Home USA Media July 2018 Calendar of Global Media and Showbiz Industry Social Networking Events

July 2018 Calendar of Global Media and Showbiz Industry Social Networking Events

Childrens Band Competiton @ Beijing Music and Life Show publicity photo.

Beijing Music and Life Show

Childrens Band Competiton, part of July 2018 calendar of global media and showbiz industry social networking events.
Childrens Band Competiton @ Beijing Music and Life Show publicity photo.

Beijing Music and Life Show and National Music Education Conference will exhibit musical instruments, string musical instruments, wind musical instruments, percussion instruments, music software and accessories for digital and analogue music production, musical instruments accessories. The show in Chaoyang District seeks to combine music, lifestyle branding and interactive thematic activities. The Global Forum on Chinese Traditional Music is a forum placing a focus on traditional Chinese music and demonstrating the essence of traditional Chinese culture. Each year, we hold a series of lectures focused on Chinese culture alongside a display of traditional musical instruments with the participation of renowned musicians and educators.

National Music Education Conference

A significant program portion of this year’s event, the National Music Education Conference, is hosted by the National Music Education Service Alliance (NMESA), with international partners including the National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) and the Confederation of European Music Industries (CAFIM). The conference wants to be a facilitator between professional academic and commercial music education. It is goal driven by way of emphasizing enhanced quality of life in a vibrant China, to stimulate robust participation in music education throughout China, and to ensure well qualified musical achievements in its programs. Through panel sessions, hands-on educative workshops and themed concert performances, the conference strives to bring in a comprehensive learning and development communication platform for music education professionals.

Interactive Sessions

Aside from the conference, several musical and cultural interactive sessions are planned, some geared particularly to younger people. Cultural space, Guofeng Pavilion serves to connect the daily routines of contemporary literati and artists as it relates to piano, chess, books, paintings, poetry, wine, flowers and tea. A Guitar Theme Cultural Area at Cross Music Hall will be a space for people who like rock and love fashion. The Happy Learning Center will present a platform for learning and playing organically, particularly in a fun learning environment. It is a programmed competition for children’s bands to encourage originality and creativity and expand their interest in music.

The Royal Cavaliers 2018 Chinese Drummer Championship aims to stimulate children’s interest in learning and to provide quality drummers for the future of Chinese music. Particularly exciting for younger people, fans of the electronic music genre will be able to interact and exchange ideas and five well-known electronic music DJs are expected to attend and lend professional comments.

Radio Asia 2018

Radio Asia 2018 seeks to address challenges facing radio broadcasters in the era of new media and the evolution of Web 3.0. Progressive broadcast facilities around the world are exploring areas where new technologies, platforms and production methods can enter and exit stages of flux from the adoption of the new technologies and processes. The conference will seek to offer best practices from which to operate from. The conference typically attracts hundreds of radio, technology and new media industry professionals to share our challenges, seek solutions and witness what actually works in everyday broadcasting. Pre-conference Workshops open Radio Asia 2018, and they tackle subject matter

Unity and Diversity

This year’s Radio Asia 2018 conference, running July 10-12, addresses the key issues of Radio – Unity and Diversity from a number of perspectives to engage everyone involved in radio production and dissemination. Beginning with Pre-Conference Workshops, topic areas will include, Building your station from the Ground Up, Making Great Radio for Children and Young People, Multi-Platform Storytelling: Telling your Stories On Air, On-line and with Social Media, As the main conference sessions begin on July 11, programming will address topics such as, Knowing our audiences, Making programs for everyone, 50 things to do that will make your station better tomorrow, Focus on Central Asia, Factual vs Fake – how can real news compete? Beyond the Horizon – Blue Sky Thinking. These are only a small selection of topics that will be interspersed within the overall program

Expert Speakers

RadioAsia 2018 will bring forth experts and practitioners from across the region and around the world to chart paths through a quickly evolving digital landscape. Speakers you should expect to hear from include, Wolfram Tech, BCI Group, Germany; Steve Ahern, IMBA, Australia; Simona Martorelli, RAI, Italy; Shanthi Bhagirathan, MBC Network (Pvt) Limited, Sri Lanka; Radka Betcheva, EBU, Switzerland; Paul Amos, Xtra Insights, Australia; Karen Merkel, New Media Networks, UK; Jun Shirai, Japan Broadcasting Corporation, Japan; Julie Posetti, Reuters Institute, UK; John Maguire, France Medias Monde, France; Georgica Severin, Radio Romania, Romania; Flavia Aurella Vionea, Manager of Bucharest FM, Radio Romania; Fayyaz Sheheryar, All India Radio, India; Alain Artero, dotRadio TLD Manager, EBU; Akim Mogaji, New Media Networks; Akiko Ogasawara, Japan Broadcasting Corporation, Japan, and many others will be in attendance.

