Series of masterclasses "Multimedia Journalism"

This series of masterclasses will cover the skills and disciplines required by journalism’s latest technologically-evolved incarnation: the multimedia journalist.

From pitching ideas to the online departments of newspapers to harnessing the new generation of remote-production websites to filming and editing content that will compliment online articles, this course will teach as much as you need to know about exploiting the possibilities of journalism’s new digital age. It will also delve into old traditional print journalistic values such as the best ways to research your subject, conduct sparkling interviews and write well structured articles.

John O’Mahony is a journalist who has worked for over 15 years as a feature writer for the Guardian Newspaper in London and a producer who has made high-profile documentaries for the BBC, ITV (UK), Channel 4 (UK), Discovery and CNN. He was one of the first to embrace cross-disciplinary journalism when the web began to emerge as a publishing and broadcasting force in the 2000s. His scriptwriting has received numerous prizes and he has been nominated at the British Press Awards in the category of Digital Journalist of the Year.

Apply for the course here: https://goo.gl/forms/NC4hK0SMyrybW0oJ2

1) The Most Vital part - Getting Commissioned

How to write a captivating pitch and approach. Timing is everything - when and how to entrap your editor. Getting assignments in the multimedia era. The rise of Storyhunter.com and other ‘remote-production’ sites.

November, 8

16.00-18.00

2) Before you begin – Research, Development and preparing for the Perfect Interview.

How to approach research. Be exhaustive – Knowledge is Power! Sketch a rough structure in advance. Throwing away your first questions. Thinking through your structure during the interview. Fishing for an opening and a closing quote. Writing in your head!

November, 15

16.00-18.00

3) The Most Important 50 words – How to write a Great Opening.

Hooking your reader in the first paragraph. The principles to remember when crafting your opening. Biggest mistakes and misconceptions. Writing backwards.

November, 22

17.10-19.10

4) Hidden Secrets of Structure

Different kinds of Structure: Feature, News, Op-Ed, Essay, Review. The joy of the Pyramid! How to write joints and bridges. How to make quotes drive the structure.

November, 29

17.10-19.10

5) The Web Revolution - the all-new rules for Writing and Making films.

The dawn of the multimedia journalist. How to embrace the possibilities of the net. Writing for the internet and the most important new bywords: pithy, punchy, powerful headlines. The all-new genre of the ‘Mini-Doc.’

December, 06

16.00-18.00

6) A Crash Course in making – and editing – ‘Mini-Docs’ for the Internet.

Five Golden Rules for shooting. The Three Golden Rules of editing. Other new trends: drones, 360 Virtual Reality and Google Cardboard.

December, 13

16.00-18.00