Small Town Big Dreams

In this episode Karishma and Rachel discuss our surroundings in Northern Ireland - how the design of our city of Belfast has been shaped and altered over the years, for better and for worse. We also discuss how humans attach ‘a sense of belonging’ to certain spaces and places, thanks to design.For this episode, we were delighted to be joined by Shane Quinn of the Belfast Buildings Trust.

In this episode Karishma and Rachel discuss the ways in which we can support local. How do we avoid the convenience of large retailers to support local artisans and makers for what we need? /// We are joined this week by the sustainable designer Lucinda Graham

In this episode Rachel and Karishma discuss the cultural revolutions that have bubbled up online and in public spaces in 2020 and their significance in shaping our future societies. They discuss the appropriation and misappropriation of culture within design and how we can make more empathetic decisions as designers. This episode features guests Black Culture Movement UK.

Episode 2- The human cost of Design - In this episode Rachel and I discuss our attitudes to the ethics around the products we consume and the human cost of it all. How can we engage with design in a more ethical and responsible way? /// Our guest - Dr Lipi Begum, a researcher and lecturer of Fashion, Centre of Fashion Business at the University of the Arts London.

Rachel and Karishma are joined by Anna Leckey, teacher at Hot Yoga Belfast and a member of the Tiny Home movement to discuss the buzz word topics of sustainability and disposable design - their personal endeavours to live sustainably day-to-day within the realms of mainstream consumerism and the challenges we all face in doing so.

Small Town Big Dreams is now home to The Belfast Design Week podcast. "In Season 1, Episode 6, we spoke with illustrator Peter Strain whose dreamy illustrations fuse typography and imagery. We spoke to him about how he got into illustration and how his creative practice has developed." This podcast series was sponsored by Kainos with hosting and production by Simon Worthington. Interviews and research were conducted by Simon Worthington and Karishma Kusurkar. Artwork by Two Digs Studio. Music for this podcast was written, performed and recorded by Nathaniel Myers.You can find out more about his work at www.nathanielmyers.co.uk

Small Town Big Dreams is now home to The Belfast Design Week podcast. "In Season 1, Episode 5 we spoke with Richard Seabrooke, a multidisciplinary designer and creative director working with Tenth Man Studio. Richard's work spans visual design, events and much more and he had lots of thoughts on the design scenes in Belfast and Dublin." This podcast series was sponsored by Kainos with hosting and production by Simon Worthington. Interviews and research were conducted by Simon Worthington and Karishma Kusurkar. Artwork by Two Digs Studio. Music for this podcast was written, performed and recorded by Nathaniel Myers.You can find out more about his work at www.nathanielmyers.co.uk

Small Town Big Dreams is now home to The Belfast Design Week Podcast. "In Season 1, Episode 4, we caught up with architect and founder of Studio Idir Aisling Rusk to find out about her practice and her observations about our built environment." This podcast series was sponsored by Kainos with hosting and production by Simon Worthington. Interviews and research were conducted by Simon Worthington and Karishma Kusurkar. Artwork by Two Digs Studio. Music for this podcast was written, performed and recorded by Nathaniel Myers.You can find out more about his work at www.nathanielmyers.co.uk

Small Town Big Dreams is now home to The Belfast Design Week Podcast. "In Season 1, Episode 3, we caught up up with Fiona McLaughlin & Tom Getty of Taunt Studios - an animation studio which is founded on trust and collaboration between its partners and staff." This podcast series was sponsored by Kainos with hosting and production by Simon Worthington. Interviews and research were conducted by Simon Worthington and Karishma Kusurkar. Artwork by Two Digs Studio. Music for this podcast was written, performed and recorded by Nathaniel Myers.You can find out more about his work at www.nathanielmyers.co.uk

Small Town Big Dreams is now home to The Belfast Design Week podcast. "In Season 1, Episode 2, Karishma caught up with WIA founder Conall Laverty. A Dublin-based start up, WIA works in producing products and services in relation to the internet of things." This podcast series was sponsored by Kainos with overall hosting and production by Simon Worthington. This episode was hosted by Karishma Kusurkar. Interviews and research were conducted by Simon Worthington and Karishma Kusurkar. Artwork by Two Digs Studio. Music for this podcast was written, performed and recorded by Nathaniel Myers.You can find out more about his work at www.nathanielmyers.co.uk With huge thanks to Radio YNP where we recorded this season.

