OKRE Development Rooms are fast-paced, interactive events for creatives from film, TV, immersive, games, content creation and podcasting to meet researchers and people working in social impact with inspiring, surprising and content-worthy stories. A jam-packed 100 minutes of connecting with fascinating ideas and interesting people from around the world, this is a unique chance to explore a rich mix of creative perspectives. This month’s theme is ‘Home Truths’. Giving the keynote will be Jeff Gomez of Starlight Runner, New York, a leading international expert in storytelling across multiple media platforms. Jeff’s clients include Sony Pictures Entertainment (Spiderman), 20th Century Fox (Avatar), and Hasbro (Transformers). Addressing the role of home in story structure, Jeff gives a new perspective on the hero’s journey – reframing it as a collective experience that is at the heart of the most successful contemporary entertainment. Following the keynote, participants will be able to join experts with diverse and unexpected stories and perspectives to share in breakout rooms. These include:
- Superdiversity and how it’s changing the way we belong (Professor Nando Sigona, Director of the Institute for Research in Superdiversity)
- The experiences of Black British undergraduate students making a home in elite university spaces (Lesley Nelson-Addy, University of Oxford)
- How international cuisine is creating new communities (Jess Thompson, Migrateful)
- Medicine, migration and the NHS (Prof Roberta Bivins, University of Warwick)
This month’s event is hosted by the BBC’s Head of Creative Diversity, Miranda Wayland. More speakers will be announced in the coming days.