Kick-off with Volker Neuenhoff from Prime Video

With a new industry partner, the »Masterclass Entertainment« 2023 has been launched at the ifs International Film School Cologne.

With this six-month professional training programme, the ifs is responding to the high demand for specialists and the great economic and cultural importance of entertainment production, not least in North Rhine-Westphalia, with a compact offer in addition to its Master's programme in Entertainment Producing. Over a period of six months (March - September), the »Masterclass Entertainment« offers intensive training for creative management tasks in non-fiction entertainment.

After a welcome by Professor Jennifer Mival (Entertainment Producing), the first module of the Masterclass will focus on format development and storytelling. Guest lecturer Volker Neuenhoff, Head of German Originals - Entertainment at Prime Video, will discuss cross-genre strategies for non-fiction storytelling using award-winning formats such as »LOL: Last One Laughing«.

In addition, other leading figures from the entertainment industry will teach in the Masterclass.

For this year's Masterclass, the ifs has won Prime Video Deutschland as a new cooperation partner. Prime Video Deutschland will support the programme both financially and with experts. Prime Video's support also makes it possible to award scholarships.
The programme is also supported by the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW, which was instrumental in initiating the implementation of non-fiction entertainment in education and training at the ifs.

Volker Neuenhoff, Head of German Originals - Entertainment at Prime Video: »An opportunity like the Masterclass Entertainment is something I would have wished for myself in my early years. It's a great opportunity for young creatives to get hands-on training and get in touch with established colleagues.«

The Masterclass will focus on storytelling, format development and creative leadership as essential aspects of creative leadership and innovation in a changing market. It will also encourage networking among participants and with the industry. The three three-day residential modules at the ifs are complemented by online sessions on specialist topics and genre trends, exclusive industry insights and case studies, and networking events.

Starting in 2019, the ifs Internationale Filmschule Köln will offers professional training in the field of non-fiction entertainment in various formats. In 2021, the first Master's programme in Entertainment Producing in the German-speaking world will follow at the ifs under the direction of Professor Jennifer Mival.
Initiated and supported by the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW and the state government of North Rhine-Westphalia, the entertainment qualification at the ifs was developed from the outset in close cooperation with North Rhine-Westphalian producers, the Entertainment Master Class, the Film- und Medienverband NRW and the Allianz Deutscher Produzenten Film und Fernsehen e.V.

Founded in 2000, the ifs Internationale Filmschule Köln is now one of the leading training centres for audiovisual media in Germany. Its aim is to offer film and media professionals a high-quality, future-oriented education that closely combines theory and practice. The fact that it is located in the film and media centre of Cologne is particularly characteristic of its claim to be close to the industry. The shareholder of the ifs is the Film- und Medienstiftung NRW.

More info at www.filmschule.de/de/weiterbildung/masterclass-entertainment

You can find a downloadable photo here. Please consider the photo credit provided.
Caption: Volker Neuenhoff (Prime Video), Prof. Jennifer Mival (ifs) (in the foreground) with the participants of the Masterclass Entertainment Photographer: Ralph Sondermann

Created on 17.03.2023