Small Town Big Dreams is now home to The Belfast Design Week Podcast. "In Season 1 in 2019, we interviewed a range of design entrepreneurs on the theme of Design & "Power," the Belfast Design Week theme for the year. In Episode 1, we met up with Bronagh Smyth - a User Researcher at Kainos. Interested deeply by psychology, Bronagh designs processes that help her clients better digitally transform their businesses." This podcast series was sponsored by Kainos and hosted and produced by Simon Worthington. Interview research was by Simon Worthington & Karishma Kusurkar. Artwork by Two Digs Studio. Music for this podcast was written, performed and recorded by Nathaniel Myers.You can find out more about his work at www.nathanielmyers.co.uk

The World Turned Upside Down is a 4-part audio documentary sharing stories of how the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic has impacted upon the lives and livelihoods of people working in the creative industries in Northern Ireland. In Part 4, we find out how creative entrepreneurs have attempted to maintain mental health and wellbeing during this very unusual time. With the world having been turned upside down, many people have struggled to make sense of the new normal. With so much uncertainty and when what’s at risk is as serious as people potentially dying, it’s no wonder that it has been so difficult to stay mentally well at this time, no matter how hard we try. For people living alone, this time has potentially been one of the most lonely experiences of their entire lives. For the introverts, this has been a chance to share their tips on how to enjoy solitude. The haves and have nots have been those with gardens and those without, those who can work from home and those who work front line, those who have good health and those who have underlying health conditions. In some ways, this time has highlighted the stark differences between people’s lifestyles. But 2020 has also offered a pause for thought. It has forced us to re-evaluate how we live and work. Whether we really need to go to all of those in-person work meetings, or even have as many. Whether we need to buy fast fashion or whether we can do with consuming less. Whether we should finally do that thing we have been putting off, whether that is learning to cook or proposing to a partner. But has 2020 fundamentally changed us as a society? Has it permanently altered the way in which we work in the creative industries? Or is it a glitch in time before we simply move on and Covid-19 eventually becomes just a distant memory? In our season finale you’ll hear from creative entrepreneurs Tessa Ann of the Sound Healing Spa, Matt & Abby Bonner from Forever Social and comedian Paddy Raff. Thanks also to Alex McMillian, Katie Ireland, Chris Thompson, Dara Flanagan, and Meadhbh McIlgorm for their call-in contributions, reflecting on their experiences during 2020. Presented by Karishma Kusurkar and Graeme Watson. Produced in association with Blick Shared Studios, with support from Future Screens NI, Northern Ireland Screen, and Ulster University. Supporting Academic Research by Dr. Brian Dixon. Full credits at www.smalltownbigdreams.co.uk

The World Turned Upside Down is a 4-part audio documentary sharing stories of how the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic has impacted upon the lives and livelihoods of people working in the creative industries in Northern Ireland. In Part 3, we hear stories of how creatives have adapted to a life lived (and worked) almost exclusively online – the successes and challenges, disappointments and surprises. We’ll meet Shannon Dolores O'Neill from punk band Sister Ghost, stationery designer Emma Johnston, Newry-based American artist Lauren Taylor, and marketing expert Andi Jarvis. Presented by Karishma Kusurkar and Graeme Watson. Produced in association with Blick Shared Studios, with support from Future Screens NI, Northern Ireland Screen, and Ulster University. Supporting Academic Research by Dr. Brian Dixon. Full credits at www.smalltownbigdreams.co.uk

