Creative Arts, Film & Media
If creativity is in your DNA, then imagine yourself crafting a career from your passion.
Your artistic talents will be developed in our art faculty which contains specialist studios and industry-standard equipment. Sound good? Then you've applied for the right course - a career in Creative Arts, Film & Media will promise to be a rewarding one.


Learners enjoy their time at college very much. They rate highly the excellent facilities and experienced and welcoming staff.
GET TO KNOW OUR STAFF

Mike Kelly
Assistant Head of Creative Studies
We caught up with Mike to find out about his experiences before joining the College, why the arts are so important to him, and his advice for anyone wanting to get into the industry.
Q: Tell us about your experiences before joining the college.
A: I’d been working for a few years as a freelance cartoonist for magazines like Punch and a broadsheet cartoon newspaper called The Cartoonist, mostly caricature and topical gag cartoons. I was balancing commercial work with teaching life drawing at a college in Newcastle upon Tyne, two jobs I really enjoyed. The whole arrangement was exciting but unsustainable, so when an old friend from Staffordshire (where I’d studied on a degree in Fine Art) told me that Newcastle-under-Lyme College were looking for someone to teach life drawing and illustration I sent in a CV and covering letter. I was invited down for an interview and my career direction moved slowly into teaching full time.

Amber Banks-Brumby
Subject Leader: A Level Photography
We caught up with Amber to chat about her experiences before joining us, where she finds her inspiration and her advice for anyone wanting to study photography.
Q: Tell us about your experiences before joining the College.
A: I studied Photography at Nottingham Trent University where I explored a range of photography practices, I was particularly interested in the fashion industry at the time which led me to interning and eventually working in London as a stylist for e-commerce companies. I have always had a passion for teaching and throughout my studies I worked for the NCS as a Photography Practitioner, teaching young adults’ photography where we would visit charities, hospices and community centres using photography to interact and build relationships with communities. This experience was so valuable and rewarding for me and eventually led me to pursue teaching further. I completed my PGCE in Secondary Art Education at Birmingham City University, which resulted in me becoming Head of Photography in a secondary school and sixth form in Wolverhampton for 4 and a half years before joining NSCG.
Cheryl Smith
Curriculum Co-ordinator
Stacey Rowell
Course Leader - Level 3 Art & Design Practice
I have been working at Newcastle College for 10 years now as a Lecturer and the Curriculum Leader of the Extended Diploma in Art and Design Practice. I specialise in 3D and mixed media practices which I studied at MMU. I enjoy working in a range of scales having produced large scale sculptural pieces and have specialised in jewellery making. I love to work with resin, plaster, wood, metal and plastics in particular. Printmaking and collage have also been a big part of my practice. I love to manipulate materials in order to find new and exciting visual qualities. As a lecturer, I aim to support students in the development and discovery of their own practice, encouraging creativity and experimentation. I will work with you to approach your practice with an open mind and willingness to make mistakes. I love working with young, creative people in order to unlock their potential.
Alex Condliffe
Faculty Administrator
Dave Burgess
Course Leader - Graphic Design
Luke McGillen
Course Leader - L3 Games, Animation & Concept Art
I have always been fascinated in all things art and have a Masters Degree in Games Art from LJM, which coincides nicely with my love for video games. I have worked in a number of different art-based jobs including Architectural 3D visualisation, Games Art and I was the lead designer in an IT company for 10 years. My specialisms are traditional concept art and 3D modelling and I make and sell ceramics in my spare time. A few years ago, I decided to try a change of career which lead me to teaching where I am entering my fourth year and have seen some incredible work produced from talented and inspiring students.
Jay Dyer
Course Leader - L3 Fashion & Textiles
I have ran the BTEC L3 Fashion course for nine years, and was previously the Curriculum Leader for Art & Design, lecturing fashion. I have taught Fashion & Textiles at Lancashire University, and studied a Textile degree at the University of Huddersfield, specialising in embroidery for fashion. I now direct my focus on styling and imaging, as well as fabric manipulation, fashion drawing and illustration. I aim to inspire and motivate my students in a fun atmosphere, and to share my experience and passion for teaching the insightful world of the fashion industry.
