Archive for the 'courses' Category

Writing Workshop

Thursday, September 18th, 2008

passed along by Melba Burns:

 

WANT TO WRITE?

 

“Education is not the filling of a bucket but the lighting of a fire.” W.B. Yeats
This writing group will light your fire!

 

Ever thought you could write a book — but have no idea how to start?

Want to get re-motivated on that story that’s been flitting through your brain?
What about all those experiences your friends keep telling you to write about?
You say? “Oh, later… One of these days, I’m too busy right now…I need more time.”
What about NOW?

· You will be re-motivated to write that book or story
· And achieve the goals you set for yourself.
· You will let go of blocks to your creativity.
· You’ll begin to trust that what you want to write you can, &
· You’ll gain more confidence in your writing.
· You’ll learn to write amazing characters too.
· You’ll be in a community of supportive, like-minded people.
· You’ll get to read at a literary cabaret.
· You will have the opportunity to be published on my new website.
· I invite you to join us in a great Writing Workshop.

It will nurture your soul and you’ll be amazed at your own creativity!
Please call Melba Burns, Ph.D.
604-736-6789
(soulwrites AT telus DOT net)
Tuesday, September 23rd, 7-10 p.m. for 12 weeks
St. Mark’s Anglican Church, 1805 Larch Street in Kitsilano.
$450
Or, Wednesday, Sept. 24th, 1-4 p.m. for 8 weeks, in False Creek
$300
(Post-dated cheques are acceptable – whatever works for you.)
Melba has been writing for over 40 years; articles, poetry, educational scripts for Disney, feature films,
a 13-week TV show, short stories & nonfiction books: she just completed Woo Your Writer Within Like
a Lover. She believes that the soul needs expression to be fully alive. For 20 years, she has encouraged
thousands to tap into their ‘natural writer,’ strengthen self-confidence, keep on writing, & get their
work out there.

Literary Arts Festival July 26!

Sunday, July 6th, 2008

FYI:

Literary Arts Festival

Vancouver Film School and YouTube Announce International Scholarship Competition

Tuesday, March 18th, 2008

VFS and YouTube have just announced an international scholarship competition that should knock Chris Crocker off the front page and into the obscurity which has hungered for him ever since the Leave Britney Alone fifteen minutes started.

The prize is a full tuition scholarship to internationally-respected Vancouver Film School, the school out of which Kevin Smith dropped to go on to produce the magnum opus, the veritable Big Chill of his generation, Clerks. Like I ever saw that.

I’m old, yo.

Anyhoo. The challenge is to make a compelling YouTube pitch explaining just exactly why you’re the natural choice to win. Anyone with enough self-confidence to go into film should have no problem with this part. The school picks the finalists, and then the viewers on YouTube make the final choice.

Official Rules

Full Press Release (PDF)

A few more details, from the FAQ:

This competition is about making film school accessible to everyone. The YouTube community will award three aspiring artists (that includes directors, animators, actors, sound designers and more) with full-tuition scholarships to the Vancouver Film School program of their choice.

Between March 18th and May 9th, submit a short film, animation or creative pitch addressing the theme “What Matters to You.” You must start your video by identifying the VFS program you wish to attend and you must limit your video to no more than three minutes. On May 20th, we will announce the 10 finalists, selected by Vancouver Film School.

From May 20th to May 27th, the YouTube community will view and vote for their favorite videos.

On May 30th, we will announce the 3 scholarship winners.

What programs are up for scholarship awards?

1. Foundation Visual Art & Design
2. Acting Essentials
3. 3D Animation & Visual Effects
4. Classical Animation
5. Digital Character Animation
6. Houdini™ Certification
7. Acting for Film & Television
8. Digital Design
9. Entertainment Business Management
10. Film Production
11. Game Design
12. Makeup Design for Film & Television
13. Sound Design for Visual Media
14. Writing for Film & Television

Some handy tips:

Be creative. Don’t just tell us what’s important to you – show us. For example, if you’re a director, make a short film or documentary about an issue you care about. If you’re an animator, animate a story about an issue, person, place, etc. that matters to you. If you’re a writer, pitch a fresh screenplay concept about something that matters to you. If you’re a makeup artist, transform a stranger into someone who matters to you. These are just ideas and we know you can do better, but the point is: think creatively!

