Graduation and Awards Ceremony 2024

Compèred by Richard Hellawell, Head of our School of Film, TV & Media, the ceremony started with an inspiring speech from our Principal, Chris Mayo. Richard and his fellow Programme Leaders then presented certificates to graduating students from our BA honours degree courses in Independent Filmmaking, Visual Effects, and Post Production for Film and TV.

Next up was Ken Lau, Head of our School of Art & Design, who, accompanied by Programme Leaders, presented certificates to our BA honours degree graduates from Games Design, Game Art and Digital Animation with Illustration courses. Following many smiling faces and heartfelt handshakes, Ken then introduced the first of three student showreels from our schools, exemplifying the high standard of graduates’ work.

Rob Magoolagan, Head of Futureworks’ School of Sound & Music Production, rounded off the certificate presentations. Along with Programme Leaders, Rob introduced and presented certificates to graduates from Futureworks’ BSc honours degree courses in Game & Interactive Audio and Audio Engineering & Production and our BA Honours in Music Production course.

Each of our Schools’ Student Partners and Lead Student Partners were also awarded certificates for their invaluable support of Futureworks and their fellow students. Special thanks and recognition awards were also presented to Macy Lomas, BA Honours in Digital Animation and Emily Marshall, BA Honours Game Art, for their tenure as Principal Student Partners during their time spent studying with Futureworks.

Richard Hellawell next introduced the second of our three student showreels and the awards segment of our ceremony. Every year, Futureworks dedicates a series of awards to celebrate exceptional graduates from each of our schools in recognition of their outstanding work while studying with us. Presented by the Heads of School and Programme Leaders, this year’s award winners were:

School of Film, TV & Media:

Best student for BA (Hons) Independent Filmmaking: Nicole Hurst

Best student for BA (Hons) Visual Effects: James Stockton

Best student for BA (Hons) Post Production for Film & TV: Gemma Sciberras

Best piece of work: David Accialini for his portfolio

School of Art & Design:

Best student for BA (Hons) Games Design: Ed Monger

Best student for BA (Hons) Game Art: Emily Marshall

Best student for BA (Hons) Digital Animation with Illustration: Macy Lomas

Best piece of work: Susie Connaughton for her video game, Fate to Imitate

School of Sound & Music Production:

Best student for BA (Hons) Music Production: Jack Fieldhouse

Best student for BSc (Hons) Audio Engineering & Production: James Vernon Evans

Best student for BSc (Hons) Game & Interactive Audio: Ryan Lewis

Best piece of work: James Vernon Evans for his audio engineering and production work on the song Gilded by the band Voidbirth

Outstanding Contribution Awards were also presented to three exceptional former Futureworks team members in recognition of the positive impact that their time and service with us has had on our staff, students and schools. The awards were presented with resounding applause from attendees, by Richard Hellawell and Rob Magoolagan to former Student Experience Coordinator Sarah Strachan, former BA (Hons) Post Production Programme Leader Tom Bohan, and former BA (Hons) Music Production Programme Leader Craig Burgess.

The evening ended with our third and final showreel revealing work created by our award-winning graduates.

Finally, we would like to thank all the staff and students involved in organising and managing such a wonderful celebration for our graduating students. We send all graduates our best wishes for the future as they embark on their varied and exciting creative careers.

If you’re seeking a higher education that will provide you with a degree and the vocational skills, experience and know-how needed for a rewarding career in animation, illustration, game art, games design, music production, sound & audio engineering, game & interactive audio, independent filmmaking, post production or visual effects, then book an open day at Futureworks and discover why we’re the UK’s leading Higher Education provider for specialist degrees tailored for a creative career.