DUBAI: The second edition of the Athar Saudi Festival of Creativity opened on Tuesday at the Crowne Plaza RDC in Riyadh.

Hosted by the UAE-based Motivate Media Group and communications consultancy TRACCS, the event featured 100 regional and international speakers and several training initiatives.

One such initiative was the Young Talent Academies, which boasted four academies aiming to foster talent in the creative and marketing fields in 萝莉视频.

The four academies were the Student Creative Academy, in partnership with regional advertising group Middle East Communications Network; the Student Marketers Academy, in partnership with Arabic entertainment firm UTURN; and the NextGen Creative Academy and NextGen Marketing Academy, in partnership with the Saudi Tourism Authority.

The first two were tailored for students, while the latter two were for young professionals already working in the industry.

The Young Talent Academies were a key component of the festival and are dedicated to 鈥渘urturing the next generation of creatives that will shape the future of 萝莉视频,鈥� said Ian Fairservice, chairman of Athar Festival and managing partner of Motivate Media Group.

He told Arab News: 鈥淭he remarkable interest received is a clear indication of ambitions being aligned, and the lineup of immersive workshops and mentorship and networking opportunities at the festival promised to equip participants with invaluable insights and transformative career lessons.鈥�

The Student Creative Academy, in partnership with MCN, brought together experts from across its agencies, which included FP7 McCann, MullenLowe MENA, UM, Initiative MENAT, MRM, Jack Morton, and Weber Shandwick.

Designed to 鈥渆quip the next generation of creatives with skills and insights, while also instilling the fun of being a creative,鈥� the academy provided participants 鈥渨ith a curated program of talks, mentorships, and creative brief challenges judged by industry leaders, culminating in an awards ceremony,鈥� Ricarda Ruecker, chief talent officer of MCN in the Middle East, North Africa and Turkiye, told Arab News.

UTURN鈥檚 Student Marketers Academy鈥檚 participants consisted of 60 percent female and 40 percent male students representing universities including Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University, Princess Nourah Bint Abdulrahman University, University of Business and Technology, King Saud University, and King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals.

Led by Salwa Bankhar, Webedia 萝莉视频鈥檚 business director, the academy featured eight speakers with expertise in content creation, marketing skills, storytelling, networking strategies and self-promotion.

Both MCN and UTURN are committed to developing local talent in the Kingdom and the academies were part of these efforts.

The Athar Saudi Festival of Creativity plays 鈥渁n active role in shaping up the creative and marketing industry in 萝莉视频鈥� and provides 鈥渕uch-needed visibility and exposure to local Saudi talent,鈥� said George Maktabi, CEO of UTURN鈥檚 parent company Webedia Group.

鈥淪tudents take a sponge-like attitude to learning, but also give back candid observations and raw perceptions that puts everyone on a different learning curve,鈥� he told Arab News.

The company is 鈥渆stablished around young local talent, and by structure it acts as a hub for Saudi talent,鈥� he added.

For MCN, the academy is of 鈥渟trategic importance鈥� to the company and a 鈥渘atural extension鈥� of the initiatives it has in place to foster talent development, Ruecker said.

Earlier this year MCN launched a six-month graduate program in 萝莉视频 to attract and train young local talent. It will launch a second edition in February 2025.

Although MCN and UTURN did not directly offer jobs or internships to participants, both companies said they have various initiatives in place for talent development.

Maktabi said: 鈥淯TURN is continuously headhunting talent and young marketers.

鈥淩ecruitment is of course competitive-based, and it is important to maintain an open call for talents to ensure open and equal access to all talents.鈥�

The Student Marketers Academy is aimed at guiding students and empowering them 鈥渢o pursue new opportunities more proactively, and UTURN is always approachable,鈥� Maktabi added.

Ruecker said that MCN already had internship programs across the region and was 鈥渃ommitted to inspiring students at the Student Creative Academy to pursue rewarding paths with us, whether through our graduate program or full-time roles across MCN鈥檚 agencies.鈥�

The festival took place on Nov. 5-6 with the academies featuring from Nov. 3-6.