Programme Leader for Media Production and Academic Champion for Employability and Enterprise (ACEE)
I am a Senior Fellow of Advance HE. My creative industry background lies in film and video, specifically in the areas of production and post-production. While studying my MA in Media Production at University of Sunderland (2006/07), I joined SAFC as a videographer and content creator, designing and implementing the football club’s foundations and infrastructure for online video content.
I started a small production company, Makaveli Productions, in 2009 and have been involved in several professional productions, most notably in the early 2010s. Projects included freelance work for BBC productions, and producing a range of documentaries, focusing on mental illness, in partnership with various NHS Trusts and the Scottish Government.
For approximately a decade I was a regular academic tutor at the University, teaching across several courses including Film Production, Media Production, MA Media Production, Broadcast Media Production, Sports Journalism, and Fashion Journalism. As of 2020, I have been a permanent, fractional (0.6-0.8) member of academic staff.
In recent years I have been lead teacher and/or module leader for a range of production-based modules and I am currently Programme Leader for Media Production. A very exciting, additional part of my employment is my role as Academic Champion for Employability and Enterprise for the School of Media and Communications, which started in early 2023
Outside of education, I am most widely regarded as a social entrepreneur, and I have been involved in several national programmes as both a participant/learner as well as a judge/panel member, including for the allocation of grant funds of up to £250,000. I founded a multi-award-winning social enterprise, Media Savvy CIC in 2010, and its ‘sister’ arm, Diegos Joint in 2022.
I am a huge advocate of enterprise and self-employment, and employability in a more general sense. I am highly driven towards making a positive contribution to the University embedding such elements into the curriculum, especially within the Faculty of Arts and Creative Industries.
Teaching and supervision
I have created and delivered content for over 30 different modules since 2009. Within the past few years, I have been a lecturer and/or module leader for a wide range of modules, including:
- FMP 104 – Production Skills
- FIL 102 – Factual Film
- MAC 275 – Documentary Production
- SCP 204 – Guerrilla Filmmaking
- MED 222 – Shoot. Edit. Share.
- MED 350 – Branded Content and Ecommerce Video
- MAC 307 – Video Production 2
- FIL 302 – Final Practical Project
Research interests for potential research students
- Factual filmmaking
- Enterprise and innovation
- Social enterprise
- Empowering through creativity
- Community cohesion and participation
- Sustainability
Research
Within higher education, my active research is predominantly focused on how enterprise and employability are embedded within the curriculum and ways in which the faculty can further improve upon how this happens across its courses. Research and works undertaken here will potentially be shared as good practice throughout the wider university.
My other current research/research interests are predominantly practice-led and largely take place outside of higher education within the worlds of social enterprise and participatory arts, digital skills, and digital isolation.
- Documentary filmmaking
- Course and curriculum building
- Client work
- External engagement
- Partnership and collaborative work
- Social enterprise
- Business growth
- Empowering through creativity
- Community cohesion and participation
- Sustainability
- Senior Fellow (HEA)
- NOCN Level 4 Award in Understanding the Internal Quality Assurance of Assessment Processes and Practice
- Mental Health Awareness (Level 2)
- School for Social Entrepreneurs Fellowship
- Media Savvy CIC – Co-Founder and Managing Director
- Diego’s Joint CIC – Founder and Managing Director