The World Turned Upside Down is a 4-part audio documentary sharing stories of how the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic has impacted upon the lives and livelihoods of people working in the creative industries in Northern Ireland. In Part 2, we look at how the Covid-19 pandemic has affected communities and networks. We speak to architect Aisling Rusk, videographer and fellow podcaster Ryan Ward, film-maker David Moody, and arts organisation director Nisha Tandon. Presented by Karishma Kusurkar and Graeme Watson. Produced in association with Blick Shared Studios, with support from Future Screens NI, Northern Ireland Screen, and Ulster University. Supporting Academic Research by Dr. Brian Dixon. Full credits at www.smalltownbigdreams.co.uk

The World Turned Upside Down is a 4-part audio documentary sharing stories of how the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic has impacted upon the lives and livelihoods of people working in the creative industries in Northern Ireland. In Part 1, we go back to the beginning – to the dramatic turn of events in early March when national lockdowns across Ireland and the United Kingdom were introduced. We share the lockdown stories of Maven co-founder Patricia McGinnis, freelance illustrator Jacky Sheridan, videographer Sean Duncan from Redcap Productions, and Derry-based games production company Hypixel. Presented by Graeme Watson and Karishma Kusurkar. Produced in association with Blick Shared Studios, with support from Future Screens NI, Northern Ireland Screen, and Ulster University. Supporting Academic Research by Dr. Brian Dixon. Full credits at www.smalltownbigdreams.co.uk

Small Town Big Dreams presents The World Turned Upside Down, a 4-part audio documentary series sharing stories of how the 2020 Covid-19 pandemic has impacted the lives and livelihoods of people working in the creative industries in Northern Ireland. Subscribe now to Small Town Big Dreams on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to your podcasts. Our first episode drops on Tuesday 29th September. Presented in association with Blick Studios with support from Future Screens and Northern Ireland Screen.

We end this series with an uplifting interview with Astra McNicholl of Itty Bitty Book Co. & we talk about the series so far, about design and entrepreneurship and our upcoming projects. ASTRA MCNICHOLL / ITTY BITTY BOOK CO. Astra McNicholl is the Founder of Itty Bitty Book Co., a company which creates products that inspire and delight through their messages of hope and their strategies to help stay happy and build confidence. Itty Bitty Book Co. was founded in 2013 and has since grown to have both a local and international customer base with many shoppers from the UK and the USA. Astra’s aim is for the company to produce as ethically as possible as well as become carbon neutral and she is working towards this goal as the company develops. Find out more: www.ittybittybookco.com www.instagram.com/ittybittybookco www.twitter.com/IttyBittyBookCo … THE PODCAST CREATORS In the final interview of the Great Creators series, we - the podcast creators - gather to discuss the podcast! Find out more: www.qub.ac.uk/graduate-school/ http://belfastdesignweek.com Resources: Business & Innovation https://qubsu.org/EnterpriseSU/ http://blickstudios.org http://womenfolk.co https://wearecatalyst.org/programmes/co-founders/ https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk Design Thinking Tools & Projects https://dschool.stanford.edu/resources https://dschool.stanford.edu/hacktivation-nation/ https://vimeo.com/showcase/3443329/video/273275127 https://medium.com/@TeachersGuild/the-case-for-belief-e51256b9185e https://www.placeni.org/projects.html https://schoolretool.org https://www.bigmotive.com/blog/ https://www.designthinkersacademy.com Events https://www.qub.ac.uk/events/whats-on/ http://belfastdesignweek.com http://belfastdesignpopup.com https://creativemornings.com/cities/bfs Mental Health & Wellbeing https://www.qub.ac.uk/directorates/sgc/wellbeing/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/mindyourmood/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/qubmindyourmood?lang=en https://www.aware-ni.org/wellbeing-programmes