Janine Grocott
Course Leader - Photography
Shannon Ball-Mulley
Course Leader - Level 2 Art, Design & Digital Media
Leah Hamer
Personal Tutor
After exploring various creative pursuits whilst at college and university, including creative writing, art and music journalism, I originally intended to use my degree to become a secondary school teacher. Before taking the plunge, I decided to get some experience in the field of education and became a Learning Support Assistant at my local high school. I gained valuable experience here and ended up really enjoying the pastoral element of the job so I chose to head in this direction instead of teaching. I love helping students through their journeys, supporting them through the good times and bad, so when the opportunity to become a Personal Tutor in the Art and Creative Studies department at NSCG came up, I jumped at the chance!
Kevan Knapper
Senior Art Technician & Photography Lecturer
Amy Hill
Art Technician
Abi Sillitto
Lecturer
Andrea Birch-Machin
Lecturer
Graeme Reed
Lecturer
Gus Gosling
Lecturer
Ian Thraves
Lecturer - Photography
Jess Birks
Lecturer
Natasha Hughes
Lecturer
Paul Corbett
Lecturer - L3 BTEC Games, Animation & Concept Art
Sharon Porteous
Fashion & Textiles Course Lecturer
Following my first degree BA (Hons) Textile Design, I led several arts activities within youth work and health care settings. In 1997 I set up my own business designing and making woven textiles. Alongside exhibiting my work internationally, I facilitated textile workshops and was a named maker on the national curriculum for key stage 1 & 2. During this time, I also undertook art residencies and visiting lecturing posts at a variety of universities. I accepted a part time teaching position at Newcastle College in 2001. My second degree MA Fashion and Textiles was completed in 2015 and I continue to enjoy teaching alongside my own creative practice. Recent exhibitions include the Crafts Council, London and more locally at the Brampton Museum and Art Gallery.
Simon Jones
Lecturer
Verica Travar-Williams
Lecturer - A-Levels
Creative Arts, Film & Media: Meet your lecturers
Useful information and contact details
Art & Design (Level 3)
Keep checking back here for updates! As September gets closer, we'll be adding more information here for you.
SUMMER WORK
Drawing is the foundation of all art and design practice. To be successful you must strive to become accomplished in this discipline. You must fill a sketchbook. This should be a hardback, standard sketchbook, A4 in size with good quality paper. Over the summer, you must practice and refine your drawing skills by exploring different mark making techniques. Limit media to pencil, pen and fine liner. Split your sketchbook into 3 sections. Section 1: Still Life. Section 2: Landscape. Section 3: Self-Portraiture. Do not draw from flat images or screens, draw from what is in front of you. This is also an exercise to develop your observational skills. When practicing self-portraiture, you must use a mirror.
Summer Work - Level 3 Art & Design
Equipment List - Level 3 Art & Design
If you have a question for Stacey, the Course Leader, you can get in touch by emailing stacey.rowell@nscg.ac.uk
Fashion & Textile Design (Level 3)
Keep checking back here for updates! As September gets closer, we'll be adding more information here for you.
SUMMER WORK
To help you transition into college life we've set a number of tasks for you to complete over the summer around the theme "Into the Wild / / Beyond the Surface"
Summer Work - Level 3 Fashion & Textile Design
If you have a question for Jay, the Curriculum Leader, you can get in touch by emailing jay.dyer@nscg.ac.uk
Games Design, Concept Art & Animation (Level 3)
Keep checking back here for updates! As September gets closer, we'll be adding more information here for you.
SUMMER WORK
Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions and likeness to non-human entities. A huge number of the characters you know and love are the result of anthropomorphising an everyday household object, vehicle or food item! We are tasking you with researching and then creating a brand-new character with the aim of it being used within a video game.
