As part of International Women’s Day 2024, we’re celebrating some of the female talent from the SAE community who we’ve featured on our website over the past year.
Get to know some of the students and alumni who are doing brilliant work below.
If you’re interested in joining any of our courses or looking to launch a career in the creative industries, then get in touch with our team now.
Mikita Alford
Mikita Alford studied our Audio BA/BSc Audio Production (Hons).
On being asked what it means to be a woman in the industry, she said:
“Being a woman in the industry is showing your passion and talent for the things you love. The things you would let yourself do for the rest of your life.”
“Something that drives you, that pushes you to uphold your best self, to get the success and results you rightfully deserve. It can be hard competition, but if you work hard enough, you will get exactly what you deserve.”
Carrie Day
SAE Glasgow Film Production student Carrie Day has a passion for storytelling that first led her to choose SAE to study a Filmmaking degree as she finds it “one of the most visionary ways of working.”
Alongside her work in film, Carrie has published a number of books including Story Compass, Trees are our Letters and Shamanic Dreaming while running a creative practice and teaching shamanic and constellation work.
Commenting on entrepreneurship, Carrie said:
“It is important to create open-minded arenas that can help women entrepreneur representation be able to come through in a more true way. I don’t think the platforms we have inherited have naturally made space for the female voice and way.”
Naomi Weaver
Naomi is an MA/MSc Professional Practice in Creative Media Industries alumna.
Her How Trauma in Film Affects Audiences From a Psychological Perspective project is a montage of scenes from films of a traumatic nature. This was screened to participants of various demographics.
Five participants were asked to be interviewed on camera about their thoughts and feelings towards the montage, whilst the other participants filled out a survey to count towards anecdotal research. After primary and secondary research was conducted, this allowed Naomi to write up a final thesis answering the question.
Commenting, Naomi said:
“I was inspired professionally and personally. Throughout my time studying, I had found that a majority of students in my class, and myself were drawn to making projects that were of a sad nature. Whilst thinking about this I also realized a lot of films I was drawn to watching were films that represented hard topics. It then led me to think about how these are fiction films and not documentaries, then wondering how the process works, and how much you can change procedures and events in an appropriate manner. Audience engagement is key, and as filmmakers, we adapt and add more drama to keep the interaction but it is important to know the difference between creating fictional films and factual documentaries.”
Rea Fortis
Rea Fortis studied Audio Production with SAE in Liverpool and has developed multiple different creative strings to her bow.
During her time with us, she created her debut single while also collaborating with another student on a video for the track. Her sound melds pop hooks with her classical training to great effect.
Talking about her time at SAE, she said: “Studying Audio Production at SAE has been a great experience. Looking back, I chose SAE because of it’s specialist nature and being a mature student returning to education, I didn’t want to go into a heavily academic institution.”
“The best thing is all the connections that I’ve made in my short time here – from friends, work colleagues and prospective clients who wish to record in my studio sessions. Anyone considering SAE, please check out your campus of choice and get to know the city you’re in too! It’s intense – you get out what you put in – before you know it, your skill set will be upgraded for the better.”
Marie Wahrn
One of our Audio Production degree alumni and SAE campus support technician, Marie Wahrn, has been working on her own solo material.
Sharing her advice for fellow creatives looking to follow in her footsteps, Marie said:
“My advice would be to be creative and have fun with making music without always thinking about the technical part of it. Do have the basic knowledge in recording and songwriting and keep it in the back of your mind but do leave yourself the freedom to do what you want.”
“Sometimes you can get stuck on thinking things need to be perfect when they really don’t need to.”
STUDY AT SAE
SAE offers two-year accelerated degree courses in growth creative media industries – Audio Production, Content Creation & Online Marketing, Game Art Animation, and Games Programming – all aimed at helping the next generation of creative professionals get ahead.
