Every year we offer our level 3 Film and Media learners the chance to take in the sights and sounds of the Big Apple; soaking up the hustle and bustle of Times Square, seeing the awe-inspiring and world famous Empire State Building and the majestic Statue of Liberty, as well as experiencing the food and culture of a city that never sleeps.

Our annual Media-focused New York trip is something our students look forward to with places filling very quickly. It provides an enriching and often, once in a lifetime experience for our students. Our Media and Film students are always spoilt with subject-specialist highlights packed in to each day of the four night, five day tour inclusive of the trip price.

Every year we take the subway into Queens where we visit The Museum of the Moving Image where our students can interact with sound studios, animation stations and see costumes and props from their favourite movies; including Mrs Doubtfire, The Mask and many more. The museum also has special exhibitions, which change each year. This year featured an excellent exhibition from director Martin Scorsese, a must for film fans.

Our students are also able to tour NBC Studios, the birth place of hit shows such as Saturday Night Live, where they learn about sets and editing and even have the chance to be involved in a studio filming experience. This year our students were lucky enough to get standby tickets for a rehearsal with NBC star, Seth Meyers.

But one of the key highlights for the trip this year, was the opportunity for our students to be in the audience for a recording of Good Morning America: a US breakfast show broadcast live from Times Square five days a week. Students experienced what it was like to be a part of a live studio broadcast and this was especially enriching for our film and TV students, many of whom had been working on their own studio projects back in the UK. They also saw guests including Leslie Mann and the legendary Robert De Niro.

Also packed into the international trip is a TV and film coach tour, including a stop-off at the famous Friend’s apartment building and Ghostbuster’s fire station, as well as an optional evening performance to award-winning Broadway hit show, Aladdin.

Every year, the trip just gets better and better and the team are already planning new and exciting excursions for New York 2018… watch this space!