The world renowned Entertainment Master Class (EMC) will make its second visit to South Africa from 9 to 15 September when it will host a Sitcom & Comedy module in Cape Town.
EMC is punted as “the leading Entertainment Academy, an academy created by the industry for the industry, connecting the worldwide business of entertainment television across all screens’.
The Cape Town EMC will be held at Waterfront Studios, which is assisting in marketing the event. Says Waterfront Studio’s Liezel Vermeulen: “EMC’s main thrust is the idea of networking with the best of the best in format television. Last year’s EMC workshop generated two major projects to be co-produced here in South Africa. The EMC international delegates, which will number between 30 and 40, are all executive management level and are the deal makers of their respective companies.’
There are 20 slots available for the South African contingent.
Some of the confirmed speakers are:
Humphrey Barclay, the UK’s most innovative and productive writer and producer of comedy, sitcoms over the past 40 years.
Christian Munder, Director of Comedy for Sony Pictures FFP GmbH in Germany – Europe’s “Comedy powerhouse’.
Caroline Torrance, Head of BBC’s Worldwide’s Content Acquisition team, responsible for evaluating the viability of BBCWW’s programme investments and securing international co- productions.
Norman Kurland, veteran US literary agent who represented the creators of Cheers, Frasier, Magnum PI, Will and Grace amongst others.
Tony Humphreys, independent producer of UK and international content, including the long running situation comedy series Desmond’s for Channel Four and Surgical Spirit for ITV.
Keri Lewis Brown, MD of K7Media which tracks the hottest TV formats and offers global insights
Paul McKenzie, wo speaks about writing and producing children’s and teen sitcoms and dramas for BBC including hits Sadie J and Dani’s House.
Maia Tubiana, VP of Moonscoop, one of Europe’s leading animation companies –responsible for executive producing and development of licensing for shows.
Lee Walters, lead writer of children’s and teen comedy – both live action and animation for clients like BBC, Millimages, Canal +, France 2.
The course covers these topics:
– Comedy Script Editing Workshop
– Comedy Character Development
– Creating Story Lines for Long Running Comedy Shows
– Hot New Comedy Formats
– Packaging Comedy
– International Distribution and Sales Strategies
– International Financing and Funding Strategies
– Format Deals in the Television Business
The cost of this module is Euro 4 000, including all classes, accommodation, meals and transport.
South Africans can access the course component without accommodation etc at 2 000 Euro – this covers tuition, lunches and evening networking social events. There is also an early bird special that if a company registers more than one participant by 10 August, you pay only R17 500 per person.
Interested parties can contact the organiser Clara on the following: brockmann@entertainment-masterclass.tv
The EMC website can be accessed at http://www.entertainment-masterclass.tv/home_en.html