In this episode we speak to two guests exploring design for public spaces, be they physical or experiential and working on projects both locally and internationally. AMBERLEA NEELY / STARLING START Amberlea Neely is the founder of Starling Start, a new creative practice based in Belfast. Her work encompasses a diverse network of organisations, artists, architects, designers, educators and producers and a covers range of projects including a recent one with Studio IDIR exploring the peace wall with local residents. Previous organisations Amberlea has worked with and helped develop include Platform Arts, Belfast Photo Festival and most recently PLACE, an organisation focused on creating cutting-edge community engagement with the built environment. Find out more: https://www.starlingstart.com https://www.instagram.com/starlingstart https://twitter.com/StarlingStart … PETER WORTH Peter Worth is a Learning Experience Design Consultant whose work has been largely in the realm of the American public school system working in a collaborative manner with school leaders, staff and students. His recent work has included being a part of the design team at The D:School at Stanford working on the School Re:Tool programme, a professional development fellowship that helps school leaders re-design school culture using hacks and deep learning. He is currently based in Northern Ireland, working on both local and international programmes and we caught up with him to find out more. Get in touch: https://www.linkedin.com/in/peter-worth-62202a82 Resources: https://www.qub.ac.uk/graduate-school/ https://belfastdesignweek.com https://dschool.stanford.edu/resources https://dschool.stanford.edu/hacktivation-nation/ https://vimeo.com/showcase/3443329/video/273275127 https://medium.com/@TeachersGuild/the-case-for-belief-e51256b9185e https://www.placeni.org/projects.html https://schoolretool.org

This episode is all about Social Impact and features two companies MADLUG and The Turnaround Project forging the way for social entrepreneurship in Northern Ireland. ... DAVE LINTON / MADLUG Dave Linton is the founder of MADLUG, a company he set up in 2015 after he discovered how many children in care carry around all of their possessions in a bin bag. With a “buy one - gift one” purchase model, customers have helped to give over 15,000 bags to date to children in care in the UK & Ireland. Each bag produced has a label that says “You are incredible” to remind every child that they have value, worth and dignity and during the lockdown, MADLUG has created an activity book for young people. Find out more: https://www.madlug.com Social: https://www.instagram.com/wearemadlug/ https://twitter.com/wearemadlug ... RICHARD GOOD / THE TURNAROUND PROJECT Richard Good is the Director of The Turnaround Project, supporting people on their journey away from the justice system through training, support and employment. Richard’s career has spanned the world of politics, justice and more recently social entrepreneurship and he has worked internationally in countries including Ukraine, Iraq and Sudan. As well as The Turnaround Project, Richard has helped start up Big Loop Bikes, a project re-training those with barriers to employment and is a Trustee of Pivotal, a Northern Irish public policy think tank. Find out more: https://www.theturnaroundproject.org https://www.bigloopbikes.com https://twitter.com/turnaroundproj https://twitter.com/bigloopbikes ... Resources: https://www.qub.ac.uk/graduate-school/ https://belfastdesignweek.com

This episode is all about human centred design and features Big Motive and The Holyland Project. BIG MOTIVE / DAMIAN CRANNEY Damian Cranney is a designer, entrepreneur and founder of Big Motive, an experience design and innovation company in Belfast. Big Motive works with clients and partners in a wide range of industries locally and internationally. From media to healthcare, workshops to government, their work is a perfect example of how good design and user research can create better products and services. https://www.bigmotive.com https://twitter.com/big_motive https://www.instagram.com/bigmotive/ ... THE HOLYLAND PROJECT The Holyland Project is one of a series of interventions happening in the Holyland area in South Belfast. Students from The Graduate School at Queen’s University, organisations such as The Forward South Partnership and the local residents of The Holyland have come together to create projects that will have real benefit to those living and working in the area. The work they are doing is a great example of how entrepreneurial activity can be at a very localised level and community-led, but be of great importance and benefit to developing a neighbourhood and crucially engaging throughout with a human-centred design approach. With thanks to Briege Arthurs, Ryan Rankin, Margarita Jackson and Nermin Al Sharman for sharing their experiences about community led work in the Holyland area. http://forwardsouth.org https://www.qub.ac.uk/graduate-school/ ... Resources: https://www.qub.ac.uk/graduate-school/ https://belfastdesignweek.com https://www.bigmotive.com/blog/ https://creativemornings.com/cities/bfs https://wearecatalyst.org/programmes/co-founders/ https://www.designthinkersacademy.com https://qubsu.org/EnterpriseSU/ https://www.communities-ni.gov.uk

