The Malta College for Arts, Science and Technology, in collaboration with DAB Electronica Co. Ltd, have organised a five-day Avid Express Pro training seminar. This was the first time that Avid courses had been delivered in Malta by a certified Avid tutor.

The training seminar was aimed at both professionals and freelancers working in the Film and television industry and was designed to help the participants enhance their skills and competencies in Avid non-linear editing systems.

The courses were on the introduction of Avid Xpress Pro/DV Editing and on the introduction to Avid Xpress Pro/DV Effects.

The training seminars were held at the Institute of Art and Design, Mosta and were delivered by one of Avid’s most experienced trainers, Roger Shufflebottom, who is also the author of the Focal Press guide to editing on Avid.

Institute director Donald Friggieri said: “This is the first time that MCAST and Avid have offered short courses leading to Avid certification in Malta. Our aim is to continue offering similar training seminars related to multimedia in order to cater for local demand. We believe that MCAST can act as a catalyst and as an educational keystone in the development of Multimedia training.”

MCAST principal and CEO Frank Edwards thanked all those involved in this important development for working hard to make it happen at the MCAST Art and Design Institute. He added: “This is an excellent opportunity that has brought state-of-the-art technology and high quality training for TV and film industries professionals in Malta. MCAST will continue to develop programmes of this nature and will seek to develop its own capability in the near future. MCAST should be seen as a focal point for up-skilling and professional training, as well as a centre for life-long learning".

Avid 119 - Introduction to Avid Xpress Pro / DV Editing

This three-day course provided an in-depth introduction to the techniques of non-linear editing on the Avid Xpress Pro and Xpress DV systems. The course progressed through all the basic phases of creating a sequence on the system, including inputting source footage, assembling and trimming sequences, editing audio, creating titles and outputting a finished programme. Class time was divided between demonstration and hands-on practice.

Avid 129 - Introduction to Avid Xpress Pro / DV Effects

This two-day course introduced basic effects on the Xpress Pro and Xpress DV systems. The topics included the creation of multi-layered effects, keyframing effects, creating effect templates and nesting effects. Class time was divided between demonstration and hands-on practice.