Alan Boyd President's Lecture
A Conversation with Alan Boyd. "Unknown Unknowns. The Building of a Global Brand"
Michael Conrad, President of the Berlin School of Creative Leadership, and the Art Director’s Club Germany cordially invite you to attend the next President's Lecture.
DATE: Thursday, November 11th, 2010
TIME: 19:00 - 21:00
LOCATION: Berlin School of Creative Leadership
ADDRESS: Franklinstrasse 15, 10587 Berlin
Drinks and hors d'oeuvres will be served following the lecture.
RSVP: Seating is limited. To secure space at this event please send your name and email address to: rsvp@berlin-school.com
About the Conversation
In 2001 Alan Boyd, then the head of production company Thames Television in the UK, took a meeting with two men he'd never met before: Simon Fuller and Simon Cowell. They pitched him Fuller's idea for a singing talent show, and under Boyd's leadership, Thames TV put together a production bible and team that developed and sold the show to ITV in the UK. The result, called Pop Idol, changed global TV for the next decade, spawning an entire genre of live talent & judging competition shows that became major brands, from American Idol to Dancing With The Stars to Got Talent. The popular German shows such as "Deutschland Sucht den Superstar" or "X-Factor" have all flowed from this creative spark, which Alan and his team nurtured. As the head of Thames TV, which became Freemantle (owned by RTL/Bertelsmann) and owns a third of the rights to Pop Idol, Boyd oversaw the global rollout of the format.
In his presentation, Alan will talk about the ingredients necessary for building and leading a team that can produce a global brand. He'll share his insights on the skills and competencies needed to produce creative excellence in the entertainment TV business. After his remarks there will be a lengthy Q&A period as well.
About Alan Boyd
Alan has recently created Alan Boyd Productions as a company to independently advise producers and broadcasters on entertainment production. One of his primary clients for strategic and creative advice is RTL's CEO Gerhard Zeiler. Alan was formerly President of Worldwide Entertainment at FremantleMedia. Previously, he was CEO of Thames TV. As Controller of Entertainment at LWT, he devised and or produced over 15 different formats that became some of Britain’s best known entertainment shows, including "Game for a Laugh," "Surprise Surprise" and "Blind Date". During his extensive career, as Director of Programmes, he headed up a major ITV channel, TVS Television. He began his television career at the BBC in 1962. Alan lives in the UK and serves as an Advisory Board Member and Guest Speaker of the Entertainment Master Class.