This episode is about design, innovation and research in the Creative Industries and features indie games company Brain & Nerd’s Tina Lauro Pollock and founder of The Photography Ethics Centre Savannah Dodd. ... TINA LAURO POLLOCK BRAIN & NERD Tina Lauro Pollock is the producer, co-founder and co-director of indie games studio Brain & Nerd. The studio has been running for nearly a decade, starting out with a Kickstarter crowdfunded space strategy game called Predestination and the Brain & Nerd team have since developed others including survival game Hortalius and simulator game InCubator. Outside of games development, Tina has written extensively within the tech and games sector and now heads up the Games Northern Ireland community as chairperson. Find out more: https://brainandnerd.com https://twitter.com/brainandnerd https://twitter.com/PurpleTinabeans (Tina) https://twitter.com/nyphur (Brendan) INCubator images and UK Games Fund page link: https://ukgamesfund.com/funded-project/incubator/ Hortalius website: https://hortalius.com/ ... SAVANNAH DODD THE PHOTOGRAPHY ETHICS CENTRE Savannah Dodd is a photographer and anthropologist originally from St. Louis in the USA and currently living, working and studying in Belfast. Alongside her creative practice, Savannah founded the Photography Ethics Centre as an essential educational resource for photographers and is a PhD candidate in anthropology at Queen's University Belfast. Savannah’s focus is on people, material culture, and the minutiae of everyday life. She often combines the disciplines of anthropology and photography to produce visual ethnography. http://savannahdodd.com https://www.photoethics.org https://twitter.com/PhotoEthics … RESOURCES The Graduate School at Queen's University - http://www.qub.ac.uk/graduate-school/ QUB Enterprise SU - http://qubsu.org/EnterpriseSU/ Belfast Design Week - http://belfastdesignweek.com NI Screen - https://www.northernirelandscreen.co.uk The Pixel Mill -https://www.thepixelmill.com UK Games Fund - https://ukgamesfund.com Ormeau Baths -https://ormeaubaths.com Sync NI - https://syncni.com Arts Council NI - http://artscouncil-ni.org Women in Business -https://www.womeninbusinessni.com

Welcome to Great Creators, a podcast series sharing the diverse stories of entrepreneurship in Northern Ireland. We’ll feature start-ups, community-led projects and established businesses which together make up the rich innovation ecosystem. We want to highlight that opportunity is all around, if you know where to look for it and to delve deeper into understanding how a product or service comes about from those “in the know” - the entrepreneurs themselves! The podcast will share different business models and approaches, the challenges and pivots of entrepreneurial journeys and contain useful and easy-to-implement advice and resources. If you’re interested in design, ideas, innovation and entrepreneurship, turn up the volume and listen in. This podcast is a project by The Graduate School at Queen’s University in partnership with Belfast Design Week. DR. PETER BARRETT / THE BUCHA’S DOG Dr. Peter Barrett is a scientist who has recently set up the first kombucha company in Northern Ireland - The Bucha’s Dog. Starting as a passion project in Peter’s kitchen for his own enjoyment and for family and friends, The Bucha’s Dog has grown organically to become a business and Peter's kombucha can now be found in many cafes, delis, bars and restaurants in Belfast and beyond. The Covid-19 lockdown has hit the hospitality sector hard but Peter has used this period to continue developing The Bucha’s Dog through rebranding, designing a new facility to make kombucha, coming up with new recipes and planning future workshops to teach people how to make their own home brews. Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/thebuchasdog/ Facebook - http://facebook.com/thebuchasdog Website - https://www.thebuchas.dog AZHAR MURTUZA / BORN MAVERICK Azhar Murtuza is an entrepreneur who initially came to study at The Graduate School at Queen’s University in Belfast from Mangalore in India and decided to stay and set up an ethical food business, Born Maverick. He believes strongly that “change is up to us” and brings this philosophy to all aspects of his “flexitarian” food products and it is also his advice to entrepreneurs and “want”repreneurs. Azhar believes that Northern Ireland is an excellent place to set up a business and that opportunities are there all around us waiting to be found and made use of. Entering competitions and pitching has given Azhar the confidence to boldly forge forward with new products including coconut milk popsicles, vegan eggs, vegan prawns and coffee alternatives. As well as being an entrepreneur, Azhar is a keen writer and photographer taking in the beautiful landscapes of Northern Ireland. Twitter - https://twitter.com/bebornmaverick Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/born_maverick/ Website - https://www.wearepur.com RESOURCES The Graduate School at Queen's University - https://www.qub.ac.uk/graduate-school/ QUB Enterprise SU - https://qubsu.org/EnterpriseSU/ Belfast Design Week - http://belfastdesignweek.com Invest NI - https://www.investni.com Invest NI Business Information Centre - https://www.investni.com/support-for-business/research-competitors-and-markets Catalyst Inc. - https://wearecatalyst.org Invent Awards - https://wearecatalyst.org/programmes/invent/

