The Slice: January Newsletter
Welcome to ‘The Slice’, the brand new newsletter from Bread Productions
We know that the best ideas don’t tend to happen alone. So let’s share our experiences, recommendations, conversations and collaborations. Our mission is to bring bold, creative events and video ideas to life - supporting the projects, people, and ideas that make our communities and culture richer. We believe creativity fuels wellbeing and connection, and we are passionate about being part of the process that turns imagination into impact.
With ‘The Slice’, we will share what’s inspiring us, what we’re working on and a monthly cut of culture, art, media and more. If you’ve got something you’d like us to shout about, get in touch!
January edition
‘The Cut’ is our monthly run down of what we’ve been up to, work and culture wise. Let’s start with the fun stuff, our January ‘The Slice’ Soundtrack which includes the highlights of what we’ve been listening to in the office this month! Featuring music from projects we’ve worked on, films or TV shows we’ve watched, plus new releases from up and coming bands that you need to get to know.
We kicked our way into 2026 in great big sparkly platform heels with our annual ‘Bowie Night’ at The Night Owl in Digbeth. It was a fabulous night featuring a line-up of stellar musicians and vocalists all paying ode to Bowie. We love working with all manner of venues, from sports stadiums to grassroots music venues like The Night Owl.
But let’s backtrack to 1 January 2026, when 10 years of one of the greatest fantasy shows of all time came to its highly anticipated conclusion. The 2 hour finale of Stranger Things may have sparked controversy amongst fans- but we loved it. Highlight moments being the Prince needle drop, Joyce delivering the final blow and Dustin's graduation speech. What a way to start the year.
We visited Birmingham Hippodrome to review ‘Robin Hood’, a warm, fun, cheeky, immersive bit of lighthearted escapism. Exactly what people need in the post-Christmas slump.
Work wise, as well as creating lots of events and content, we were delighted to win places onto ‘Traction’ a new programme designed to support people with innovation business ideas - that includes us! Sessions kicked off mid-January and we can’t wait to show you the results when we’re finished! They are running more courses, so if you have built something brilliant – a product, service or platform that works, have team, the vision, and the ambition, check them out.
Mazzy also had a fantastic time shadowing the producer role on a new show ‘Kitty Clap Club’, head down to the tips section for more!
We finished off a very productive and creative-focussed month by attending the first ‘Reel Brum’ event of the year. The sold out event featured an insightful talk from BBC Birmingham about their #MadeInBrum campaign, commissioning & the future.
We also heard about Reel Brum co-founder Matthew Ford MA, PG Cert, FHEA’s new project, horror film ‘Gale: Yellow Brick Road’ which is opening in 1000 cinemas in the USA! We can’t wait for it to come to Brum!
There was also a premiere of ‘Cornered’, winner of the Joe Lycett Mummy's Funny Brummies film fund. Plus local filmmakers pitched for funding and support.
All in all the kind brilliant supportive community event we have come to expect from Reel Brum! We can’t wait to see what else Cassie, Matthew, Lee & co have got planned for 2026 & beyond!
February edition
Here’s our highlights on what you could be getting involved in this month in the world of creative industries.
Thursday 3rd Unboxd Live the BBC invites you (anyone aged 16 to 24), to Birmingham to take on a mission from series four of The Traitors, step onto the set of your own EastEnders scene, or tear through a Race Across the World speed packing challenge. And there’s more – you can step up and take your shot at the BBC Sport Crossbar Challenge, have a go at being a Radio 1 Dance DJ or uncover how news stories are produced and broadcast with BBC Verify.
Places are now full BUT we have had a couple drop out of our group so if you’d like to come along with Bread then drop us an email.
Tuesday 17th The Big Creative UK Investment Summit: West Midlands - Creative Showcase, a landmark event, hosted by TV’s Steph McGovern, which will celebrate the extraordinary investment potential which lies within the UK’s creative industries.
Attendees can expect:
Investment-Ready Opportunities: Access exclusive opportunities to invest in high-growth potential creative businesses, from a range of sub-sectors (media, technology, film and more) from across the UK.
Strategic Insights: Gain insider knowledge on how national and regional government policies are actively supporting growth and shaping the future of the creative economy.
Proven Success Stories: Learn more about scalable growth and successful commercial investment with our programme of panel discussions.
