09.30 - 10.00
Doors open
Registration & Welcome
Welcome & Community Warm-up
10.00 - 10.10
MAIn Stage
Welcome to the BE YOU Festival
Tomasz Witkowski & Jaisica Lapsiwala, Co-founders, Soho Media Club
Muki Kulhan, Chief Innovation Officer, XR Producer & Creative Technologist
10.10 - 10.50
MAIn Stage
The Future of Content: Taking TV Somewhere New
TV isn’t what it used to be – and neither are we. On-demand, digital-first audiences are reshaping the rules of television: what they watch, how they watch it, and even how it’s made. This session brings together leaders from across the content ecosystem to unpack where the industry goes next.
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Expect an honest debate on how traditional players, new studios and creators can respond to changing audience expectations and whether the TV industry is bold enough to reinvent itself before someone else does.
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Camilla Lewis, CEO, Curve Media
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Trent Williams-Jones, Executive Producer, After Party Studios
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Kaio Grizzelle, Digital Commissioning Executive, Channel 4
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Martin Trickey, Managing Director, Zoo 55, ITV Studios
Moderated by:
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Ros Atkins, Analysis Editor, BBC News
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MAIn Stage
10.55 - 11.30
Show Me the Money: The New Playbook for Funding
Let’s be real: the old funding playbook doesn’t cut it anymore. So where is the money, and how do you actually get your project off the ground?
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This session pulls back the curtain with producers, commissioners, distributors, and digital-first disruptors who are rewriting the rules. Expect straight talk on:
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What’s getting greenlit (and what’s not).
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How to balance creative risk with commercial reality.
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What is the funding model going forwards?
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Meet the experts who can help you navigate the many emerging avenues for content.​
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Forget the jargon – this is about survival, innovation, and the hustle of getting your content made in 2025 and beyond.
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Derren Lawford, Founder and CEO, DARE Pictures
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Soleta Rogan, Managing Director, Rogan Productions & Rogan Scotland
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Holly Cowdery, Head of Sales, BossaNova
Moderated by:
Omar Oakes, Consultant & Journalist & Founder, oomph
11:30- 11.50
BE YOU Networking break
11.50 - 12.25
MAIn Stage
Keynote:
In Conversation with…
Ash Atalla, CEO, Roughcut Television
TV's Culture: Where are we right now: From commissioning overhauls and the creator economy pivots to diversity and disability.
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Ash Atalla, CEO, Roughcut Television
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Moderated by: Muki Kulhan, Chief Innovation Officer; Executive XR/MetaTech Immersive Producer & Creative/5G Technologist
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12.30 - 12.45
MAIn Stage
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From “Wow” to “How”:
AI as a creative partner – Not a replacement
How can you embrace rather than fear AI’s possibilities? In this session, we navigate the future of creativity.
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Where the f**k to a start with AI
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How can AI enhance truly creativity, without compromising the quality!
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Which tools can help me do what I couldn't do before
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There are so many tools - Can I really afford it?
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Cassie Quarless, Filmmaker & Creative Technology Leader
12.45 - 13.00
MAIn Stage
Beyond the Pixel:
How Generative AI is Revolutionising Hollywood & High-End Visual Effects
Join award-winning VFX Supervisor & Director Victor Perez for a pioneering exploration into how generative AI is not just a novelty, but a rapidly maturing force transforming cinematic storytelling, visual effects, and production pipelines. From Hollywood blockbusters to boutique VFX studio work, discover what’s possible now and what’s just around the corner.
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Victor Perez, Visual Effects Supervisor​​
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13.00 - 13.15
MAIn Stage
AI Q+A
13.15 - 14.30
BE YOU Lunch
Don't miss the opportunity to join your peers + mAKE NEW industry friends.
MAIn Stage
14.30 - 15.15
Breaking In and Breaking Through: Social Mobility in TV
Let’s talk about class.
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It’s the industry taboo that shapes who gets in, who gets heard, and who gets to tell stories on screen.
From commissioning to hiring, TV and film often reward who you know, not what you know. Add class into the mix, and the hurdles can feel impossible.
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This panel rips open the conversation: how do we tackle the role class plays in access, opportunity and progression and do it with authenticity, nuance and maybe even a little joy?
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Chanise Evans, Senior Advisor, BBC Internal Communications/ Freelance Presenter
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Athena Witter, Founder, Engine Pop
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Sonny Hanley, Director ITV Academy, ITV
Moderated by:
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Annika Allen-Gray, Head of Diversity, Inclusion and Equity, All3Media
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15:15- 15.30
BE YOU quick break
15.30 - 16.15
MAIn Stage
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BE YOU STORIES: “How I Got Here”
Lightning talks from 4 brilliant professionals with different paths into the industry – from colourist to producer, filmmaker to journalist.
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We go under the hood to discover how to get into the notoriously difficult fields of TV and films.
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Learn what skills are sought after and how to work your way up to that dream job (even if you don’t know what it is yet!)
This is an opportunity for anyone, from industry veterans to new and rising talent, to hear industry experts share their personal career stories and then ask the panel for invaluable advice on navigating the industry, overcoming obstacles and making it.
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Melanie Leach, CEO, South Shore
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Poppy Jay, Investigative Journalist and Producer
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Theo Johnson, BBC1Xtra presenter, Actor, Writer and Filmmaker
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Nigel Tadyanehondo, Owner & Senior Colourist, Over&Out Studio
Moderated by:
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Muki Kulhan, Chief Innovation Officer; Executive XR/MetaTech Immersive Producer & Creative/5G Technologist
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16.15 – 16.35
MAIn Stage
Funny Truths – In Conversation with Nabil Abdulrashid
Nabil Abdulrashid, Award-Winning Comedian & Writer
Cimran Shah, Commissioning Editor, Channel 4
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We’re wrapping BE YOU 2025 with Academy Award-winning actor, writer + filmmaker Rachel Shenton.
Rachel wrote and starred in The Silent Child which won the Oscar for Best Live Action Short in 2018. Since then, she’s become a fearless advocate for working-class talent, founding The Midlands Screen Acting School and co-leading the Slick Films Fund to break down barriers and open doors in film + TV.
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Her keynote pulls together the festival’s theme, EVOLVE, and promises to leave you fired up, inspired, and ready to turn bold ideas into real change.
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Rachel Shenton, Academy Award-winning Actor, Writer & Filmmaker ​
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MAIn Stage
16.35 – 16.55
Closing Keynote: Power. People. Possibility.
MAIn Stage
16.55 – 17.00
Closing remarks
17.00 - 20.00
BE YOU Connect: Networking drinks with live music
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