Second Round Of Speakers Announced For Creative Cities Convention

This year's Creative Cities Convention is shaping up as the biggest and busiest yet, as a second tranche of speakers have been announced to help delegates navigate their way through the global media jungle and consider the future of production outside London.

E4 Controller Karl Warner joins ITV's controller of digital channels Paul Mortimer in the line-up to consider audiences of the future. Meanwhile Voltage chief executive Sanjay Singhal, Studio Lambert founder Stephen Lambert, Channel 4 head of daytime and Glasgow hub Jo Street and ITV Studios' MD of Global Creative Network Mike Beale will reveal the secrets of global success.

Laura Crowson, senior director of development for Discovery Channel US and Science Channel US joins Pact’s MD of business development and global strategy Dawn McCarthy-Simpson MBE to share insights for producers on preparing to go global.

Babita Bahal and Miranda Wayland, the new heads of creative diversity at Channel 4 and the BBC respectively, will join ITV commissioning diversity chief Ade Rawcliffe, filmmaker Stewart Kyasimire and Screenskills CEO Seetha Kumar to ask how diversity across the nations and regions can be improved.

Internationally the panellists will be joined by Hélène Ganichaud from Arte France, development producer Ruth Underwood from Synchronicity Australia and YouTube’s EMEA head of originals Luke Hyams.

Their names join a list that already includes BBC Three controller Fiona Campbell, Channel 4 Nations and Regions MD Sinead Rocks, director of programmes for Viacom CBS Networks UK Ben Frow, and ex BBC commissioner Craig Hunter, who’s returned to his native Glasgow as creative director for factual at STV. Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer will mark twenty years of popular property shows and Kirsty Wark and Sanjeev Kholi will host.

Delegates at the Creative Cities Convention will also have the opportunity to Meet the Commissioners. Register now for a highly sought-after one-to-one meeting with UK and international commissioners, including Muslim Alim BBC, Tom Coveney BBC, Sean Doyle Channel 4 and Louisa Compton Channel 4.

Between them the speakers will also consider how TV can save the planet and offer different views of the future, updates on production growth in the nations and regions and insights on a range of challenges and opportunities facing the industry outside London at a time of global growth

Further speakers, including international media figures, will be announced in the lead up to the convention, whose stakeholders are Pact, the BBC, ITV, Channel 4 and Channel 5 - and for 2020, Scottish commercial broadcaster STV. Additional support from Glasgow City Council and Screen Scotland.

www.creativecitiesconvention.com