Visual Media Conference 2018 returns to Leeds Beckett University

The Visual Media Conference (VMC)returned to the Rose Bowl for the fifth consecutive year. Well Met, the conference office for Leeds Beckett University, hosted the annual event on Tuesday 27 March.
Organised by Creative Digital Industries, a specialist interest group of the British Printing Industries Federation (BPIF), VMC provided an in-depth insight into the changing world of marketing communications. This year’s event “See the Light” highlighted the effectiveness colour has in marketing and communications and the development of sensory stimuli, such as augmented reality, virtual reality, artificial intelligence and the impact these burgeoning technologies will have on consumer behaviour.

Hosted by Nick Jaspan, publisher at Prolific North, the event provided the chance to engage with excellent exhibitions, demos and opportunity to network with like-minded people. Prominent speakers included Jonathon Sands OBE, Chairman at Elmwood; James Marks, CMO at DoubleMe; Jasper De Tarr, CEO at Raktor; Kim Arazi, Founder and CEO at IN3; Phil O’Driscoll, Head of Innovation and NPD at Parkside Flexibles; Roger Marsh, Chair of Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership; Neil Tilling, UK and Ireland Installed Base and Supplies Manager at HP Indigo.

Based at the prestigious Rose Bowl, this city landmark sits at the centre of the booming financial, business and creative sector in Leeds – offering the VMC invaluable links with professional bodies, major employers, business students and teaching staff.

Meeka Walwyn-Lewis, Specialist Services Manager, BPIF said: “The Visual Media Conference 2018 was an enormous success uniting communities under the themes of immersive technology and colour hype. It brought together a diverse range of top class speakers and exhibitors, with international experts on colour and communication. It was wonderful to see guests immersing themselves in cutting edge technology experiencing first-hand 3D animated content, 360 VR, visual artistry and virtual performance as an extension of reality.”

Leeds seems a fitting destination for such an event as the city establishes itself as a digital powerhouse in the north, already home to industry leaders in the creative media, digital marketing, cybersecurity and FinTech industries and a full calendar of digital innovation events throughout the year.
With an abundance of teaching rooms and state-of-the-art digital facilities, Well Met encourages space for training workshops. Leeds Business School at Leeds Beckett holds a wide range of professional training courses, which are set up to broaden and enlighten business-minded individuals to new marketing communications. Creative Digital Industries, the organisers of the Visual Media Conference, work with Leeds Business School to encourage development to address the needs of the digital and media discipline.

Providing a dedicated Event Management team, Well Met have continued to seamlessly host this high-status conference from the initial enquiry right through to the post-event briefing. With several auditoriums, numerous teaching rooms and a large banqueting hall available, the Rose Bowl continues to be the ideal venue for the annual conference.