Media2020

In addition to Radio Asia 2018 presentations, the Kazmedia Center in Astana will also host the fourth edition of the Media2020 series of Asia-Europe dialogues. Co-partnered by the Asia-Pacific Broadcasting Union and Radio Romania, Media2020 aims to prepare broadcasters from Europe and the Asia-Pacific, across all platforms, for the challenges that will be upon them by the year 2020 and beyond. The theme title for Media2020’s conference, “Looking beyond the Horizon,” this year’s conference will examine today’s broadcasting from three perspectives: Are digital media developing in the way predicted earlier in the Second Digital Age? What has proved successful and what is failing? What is coming over the horizon to hit us as we get closer to 2020? Professionals in radio, television, new media, academia, government or servicing industries, can appreciate this year’s Media2020 conference whose program is set to analyse what is working and what is not and what to expect next, whether in the areas of technology, media usage, production methods, audience engagement and consumer needs.

DISCOP

Just outside the jurisdiction of Stone Town, Zanzibar, DISCOP markets bring together buyers, sellers and independent producers of film, television, digital and video gaming content in an initiative to accelerate the development of a sustainable production and distribution ecosystem across Africa and the Middle East.

This materializes into an entertainment and media marketplace that encompasses 70 countries with an estimated population of 1.5 billion. DISCOP IS held in strategic regional industry hubs several times a year (Zanzibar – July 11-13, 2018, Johannesburg – November 14-16, 2018, Sharm El Sheik – February 26-28, 2019, Abidjan, TBA), to better engage an environment and a particular market preference for homegrown stories and show concepts.

Meetings On Demand

DISCOP markets deliver meetings between content buyers, sellers and producers seeking to acquire, license and fund (1) finished content; (2) adaptation rights; (3) works in progress; and (4) projects in development. They also combine flexible online technology with special attention to make the market experience comprehensive and fulfilling.

Rising internet connectivity, fast-growing smartphone penetration and the falling cost of data, the launch of digital terrestrial television and the rise of streaming platforms, and broader acceptance of online shopping will make video entertainment more readily available and put hundreds of millions of potential customers in play. One way in which DISCOP facilitates meetings between various parties is through Meetings On Demand (MOD).

Registered sellers, buyers, and Producers will be able to request individual business meetings with other participants, and MOD will enable company research for vital data through a participant database which also allows researchers to filter for targeted content distribution platforms and/or content distributors. The DISCOP on the ground team can also help identify relevant prospects and suppliers, and define the best possible meeting planning strategy. During the course of the market and one day prior, the MOD team will also be available on-site to setup and confirm last minute meetings.

DISCOP NEXT GEN

One other marquee event at DISCOP 2018, the NEXT GEN program, is tailored to help digital producers and programmers broaden their expertise, get new projects off the ground, pitch innovative ideas, find new concepts and distribution, and gain access to key industry players, influencers and trendsetters. The NEXT GEN program is open to all DISCOP delegates and will field expert speakers from around the world. The overall agenda is specifically designed to give participants valuable, actionable information and tools, along with valuable connections.

The program comprises three tracks, surveying creative and business trends, and their impact on the film, television, online content production and distribution industry. The DISCOPRO track focuses on international content co-production opportunities. The DISCORE track focuses on the production of original music created in Africa to accompany film, television and online entertainment content. The DISCOMICS track focuses on the prevalence of animated content, the enduring value of comic books, the evolution of video games and the rising popularity of eSports.

Comic-Con International

The best known comic convention in the USA, Comic-Con International show opens in San Diego, making it the country’s longest continuously-run comics and pop culture arts convention. July 18 is planned as the preview night for the five-day event. Comic-Con International is a nonprofit educational (umbrella) organization dedicated to creating awareness of, and appreciation for, comics and related popular artforms, primarily through the presentation of conventions and events that celebrate the historic and ongoing contribution of comics to art and culture. In spite of its sprawling program format, these are the feature categories to consider along which San Diego Comic-Con 2018 will be broken down: Special Guests, Anime, Art Show, Autographs, Children’s Film Festival, Films, Games, Masquerade, Portfolio Review, Artists’ Alley, Fan Tables, overall Exhibit Hall.

Programming Schedule

Comic-Con continues to offer the full comics and pop culture convention experience. There is a sizeable programming schedule featuring comics and all aspects of the popular arts, including hands-on workshops and educational and academic programming such as the Comics Arts Conference, anime and film screenings (including a separate film festival), games, the Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards – the “Oscars” of the comics industry, a Masquerade costume competition with prizes and trophies, an Autograph Area, an Art Show, and Portfolio Reviews bringing together aspiring artists with major companies.