25th - 26th February The Event Production Show, Excel London, brings the live events industry together for two packed days of inspiration, discovery and networking.
Dedicated to the live event industry, the Event Production Show (EPS) is the longest-running event designed for all event professionals involved in running outdoor and live events; including festivals, sport, corporate and brand experiences, local authority events and stadium/arena tours.
EPS helps solve the issues that affect all types of events across the globe including sustainability, crowd management and safety, creativity and attendee experience, the supply chain, diversity and technology and every other challenge that promoters and organisers face everyday.
Looking ahead into March, Mazzy will be hosting a Women’s Networking event on Tuesday 3rd March at The Old Library, Digbeth. Get in touch if you’d like to get involved in the panel discussions or just attend!
Each month, we spotlight a rising expert in their field working within content or events. This month Mazzy caught up with Head of Digital at EVO Management, Louise Vines.
Can you tell us about your role as Head of Digital at UB40 and Evo Management?
I work on any sort of digital presence for our artists, so that's UB40 and Lolo, Lauren Pritchard.
How do you balance strategy, creativity and the fast pace you work in?
It’s working out where we want them to be, what we want them to achieve, and looking at overall trends in the wider digital space. I see if there's anything we can adapt and how well it aligns with the bands and their fan bases.
I carve out a chunk of my day just for analytics: reviewing, making sure things are on track, checking engagement rates and comments. If fans are overwhelmingly happy with what we've posted, we know we're on the right track. They’ll send it to friends or groups, so we know it's a solid piece, and I can plan around it. With content, we try and batch‑create.
So yeah, it's a LOT of analysing.
Are there any recent content campaigns you're particularly proud of?
With UB40, it’s got to be the recent Can’t Help Cooking campaign. It was probably the most ambitious thing I've ever pitched, and the fact that Matt and James, the band's managers, straight away said, ‘How can we make this happen?’ That really changed the game. Not only did they listen to me, but they were like, okay, what's next?
We pulled it off quickly, from saying yes to filming to having it live. The band said, “We've never done anything like this. Why would people wanna watch us cook?” But we realised very quickly that the personality side is something fans engage with. People are invested in the band, but you have to keep pushing on why they want to check in, follow, and purchase. The more personality, the stronger the fan.
Do you think digital content for music and live events has evolved in recent years?
Massively. Artists’ socials are more important than ever. We're seeing artists who could never normally break the ceiling become trending on social media and being heard.
For us on the business side, it's great because we're able to advocate stronger for our artists. For live events, it's the same — we’re able to reach more people. Normally, it’s word of mouth, radio, or newspapers, but with social media, it's direct to their phones. Yes, you contend with algorithms, but things like WhatsApp and Instagram channels are direct. And having clips on social media has been really good for it.
Does working so closely with music influence how you approach content creation?
Absolutely. I’ll see a concept and think, how can we adapt this to suit my artist? With the cooking thing, there was MasterChef and Bake Off, and I thought, how could we make that for a musician? So we named it after one of their songs, the prize was the Ladle of Love instead of Labour of Love, and we brought in those elements. Music is ingrained in our lives from every angle.
What’s next for UB40 and Lolo?
UB40 are touring the EU in March and the UK in June, and we have an album coming up. Lolo will also be going on tour and has an album in the works. A lot is going on in EVO's head office, stay tuned!
For more information on EVO Management and their artists see their website here.
Every month Mazzy gives you at least one top tip!
TV & Film are passions of mine - and January I was lucky enough to shadow a fantastic producer, Aresa Foster, on a brand new TV Pilot ‘Kitty Clap Club’, written by up and coming locally based writer Natasha Killip. This fantastic new comedy centres around a strip club in Stoke in the 2010’s. MUCH more on that to come in the future, but for now here are a few tips for working on set.
Always have 3 pens, 1 to use, 1 to lose & 1 to give away (Aresa)
Try to keep your lunch prep area well away from set to avoid any noise issues (especially if using a microwave!)
No matter which role you are working in or shadowing, be prepared to make tea and change the bins.
Manage your Supporting Actors expectations, let them know it’s likely to be a lot of waiting around.
Take photos of your receipts in case you lose them.
Thank you for reading our first edition of ‘The Slice’! Want to tell us about your cool event or project? Or recommend a rising expert for us to talk to (even yourself!), drop Mazzy an email at mazzy@breadbirmingham.co.uk
