News

Welcoming new directors to the Bristol Creative Industries board

28th May 2024

We are delighted to announce that new directors have been appointed to the Bristol Creative Industries board.

The five individuals will deliver additional strength and depth to the board which will hugely benefit Bristol Creative Industries, our members and the wider creative sector in the south west.

They bring a host of skills and experience including digital marketing, film production, CRM, data analysis, website marketing and creative industry education.

As we said in our new year message at the start of 2024, driving value for Bristol Creative Industries members is our top priority, and we remain committed to creating opportunities for our community to learn, connect and grow their businesses.

To continue with this mission, we have key focuses that the new board directors will help us deliver thanks to their excellent expertise and contacts. They will contribute directly to:

  • helping to develop our extensive events programme to upskill and inspire our members.
  • developing and supporting new partnerships between BCI and other organisations.
  • growing engagement with the region’s film and TV sector.

Our priorities also include the BCI Talent Programme which supports the next generation of diverse talent in the creative industries and is currently open for sponsorship opportunities.

The appointment of the five new board directors follows Lis Anderson and Heather Wright becoming co-chairs of BCI.

Heather Wright, co-chair of Bristol Creative Industries, said:

“We are delighted to welcome these uniquely talented, inspirational and hardworking industry leaders who have stepped up for BCI and for our sector. They will strengthen our team and make it possible for us to achieve our ambitions for members.”

Meet the new Bristol Creative Industries board directors

Joining Lis Anderson, Heather Wright, Gail Caig, Marissa Lewis-Peart, Julian Davis and Steven Coombe on the Bristol Creative Industries board are:

Adam Millbank

Adam Millbank, JonesMillbank

Adam Millbank brings over 16 years of commercial film production experience, serving as a founding director of B Corp registered companies JonesMillbank and Nine Tree Studios.

With his roots in documentary filmmaking, Adam has honed a talent for uncovering the essence of stories, establishing profound connections with his subjects. While he remains a practitioner, he also dedicates significant time to nurturing relationships with agencies and brands, earning him a reputation as a trusted partner in the industry.

Adam now collaborates with globally recognised brands, leveraging his expertise to drive innovative projects.

He maintains a keen interest in the intersection of education and creativity, aiming to foster greater connectivity within the Bristol creative industries around film and video and create a space for collaboration through Nine Tree Studios.

Tom Harber

Tom Harber, Aer Studios

Tom Harber is an experienced creative agency leader specialising in digital experiences and creative technology solutions.

Tom has held leadership positions in industry leading creative agencies across both the UK and Australia that have be recognised at prestigious awards including Cannes Lions, BIMA and The Effies. Tom eventually landed back in the South West to head up creative technology studio, Aer Studios.

Proudly B Corp Certified, Tom and his team have been ranked in the top 100 best workplaces in the UK and have recently been appointed to the BBC UX Design roster as the only agency representing the South West region.

Tom’s passion is in creating meaningful digital experiences that have a positive impact on people and planet. He believes that bringing the creative and technology sectors closer together can have a huge benefit to the South West.

Tom Bowden-Green

Dr Tom Bowden-Green

Tom Bowden-Green‘s experience combines senior consultancy (10+ years) and academic leadership (10+ years), designing and delivering training to support business development and career growth in marketing. His current focus is on bringing together regional and academic expertise to support business growth within the creative industries.

Tom studied his PhD at the Digital Behaviour Lab at University of Bath School of Management. His research and teaching now focuses on applying psychology to creative processes.

His recent work at Bristol Business School includes investigating behaviour change with Bristol City Council, researching the Bristol brand with Visit West, and understanding the effectiveness of social media advertising.

Tom created and led the MSc Digital Marketing at UWE Bristol and led several successful Digital Marketing Bootcamps. He co-hosts the The Digital Behaviour Podcast.

David Darke

David Darke, Atomic Smash

David Darke is the co-founder and operations director of Atomic Smash, a website performance agency based in Bristol, specialising in optimising WordPress, WooCommerce and Shopify.

Since its inception in 2010, Atomic Smash has prided itself on a caring team culture, emphasising continuous learning, creativity, and problem-solving. In this role, he has been recognised for kindness in leadership by being nominated as a Kindness Leadership Leading Light.

David’s approach to business reflects a deep understanding of the web’s potential to transform how companies and individuals communicate and conduct business.

Kate Sikora

Kate Sikora , Noble Performs

Kate Sikora is the co-founder and managing partner of Noble Performs, a digital performance marketing agency based in Bristol renowned for helping organisations achieve remarkable results.

Highly commended as the IOD Director of the Year 2023 and serving as a Taan European Governor, Kate is committed to driving excellence and innovation in the digital marketing landscape.

Beyond her professional endeavours, Kate finds joy in family life, practicing yoga, and exploring new culinary creations in the kitchen.

Member

About Bristol Creative Industries

Bristol Creative Industries is the membership network that supports the region's creative sector to learn, grow and connect, driven by the common belief that we can achieve more collectively than alone. 

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