What gets into the shortlist?

Vancouver Film School will judge submissions based on the following criteria:

a. Creativity and Originality (up to 25 points)
b. Relevance of the video to the particular program of study selected (up to 25 points)
c. Technical Execution: Camera/Sound/Lighting/Editing (up to 25 points)
d. Overall Impression (up to 25 points)

And after that, it’s all up to the community on YouTube, so start sucking up building relationships now!

Learn to Blog January 5th

Friday, December 21st, 2007

Current course: Learn to Blog

Upcoming Courses: Blog Promotion (Pimp My Blog) January 12th
Blogging for Nonprofits and Community Groups, January 23.

What: a hands-on learn to blog workshop

When: 10-2 Saturday, January 5th, 2007

Where: Tradeworks Training Society, Downtown Vancouver

Why: Get a blog up and running in one day with personal instruction in
small classes. This workshop covers blog basics like:

* what a blog can and can’t do for you
* how to post podcasts, video, audio, images, and text in your blog
* basic copyright law and accepted practices
* solving basic technical problems, where to find help
* privacy and the internet

Who: raincoaster media ltd, in partnership with Tradeworks Training Society.

Contact bloggingclasses AT gmail DOT com or 778-235-0592.

How(much)? $65 tuition, or $100 for Learn to Blog PLUS Blog Promotion (Pimp My Blog).
Please pre-register via email to ensure your reservation.

With class size limited to 8, this will be a program of personalized,
hands-on learning. During the class you will create your own blog,
tweak the design, publish your first few posts, add a YouTube video,
and even some music. You will leave with a functional, personalized
blog and the basic skills you need to run it.

Upcoming Courses: Corporate and Nonprofit Blogging, Pimp My Blog (blog
promotion), Blogging for Business, Audio Podcasting, and Photoblogging (online and in
Montreal, courtesy Neath of Walking Turcot Yards). Please email
bloggingclasses AT gmail DOT com to be put on the notification list.

Bio: Lorraine Murphy has been blogging for many years, and her
flagship blog, raincoaster.com, is ranked in the top 20,000 blogs in the
world.

Contact us for more details:
bloggingclasses AT gmail DOT com or 778-235-0592

Blogging course: Blog Promotion 101 this Saturday

Wednesday, September 26th, 2007

What: Blog Promotion 101

When: 9:30am-12:30 pm, Saturday, September 29th, 2007

Where: Tradeworks Training Society, Chinatown

Why: Now that you’ve got a blog, why toil in obscurity? Whether your goal is global media domination, raising your professional profile, or just getting your voice heard, this course will teach you techniques of effective and appropriate blog promotion. Each course is strictly limited to no more than 10 students, and covers blog basics like:
· what a blog can and can’t do for you, famewise
· professional vs personal profiles and promotion
· community netiquette and joining the blogosphere at large
· what to say when you have nothing to say/what to say when you have far too much to say.

Who: raincoaster media ltd, in partnership with Tradeworks Training Society.

How(much)? $50 tuition prepaid only.
To register: email lorraine.murphy@gmail.com and reserve your space via the secure Paypal link at the top right-hand corner of http://runningthroughrain.wordpress.com. Reservation guaranteed only upon acceptance of payment.

With class size limited to 10, this will be a program of personalized, hands-on learning. Learn how to let Google and Technorati and other search engines know you exist, and begin to take part in the blogging community as a whole, including where to turn when you need help. The session includes an introduction to proven and values-driven blog promotion practices and netiquette. You will leave with all the skills you need to take your blog as high as you want to go. See you on Technorati!

Upcoming Courses: Corporate and Nonprofit Blogging, Blogging for Entrepreneurs, and Photoblogging (online and in Montreal, courtesy Neath of Walking Turcot Yards). Please email to be put on the notification list.