Comic-Con Mondo Partnership

In an exclusive event set in 2018, Comic-Con has partnered with Mondo for a 2018 Souvenir Book cover, which features the 10th anniversary of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, illustrated by artist Matt Taylor. Mondo is an enterprise with an affinity for film, art, music and pop culture, and that works toward creating limited-edition posters, vinyl soundtracks, premium collectibles, and games.

This year the Souvenir Book cover will be released as an exclusive print. Mondo has partnered with leading entertainment brands including Marvel, Paramount Pictures, Sony, Universal Studios, Twentieth Century Fox, Walt Disney Studios and Warner Brothers, along with dozens of independent studios and filmmakers from around the world.

Comic-Con Industry Guests

Which industry guests can be expected to attend San Diego Comic-Con 2018? A partial listing of special guests that are already confirmed will include: Jen Wang, Cartoonist, The Prince and the Dressmaker; Carol Tyler, Writer, artist, Fab4Mania, Soldier’s Heart; Peter J. Tomasi, writer, Superman, Batman and Robin, The Bridge, Maggie Thompson, writer, editor, Comics Buyer’s Guide, Comic-Con’s Toucan blog; Larry Stroman, writer, artist, Tribe; artist, Alien Legion, X-Factor; Jeff Smith, author/cartoonist of the Bone and RASL graphic novels; Ann Nocenti, writer, The Seeds, Daredevil, Catwoman; Mike Mignola, writer, artist, Hellboy; David Mack, writer/artist, Kabuki, DareDevil, Captain America: The Winter Soldier; Paul Levitz, writer, editor, publisher, in a 30-year career at DC Comics; Jim Lee, Publisher, DC Comics, artist, Batman: Hush, Superman Unchained; Joëlle Jones, writer, artist, Catwoman, Lady Killer; artist, Batman.

More Comic-Con industry guest will be, Larry F. Houston, Producer, director, The X-Men Animated series; Nalo Hopkinson, author, Brown Girl in the Ring, Sister Mine, professor of Creative Writing at the University of California-Riverside; Deborah Harkness, author, All Souls Trilogy, The World of All Souls; Veronica Fish, illustrator and comic book artist, Archie Comics, Spider-Woman, Silk, Howard the Duck, Slam!, Pirates of Mars; Manuele Fior, writer, artist, Cinq Mille Kilomètres Par Seconde, Mademoiselle Else; Mark Evanier, Writer, producer, comics historian, DC, Disney, Warner Brothers, and Hanna-Barbera; Aminder Dhaliwal, director at Disney TV Animation, Cartoonist, Woman World; Marc Bernardin, writer, The Authority, The Highwaymen, Castle Rock, Alphas; Sergio Aragonés, cartoonist, MAD magazine; Yoshitaka Amano, illustrator, designer, Speed Racer, Sandman: The Dream Hunter, Vampire Hunter D.

Preview Night

It used to be that if you bought a four-day badge to Comic-Con, you automatically gained entry to Preview Night which represented a sneak peek at the convention floor while it was still not ready for an official opening. But for some time now Preview Night has become eagerly anticipated as with the rest of the Comic-Con convention. Despite Warner Bros. being under new leadership at the top by AT&T, Comic-Con and Warner Bros. Television (WBTV) are expected to continue their annual Preview Night tradition. Director James Wan reportedly revealed Aquaman is on tap for the show and Warners will be showcasing a trailer. Hardcore collectors will find Preview Night a good time to get a Comic-Con Exclusive. These are the limited edition toys and collectibles only available at SDCC. On the downside of preview night, not a lot of costumers turn out for preview night, probably due to the shorter hours allotted, and cosplay is an irrefutably important part of fan conventions.

Portfolio Review

Comic-Con conducts Portfolio Review sessions with attending companies that include comic publishers, movie and TV studios, video game companies, and others. While the sessions may not always result in job offers, they strive to offer an honest and professional appraisal of the portfolio from seasoned industry insiders. When submitting material for review, recommended formats to submit are 6-10 pages of revised sequential storytelling. And located in the Sails Pavilion upstairs at the Convention Center, the Art Show contains original works for sale by both amateurs and professionals. It also displays the nominated books and comics for this year’s Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards and houses a special exhibit devoted to members of the Will Eisner Hall of Fame. Requests to appear in the Autograph Area at Comic-Con International 2017 are being accepted. Please contact cci.autographs@comic-con.org for details.

Comic-Con Masquerade

Comic-Con International 2018 Masquerade will display over 100 costumes re-created from various sources and genres, as well as completely original designs, will take their turns on the theater-style stage. While no purchased costumes are allowed in the competition, those attending in the audience can dress as they like. The event will run for about 3 hours, including an intermission for judging and the presentation of awards. The judging panel, assembled from costuming professionals, will select the winners of the Comic-Con Masquerade awards in various categories.

