POT Studios to establish creative training campuses across UK

A series of ‘creative campuses’ called POT Studios is set to open in the UK.

The studios co-locate with education facilities to provide on-site training for the creative industries, theatre, opera, performance, gaming, live music, Web3 production, television and film production and immersive experiences.

The company says it ensures students enter the workforce with hands-on, relevant studio and live set experience. It adds that it will establish mixed-use creative campuses that bring together production, post-production, live performance space, and education and training facilities.  

POT Studios has identified a number of sites where it wants to provide training.

The initiative is chaired and led by urban regeneration specialist Ken Dytor, and the leadership team also includes blockchain expert Ding Ding (who is POT Studios’ director of Web3 and metaverse), training and events management specialist Brian Warrens (operations director), and post-production business development expert Justin Lanchbury (chief marketing and business development director).

POT Studios’ creative campuses will be designed by architecture studio RIOS, which is behind Spotify Creative Campus in LA.They will co-location alongside complementary property uses, such as hotels, student housing, science and innovation labs, and data centres, with the exact mix of uses bespoke to the needs of each location. 

The company will Initially focus on the Thames Estuary area before establishing campuses across the UK and internationally. 

Warrens said: “Alongside meeting growing space requirements, POT Studios aims to play a crucial role in maintaining the UK’s global standing when it comes to the creative industries by helping tackle the emerging skills shortage. Our integrated on-site offering, blending real-world application with education and training, will help young talent enter the workplace ‘set-ready’.”

Lanchbury added: “POT Studios will look to serve the whole UK creative eco-system through the provision of best-in-class space in campuses that embrace new technologies, surrounding communities and complementary uses. There are powerful tailwinds behind the creative sector with new tax reliefs and recognition in the government’s industrial strategy which we will look to capitalise on, while our combined industry networks give us deep in-roads into potential customers and collaborators that will help us build a market-leading platform.”

Ding said: “Fundamentally, POT Studios will be a digital-first platform, creating the space required for the UK’s emerging digitally enabled creative industries like e-sports, Web3 production and video games to grow and scale. Our ambition is to partner with the next wave of innovators to unlock additional value while integrating technology that streamlines and enhances the occupier and visitor experience.”

Dytor added: “Supporting one of the country’s most important growth sectors, the launch of POT Studios marks the UK’s first dedicated platform of its kind, as a shift towards higher-budget, long-term production has increased demand for highly specialised space. By catering to every aspect of creative production and performance, we aim to build on and strengthen the UK’s long tradition as a global powerhouse for creativity, including through the educational facilities that will nurture the next generation of talent and avoid a shortfall of studio-ready skills.”