Summer Work - Level 3 Games Design, Concept Art & Animation
If you have a question for Dave, the Curriculum Leader, you can get in touch by emailing david.burgess@nscg.ac.uk
Graphic Design (Level 3)
Keep checking back here for updates! As September gets closer, we'll be adding more information here for you.
SUMMER WORK
Summer is the time to chill and listen to influential music with the aim to escape before the busy times ahead. To encapsulate those feelings, we would like you to collect and record imagery & memorabilia associated with a variety of album covers in preparation towards your first project.
Summer Work - Level 3 Graphic Design
If you have a question for Dave, the Curriculum Leader, you can get in touch by emailing david.burgess@nscg.ac.uk
Photography (Level 3)
Keep checking back here for updates! As September gets closer, we'll be adding more information here for you.
SUMMER WORK
After a difficult year of study, the summer allows you to relax and unwind by discovering new places and spend time reflecting. This is an ideal opportunity to become creative with your camera or phone, whether it is on holiday or at home. We ask that you choose one of the identified themes to photograph. You must take a minimum of 30 photos then select 5 best to present on a PowerPoint presentation or google slides. You must provide written evaluations alongside images.
Summer Work - Level 3 Photography
If you have a question for Janine, the Curriculum Leader, you can get in touch by emailing janine.grocott@nscg.ac.uk
Level 2 Art, Design & Digital Media
Keep checking back here for updates! As September gets closer, we'll be adding more information here for you.
SUMMER WORK
An alphabet or a set of graphs, or characters, is used to represent the phonemic (structure of sounds) structure of a language. In most alphabets, the characters are arranged in a definite order, or sequence (e.g., A, B, C, etc.) For your summer project you are going to produce a phonetic alphabet journal. This can be done digitally, in the form of a power point file, or in an A5 sketchbook, (which you could make yourself).
Summer Work - Level 2 Art, Design & Digital Media
Equipment List - Level 2 Art, Design & Digital Media
In the meantime, if you have a question for Shannon, the Curriculum Leader, you can get in touch by emailing shannon.ball-mulley@nscg.ac.uk
Foundation Diploma in Art & Design and Media Practice (Level 3/4)
SUMMER WORK
The summer project is an important part of the Foundation Diploma as it provides you with an opportunity to work independently within a creative framework and prepare for the start of the course. In life, our clothes are incredibly personal. They enfold us and keep us warm. They signal our jobs, our tastes, the ways we want to be seen. Within this project, you will be exploring concepts that extend the function, meaning and message of garments. How can the fabric that we wrap and adorn our bodies in interplay with the ‘fabric of life’. What stories can be unfolded? How can these starting points evolve into a personal investigation through our own creative practice? The Summer Project will enable you to gather the resources and place you in the mind-set to start your first project on the Foundation Course. Experiment, try out, take risks and see what you can create as your starting points.
Summer Work - Level 3/4 Foundation Diploma in Art & Design and Media Practice
Keep checking back here for updates! As September gets closer, we'll be adding more information here for you.
In the meantime, if you have a question for Cheryl, the Curriculum Leader, you can get in touch by emailing cheryl.smith@nscg.ac.uk
Meet some of our current students
Watch some our of current Creative Arts, Film & Media students talk about how they're finding their course and their time at NSCG...
College life
Hit play to watch our 'BTEC at NSCG' video! We hope you're looking forward to being part of the NSCG family.
NEW STARTERS FACEBOOK GROUP

Take some time to get to know us really well. You will find our latest news, events and updates by following us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. If you are on Facebook please be sure to join our new Facebook groups ‘NSCG Newcastle College Starters 2022’ where you can virtually join a community of learners who will also be joining NSCG in September, some of whom may be on the same course as you.
Get in touch
Got a question about your course? Complete the form below and we'll respond as soon as we can.