In our final episode of this season, we visit comedian, artist, musician, street performer and master of puppets, Paul Currie, at his creative space in the Vault Artist Studios in East Belfast. Familiar to comedy festival-goers across the UK, Ireland, Europe and Australia, Paul Currie’s uniquely silly and exhilaratingly hilarious shows have made him a favourite act for audiences, critics and performers alike. But as we discover, comedy is only one of the creative fields that Paul excels in. We find out about the growth and development of his relentless desire to create, his artistic inspirations, the challenges of depression, and the satisfaction of doing it yourself.

In this episode we hear about Belfast's design startup scene from someone who is in it right now - the founder of emergency services app TapSOS - Becca Hume. Starting out as a jewellery designer, Becca found she could turn her talents to app and service design. Becca talks about how the idea for the app came about and the ups and downs of startup life and the amazing journey she has been on so far. Having pitched and won several awards for her work, Becca gives great tips and advice for those starting up any new product or service.

In this episode we find out what it’s really like to be a creative entrepreneur in the Northern Irish music industry with musician Shannon Delores O’Neill of alternative rock and garage punk band Sister Ghost. Shannon is also the founder of Girls Rock School NI, the Northern Irish chapter of a worldwide movement encouraging and empowering women and girls of all ages to riff, rock and roll through workshops, tutoring and events. We hear about what it takes to be a modern day musician and get tips and advice from someone in the know.

In this episode we speak with Esther Namokobe Mogada of Creating A Space and the Éalú Podcast and discuss what it's like being a multidisciplinary artist. We discuss the many, many projects Esther works on - from fashion, music, events, podcasts and beyond. We ask Esther about her experience setting up ventures as a young creative in Northern Ireland as well as her diverse roots and how they inform her creative output, and we discuss the importance of work-life balance as an entrepreneur and what Esther does to achieve this.

In this episode we hear from Brian J. Falconer of Out Of Orbit on what it’s like being a film producer in Northern Ireland. We learn of how he went from producing smaller scale short films to large scale feature films and his love for throwing epic parties along the way. Brian shares the stories of the films he has worked on including Boogaloo and Graham, The Dig and Normal People and what it was like winning a BAFTA.

In this episode, we speak with freelance event organiser, cultural programmer and human talent networker Adam Turkington of Seedhead Arts. Adam does so much, it’s almost impossible to categorize him, and yet he is often the hidden presence behind so many of the things that are defining a new identity for Belfast, Northern Ireland – from the street parties of the annual Culture Night and the mesmerising street art, to quirky sold out lectures and entertainment events like Midweek Magic and the Half Cut Cabaret. In this conversation, we ask Adam about the journey he took to becoming what he calls a ‘freelance agitator’, discussing some of the major projects he has been involved with along the way such as the Trans Festival, Culture Night and Hit the North. We also speak about his new project, Vault, a creative community and shared studio space located in an abandoned college campus building in East Belfast.

In this episode, we chat with Jacky Sheridan, a Belfast-based illustrator who creates bold, colourful artwork with a message to tell. Jacky’s clients include Subway, Coca Cola, Computer Arts, VICE and The Skinny and she is represented by Northern Irish illustration agency Usfolk. You’ll hear some top advice from a practicing illustrator - on how to pick your work, to reach out to clients and make sure you are managing the business side of your business - which can be challenging at times. This episode is lots of fun, with lots of swearing, so you’ve been warned!

