BA (Hons) Model Making & Props students joined Lecturer John Noble at this years Makers Central event in Birmingham in May. Makers Central is the UK’s premier annual event celebrating hands on creativity, craftmanship and maker culture held at the National Exhibition Centre (NEC) in Birmingham. The event brings together thousands of hobbyists, inventors, crafters, and DIY enthusiasts through key note speakers, demonstrations, workshops, masterclasses, an exhibition and makers market.

John who sat on an industry panel at the event said, “We were invited to the Makers Central event at Birmingham NEC by Poly-Props Ltd, following their visit in March featuring a foam carving workshop with our students across model making and props, production design and costume. We were subsequently offered our own stand next door to Poly-Props and I was invited to speak on the Access to Industry discussion panel, along with Thom Wall, Richard McEvoy-Crompton and Helen Davies. We shared stories of how we broke into and survive in the entertainment industry and took on questions from the audience, such as what are the qualities you look for in students and junior employees, and my favourite, what skills do you admire in the working methods of colleagues?”

Students had the opportunity to display their work he explains, “two students Sarah Elwin and Olivia Yell helped make the stand a huge success over the weekend. Their work was displayed at the front of our stand and they chatted to visitors including industry practitioners, fellow-makers, youngsters looking at the industry as a career path and social media celebrities, such as Leon Creator and Droid Builders UK. We were able to inform parents of younger children that careers exist in a broad range of creative arts and many took away our prospectus to pass onto teachers and creative courses. We hope to meet some of our visitors again soon at upcoming open days and interviews!”

Second year model making student Sarah Elwin said “I was beyond excited that I got to exhibit some of my work at Makers Central! It felt like a real privilege to not only go to the event as a representative of the school, but to show off my own work and skills. We were given two tables on our stall, and it had an open back, so we decided to set it up strategically to allow people to walk right through, giving us the potential to attract more visitors. We arranged it so we had prospectuses, leaflets and freebies on one table, and a range of models on the other, with two plinths at the front of stall by each table to draw people in. There was an incredible atmosphere at the event. It was much bigger than I expected it to be and there were people constantly passing by. Everyone I met was so friendly and willing to talk, it was just full of like-minded people who were excited to be there and see what everyone had to offer.”

“I brought three pieces of my own work to exhibit at the event, all showcasing different skills” said Sarah, “including my handmade card Locomotion No1 model, which was made for the 200^th anniversary of the Stockton Darlington Railway, my foam dagger that I made during a workshop with Poly-Props, and my main piece of work was my clay Mega Blaziken Pokémon sculpture which I made this piece for my Production 2 module. I advertised myself as a miniature model maker and made handmade business cards to handout and display my main skills. I was overjoyed at how many people stopped to take photos of my model and ask about it, it made me feel really proud of my achievements.”

Sarah said a highlight of the experience was meeting fellow creatives, “getting to meet and connect with so many others in the industry was a top highlight of the event for me. It was amazing to get to see the team at Poly-Props again, it was because of them that we got this opportunity and I couldn’t thank them enough. They shared so much of their support and knowledge with us, and even supplied us with materials, it just made us all feel so welcome. I feel as though I’ve gained so many crucial insights into the industry just through them alone. We also got to connect with many other makers and industry professionals, such as the Milliput team, and Richard from UOM, who both kindly donated us some materials and supplies. There were many others who also came to chat and offer advice, I feel so much more prepared for industry because of it.”

“I’d say my main takeaway was experiencing firsthand the vitality of networking with others. In this industry especially, it’s such an important thing to get your name out there and network. It’s very much an industry built on working together and sharing knowledge and experience to help others grow. I’ve definitely come out of it with a better understanding of professionalism and feel so much more prepared for the future and for post-graduation! I also couldn’t have gotten to this point without the support of my family, closest friends, and my course leader John Noble. I went into it feeling totally nervous and not knowing what to expect, but now I feel like I’ve left with bags of confidence. Having to interact with strangers has boosted my social skills and helped me learn so much.”

Sarah was also to secure a commission from the event, “I also got my my very first commission! I went to the event expecting to network, make connections and advertise the school, but not to actually find work! The man who commissioned me took a keen interest in my Pokémon sculpture and general work and interests, then came back later to ask me about sculpting something for his daughter’s birthday. He’s been nothing but kind, fair and totally understanding with this being my first commission, and being at the event was a great chance to ask for advice from professionals on how to handle it. It’s without a doubt one of the most exciting things that’s happened to me and feels like a huge step forward in my professional development. I believe events such as this are a perfect opportunity to sell yourself and your skills to others because you’re interacting with your key demographic.”

Keep up to date with Sarah’s work on Instagram: @sarah_elwin

Events and live opportunities like this underpin our degree programme to give students the experiences and skills needed to succeed in the Stage & Screen industries find out more about our BA (Hons) Model Making & Props here.