square', having been previously nominated for her performance in 'Fragile Heart' with Nigel Hawthorne the year before and has been nominated by the Royal Television Society for a variety of roles.

On screen, she's played the entire gamut of roles, from a sexually charged Anna Karenina in Channel 4's lavish adaptation, to a hard-faced, dyed-blonde single mother on a Welsh council estate in the TV film Streetlife (a role for which she won several awards, including a Welsh BAFTA), and a triumphantly hideous Margaret Peel in Lucky Jim, with Coke-bottle specs and tight curls flattened to her head.

Helen McCrory at IMDB

Helen McCrory at Angelfire

Karl Francis at Screen Online

Helen McCrory at the Telegraph

BAFTA Cymru Saturday 28 April 2007 -- The Annual BAFTA Cymru Film, Television and New Media Awards Ceremony is to be held at the Cardiff International Arena. For further details contact the BAFTA Cymru office on 02920 223898 or email lisa@bafta-cymru.org.uk

BAFTA CYMRU

or paste into your browser: http://www.bafta-cymru.org.uk/

North American Journal of Welsh Studies, Vol. 6 No. 2

The new issue of the North American Journal of Welsh Studies, Vol. 6 No. 2
(Summer 2006) is available online at http://spruce.flint.umich.edu/~ellisjs/journal.html.

It features the following the articles:

John Harris, (Re)Presenting Wales: National Identity and Celebrity in the Postmodern Rugby World
Martin Johnes, Aberfan (Book Review)
Paul Ward, Welsh and Working Class (and British too): The Case of Huw T. Edwards

The North American Journal of Welsh Studies would like to invite authors of papers presented at any NAASWCH conference to submit a paper for review and possible publication. Submissions may be sent to mgray@post.harvard.edu.

Chwithedd Cyfoeth Ebrill or ‘April's Embarrassment of Riches’

By Mark Leslie Woods

Almost every March, I travel to South Florida for the Miami International Film Festival.
Two years ago this past week, the American film industry papers were full of news of a Welsh film win, as Amma Asante’s, A Way of Life won the 2005 Miami Grand Jury prize.

But each year, I barely get my March Miami Beach suntan started and I have to hurry back to Cardiff.
That’s because, every April, in daffodil-splendid Wales, we seem to have a Welsh Film and Media ‘embarrassment of riches’ when it comes to stimulating and gala affairs related to film, television and music.

2007 promises to be no different from previous years.

But before we get to April, March is busy enough: New to the Welsh March calendar is Zoom Cymru, the Wales International Young People’s Film Festival.

March ends with the fabulous pan-Celtic, Celtic Media Festival, an itinerant festival held in different Celtic venue each year, this year in the breath-taking Isle of Skye.
Welsh film and TV producers will be flushed with the thrill of awards and Celtic victories, just in time for parade of media events on Cambria’s fair shores.

Headlining this year’s April line up, is the Welsh Media Conference, known as Cyfrwng.

This event, heralding the release of an academic journal by the same name, is populated with regular ‘Who’s Who’ of prominent media celebrities and scholars.
In the itinerant tradition of the National Welsh Eisteddfod and Celtic Media Festival, Cyfrwng Conference, is hosted by a different Welsh Film or Welsh Media School, each year.

Occurring almost simultaneously with the Cyfrwng Welsh Media Conference, is Dr. Rea Dennis’ Music, Drama and Television Conference called ‘Improvisation Continuums.’
The University of Glamorgan’s Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries is hosting this impressive line-up, together with the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama.

April ends with the gala BAFTA Cymru Awards Ceremony, making April one of the most socially active months each year for Welsh film, TV, music and drama industry events, concerts, and scholarly fare.

Find out more:

Zoom Cymru 22-25 March, South Wales Valleys, Wales International Young People’s Film Festival
http://www.zoomcymru.com/

Celtic Media Festival 28-30 March, Isle of Skye
http://www.celticfilm.co.uk/

Cyfrwng Welsh Media Conference 13-14 April, University of Wales, Swansea http://www.cyfrwng.com/

Cardiff School of Creative & Cultural Industries presents:
Improvisation Continuums 11-14 April, Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama
http://glamlife.isd.glam.ac.uk/newsevents/294/497 http://glamlife.isd.glam.ac.uk/newsevents/294/497
impro2007@glam.ac.uk

BAFTA Cymru Saturday 28 April 2007 -- The Annual BAFTA Cymru Film, Television and New Media Awards Ceremony is to be held at the Cardiff International Arena.
For further details contact the BAFTA Cymru office on 02920 223898 or email lisa@bafta-cymru.org.uk
http://www.bafta-cymru.org.uk/