In this episode we hear from Kevin Beimers and Ross Morrison of Holywood-based games studio Italic Pig. That’s Holywood in Northern Ireland - for those non Norn Irish! We chat about their upcoming vertical reality game The Infinite Hotel - which they are already winning awards for - how they came up with the idea for it as well as the state of the local indie games scene in Northern Ireland. We also talk about how to pick the right idea for a project, which is a task many creatives struggle with.

In our last episode for this season, we took a trip to the seaside town of Bangor, Northern Ireland, to meet up with 21 year old magician and mentalist, Joel Mawhinney. Graeme first saw Joel perform at a magic night in Belfast’s Black Box when he was just 16, and since leaving school, has been forging a full-time career as a creator and performer of magic. In this show, we delve into how Joel has been pursuing this unusual pathway in the age of Instagram and Facebook. Small Town Big Dreams is presented by Karishma Kursurkar of Karishma’s World and Graeme Watson of The Infinite Jest, and was created by Karishma, Graeme and Christine James of Blick Shared Studios. We’ll be back in the Autumn with 8 more episodes, so please follow us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, subscribe on your favourite podcast platform, and if you've enjoyed the first season, please rate and review us wherever you get your podcasts from.

In this episode we interview Jane Larmour - co-founder of architectural firm Arigho Larmour Wheeler - in her stylish Belfast studio just off the Lisburn Road. With offices in Belfast and Dublin, Arigho Larmour Wheeler are a great example of collaboration and teamwork and Jane chats to us about how to make long distance business work. Jane is passionate about heritage, conservation, sustainability and design education and she has some great tips and advice for design students and startups. We also talk about architecture as a perfect example of user-led design as well as the exciting but challenging process of designing a building.

A bonus episode recorded live with guests at Digital DNA in Belfast's St George's Market on 19th and 20th June 2018, in conjunction with Startacus, the go-to space for start-ups and entrepreneurs. Over the two days, Karishma spoke with delegates from a whole range digital start-up companies and entrepreneurs. Listen for wisdom and advice from Fab Lab Belfast, Excalibur Press, Pitchbooker, Pukket, Big Pixel Creative, Bright Ideas, Blue Sona, Clever Books, Revolve Comics, Continually, Bookaxe, and even Joanne Jarjue from Season 5 of the Apprentice (UK).

For our 6th episode, we interviewed Rebekah Johanson of minimal jewellery and accessories company Lines & Current. Lines & Current are known for their beautiful clean lines and aesthetic but they also have a social side to their company - they donate 10% of their profits to worthy causes all around the world. The company is run by both Rebekah and her husband Jon. Jon manages business strategy and commerce whilst Rebekah works on product design and brand. We asked Rebekah to tell us her best tips on how to find your Instagram style - and then maintain it too! We also chatted about work-life balance which can be a real struggle if you're an entrepreneur and are also raising a family - Rebekah's so chilled, we wanted to know her secrets!

For this episode, we peeked behind the red door at No. 25 Donegal Street in Belfast's Cathedral Quarter and caught up with Enter Yes™ - an animation, VR, motion graphics, VFX and gaming studio. With a passion for storytelling, Enter Yes™ have created beautiful independent work as well as worked with high profile clients including BBC, HBO, Disney and Sony. We talked about the balance of creativity and commerce when running a business in the creative sector and how to scale up, become internationally renowned and build relationships with clients abroad. Teamwork is an important part of the Enter Yes™ ethos. We tried to get to the bottom of how to maintain good work-life balance and your friendships and relationships at work as well as how to stay on top of it all.

On 27 March 2018, we launched the Small Town Big Dreams podcast with a live podcast event hosted at the Black Box venue in Belfast. We were joined by four guests for a live interview and Q&A. They were: Simon and Lorna Mills from TACA, a photography and film studio specialising in documenting the creative process; Vicky Potts from Whitepot Studios, a game development and creative media studio based in Belfast; and finally, we were joined by a co-founder of the online ticketing platform Get Invited and 'location-independent' entrepreneur Kyle Gawley. In this episode, Part 2, you can hear the Q&A, and in Part 1, the main interviews, available now, wherever you get your podcasts. This live event was kindly sponsored by the Department of Communities as part of Creativity Month NI, and produced in associated with Blick Shared Studios.