Bio: Lorraine Murphy has been blogging for many years, and her flagship blog, raincoaster, is ranked in the top 15,000 blogs in the world. She maintains The Shebeen Club Blog for the literary group of the same name, running through rain for students of her course Blogging to Personal Growth, and Blogger’s Blurt, a resource for beginning Wordpress bloggers. She mommyblogs at TeenyManolo and celebrityblogs at Ayyyy! Ms Murphy is the author of Terminal City: Vancouver’s Missing Women and a former Small Business Columnist at Business in Vancouver newspaper and Occupational Pursuit magazine. As one of the cornerstone volunteers in the Wordpress.com technical help forums, she has long experience helping beginning bloggers develop fluency and achievement online.

Blogging for Beginners: August 18, 25th

Tuesday, August 7th, 2007

blog

Just a quick note to let everyone know that raincoaster media (ie me) will be giving the popular course Bloggging for Beginners again. This will be split into two half-day sessions, a week apart, to give students time to work with their blogs and develop specific questions and fluency. Let’s face it: we were all overloaded after last month’s marathon 1-day session.

At some point in the next two weeks we’ll announce an online course session as well, via either MSNMessenger or Second Life, and in early September we’ll be giving our course in the sunny Okanagan.

Blogging for Beginners will run in Vancouver once per month for the forseeable future.

Students can choose from morning or afternoon sessions: the first will run Saturday, August 18th, and the second Saturday, August 25th. Morning sessions begin at 9:30 and end at 12:30, while afternoon sessions begin at 1:30 and end at 4:30. Classes will be held at Tradeworks Training Society downtown (loads of street parking, and easy access to buses and Stadium Skytrain Station).

Our original announcement is here; please note the format change.

What: Blogging for Beginners: from Zero to Technorati

When: 9:30am-4:30 pm, Saturday, August 18th and August 25th, 2007

Where: Tradeworks Training Society, Vancouver

Why: Get your blog up and running in one day, optimized and pimped out in two! Strictly limited to no more than 8 students, this course covers blog basics like:

· what a blog can and can’t do for you
· doing business on blogs/advertising and Adsense
· podcasting, video, audio, and text posts
· basic copyright law and accepted practices
· blog promotion
· joining the blogosphere at large
· solving basic technical problems, where to find help
· what to say when you have nothing to say/what to say when you have far too much to say.

Who: raincoaster media ltd, in partnership with Tradeworks Training Society.
Contact lorraine.murphy at gmail.com for more information

How(much)? $100 tuition. Pre-register to reserve your space: email lorraine.murphy at gmail.com or phone 778-235-0592, and pay via the secure Paypal link on running through rain.

Blogging is the most powerful self-publishing tool ever invented; not only is it free and accessible, but it’s easy. Let Vancouver blogger and entrepreneur Lorraine Murphy teach you the skills to start up, maintain and promote your own blog. Whether you’re interested in blogs for self-expression, showcasing your professional expertise, personal journaling, keeping in touch with family, making new friends, sharing poems, or even publishing a book, this intensive course will get you up and running.

With class size limited to 8, this will be a program of personalized, hands-on learning. During the class you will create your own blog, tweak the design, publish your first post, add a YouTube video, and even some music. Then you’ll learn how to let Google and Technorati and other search engines know you exist, and begin to take part in the blogging community as a whole, including where to turn when you need help. We’ll wrap up with a lesson on effective and values-driven blog promotion practices and netiquette. You will leave with a functional, optimized blog and all the skills you need to take it as high in the blogosphere as you want to go. See you on Technorati!

Bio: Lorraine Murphy is a Vancouver blogger, writer, and editor. She has been blogging for many years, both professionally and personally, and her flagship blog, raincoaster, is ranked in the top 16,000 blogs in the world. She also maintains The Shebeen Club Blog for the literary group of the same name, and running through rain, for students of her course Blogging to Personal Growth. Ms Murphy is the author of Terminal City: Vancouver’s Missing Women and a former Small Business Columnist at Business in Vancouver newspaper and Occupational Pursuit magazine. As one of the cornerstone volunteers in the Wordpress.com technical help forums, she has long experience helping beginning bloggers develop fluency and achievement online.

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