DC Comics representatives will present a special limited edition DC Collectibles item to the finest costumed entry portraying a DC Comics character or characters from their publications or movies. Other representatives of companies and organizations set to be present and take part include, Will Eisner Spirit of Storytelling Award, Costume Designers Guild IATSE Local 892, David C. Copley Award for Most Innovative Costume, Motion Picture Costumers Union, Local 705, Art Directors Guild (IATSE Local 800, Costumer’s Guild West, Inc.

Through portraying characters, creating moods, projecting stories with bits of drama, comedy, lightsaber battles, even some song, and dance, the Masquerade event offers strong proof it is not just another costume contest or fashion show. The large elevated stage this event is mostly cast on has theater-style lighting, changing backdrops, and four large high-definition video screens providing close-up views gathered by multiple cameras. An audience fills the Convention Center’s Ballroom 20, and an overflow audience watches the show on large projection screens in the nearby Sails Pavilion and other ballrooms. There will be a Masquerade Review on Sunday afternoon so contestants may watch a large-screen video of their presentations and offer questions or comments to the Masquerade staff.

Australian International Movie Convention

Set within the Broadbeach district of Gold Coast, a metropolitan region south of Brisbane and famed for its sandy beaches and surfing spots, the Australian International Movie Convention is hosted annually by NACO (National Association of Cinema Operators-Australasia), and strives to bring about access to local and international colleagues from cinema exhibition, distribution, production, and technology-cinema equipment suppliers at its annual event.

Drawing in delegates from Australia, New Zealand, Asia, the US and Europe, AIMC programming sets up previews of upcoming product lines from major and independent studios so attendees can watch local and international product reels of upcoming releases; mingle with onscreen film talent, filmmakers and industry leaders at gala dinners and functions; learn about the latest local and international trends from guest presenters and panel sessions; Learn about cinema innovations and products at the AIMC trade show and hear about current issues confronting the industry; discuss latest technologies and cinema fit-outs with trade exhibitors; and network with colleagues and senior industry executives.

VISTA Golf Day

The five-day festival opens July 29 with more of an orientation agenda consisting of VISTA Golf Day with the VISTA Golf Awards presentations, the AIMC and Screen Australia Welcome Function, the Australian Film Presentation/ Premiere screening feature entry, ‘The Flip Side.’ Day one activities conclude with a cocktail sip at VISTA Bar. Beyond the day one opener, the duration of the festival offers a fuller schedule of comprehensive festival activities.

Distributor Presentations

A substantial portion of the convention program is allocated to Distributor Presentations. 20th Century Fox, Entertainment One Films, Paramount Pictures, Roadshow Films, Studiocanal, Walt Disney Studios, Sony Pictures Releasing, Icon Film Distribution, Transmission Films, Universal Pictures will make presentations followed by screenings. There will be a Meet the Distributors session on July 30, that will be set up as a networking event for exhibitors to “catch up” with distributors, and it will be followed by a panel discussion. The AIMC Gala Dinner at Movie World and After Party at Topgolf are slated for August 1. The final day is composed mostly of film screenings. End of evening cocktail sips takes place on all evenings except closing night.

AIMC Keynote Address

Janine Allis, Founder and Executive Director of Boost Juice Bars, had an early career start in the film industry. She will present the AIMC Keynote Address on July 31 and share her knowledge on her climb as a self-made businesswoman, and also through her a role as a “Shark” and mentor on Network Ten’s Shark Tank. Another very unique and fun side of the AIMC show will be revealed to its visitors at nearby Warner Bros. Movie World when they get to take part on the virtual Justice League 3D – The Ride, to fight side-by-side with the Justice League to save the citizens of Earth. Participants engage this “dark” ride with a laser blaster and the goal is to get the highest alien stun score possible. Certain criteria must be met before riders, children can sign up to play. Other fun attractions that form a break away from the fun movie business stuff will include, Speedy Gonzales’ Tijuana Taxis, Junior Driving School, Sylvester and Tweety Cages.

More Events

The above events are only a sample of what is fully listed. Complete details are on the “Calendar of Global Media and Showbiz Industry Social Networking Events” page. If you like this report and other content found on The Actor’s Checklist, like the Facebook page at this link. As July passes into August we are well into the summer holiday period and events calendar activity has shown a drop-off. But there are dates for the upcoming August calendar for you to know about. The China Digital Entertainment Congress (CDEC) will be in Shanghai; music extravaganza Lollapalooza returns to Chicago; Florida Media Conference will be in Orlando; Indie Entertainment Summit comes to Hollywood, Art is Alive Film Festival opens in New York City, The Edinburgh International Television Festival returns to Edinburgh, Manitoba Electronic Music Exhibition, opens in Winnipeg, the Big Cine Expo launches in Mumbai.

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