On 27 March 2018, we launched the Small Town Big Dreams podcast with a live podcast event hosted at the Black Box venue in Belfast. We were joined by four guests for a live interview and Q&A. They were: Simon and Lorna Mills from TACA, a photography and film studio specialising in documenting the creative process; Vicky Potts from Whitepot Studios, a game development and creative media studio based in Belfast; and finally, we were joined by a co-founder of the online ticketing platform Get Invited and 'location-independent' entrepreneur Kyle Gawley. In this episode, Part 1 you can hear the interview, and in Part 2, the Q&A, available now, wherever you get your podcasts. This live event was kindly sponsored by the Department of Communities as part of Creativity Month NI, and produced in associated with Blick Shared Studios.

In this episode we interview Wendy Ward of Wendy Ward Design in her ceramics studio on the family farm in Hillsborough. Wendy creates products that combine two seemingly different areas of design - ceramics and lighting. She’s had international acclaim and recently collaborated on a special project creating ceramic products in partnership with Belleek Pottery to mark their 160th anniversary. In this interview we discussed what it takes to create products in an area of design associated with heritage and set up a great contemporary business. We also chatted about the convergence of craft and tech and how the 21st century ceramicist works. From mould to kiln to stamp, Wendy was kind enough to show us her creative process in her studio.

In this episode, we chat with William Barr from video games company Billygoat Entertainment in the company’s offices on the Lisburn Road. William’s love of videogames and animation from a young age led him to set up the company in 2010. Billygoat have gone on to build games including adventure-led empire-inspired Her Majesty’s Spiffing and are currently developing Supermarket Shriek in which a boy and his goat traverse a supermarket. In this interview, we heard about William’s journey from boy to startup to an award-winning games company and the challenges of setting up shop in the games industry. We asked him about the inspiration behind Billygoat’s games, being a socially awkward networker, the joy of joyless living and the thing he is looking forward to the most at the Games Development Conference in San Francisco - biting into a juicy Impossible Burger.

In this episode, Graeme tracked down writer, theatre and film-director Aislínn Clarke to her brand new office at Queen’s University Belfast, where she has just been appointed as a lecturer in scriptwriting with the Séamus Heaney Centre. A graduate of the course that she now lectures on, Aislinn grew up on the border between the North and South of Ireland, and now lives in the quaint seaside town of Whitehead on the North Coast of Co. Antrim. Beginning a media career from when she graduated from a Film Studies degree in 2004, Aislínn has pursued her passion for telling stories with talent and tenacity, across TV, theatre, radio, and now film, with her first feature – The Devil’s Doorway – due to be released in 2018. In this interview, Graeme uncovers how Aislinn’s early life created a love for telling stories, and how she manages to balance creative integrity and personal happiness with success and opportunity, and the joys of living by the sea.

In this episode, we met with Derry-born solo musician Verse Chorus Verse – otherwise known as Tony Wright – in the art deco surrounds of the Strand Arts Cinema in East Belfast, where Tony had recently debuted a brand new show mixing music and spoken word called – brilliantly – Chapter and Verse Chorus Verse. At the still relatively tender age of 37, Tony Wright has been making a living as a musician for over 20 years, experiencing success as part of a hardcore-influenced band in his teens to the internationally successful instrumental rock band And So I Watch You From Afar in his 20s. Now a critically acclaimed solo acoustic artist and a writer, Tony is a musician who has incredible stories to tell about the highs and lows of rock’n’roll. In this interview, we discuss Tony’s journey in music, from his mother’s early encouragement to the Coleraine grunge scene, the creative energy of Belfast’ music scene in the early 2000s, to his current incarnation as a 21st century troubadour – while addressing themes of mental health, the contemporary music industry, and the musician’s life along the way.