Apple revealed that it will be expanding its Today at Apple Creative Studios initiative to seven new cities, including Berlin, Miami, Milan, Nashville, Sydney, Taipei and Tokyo. It will also return for the second time in Bangkok, Beijing, Chicago, London, New York City, Paris and Washington, D.C. In total, the program will reach 14 cities.
The new sessions are all free and open to the public; however, not every class is available in every location. Registration is available at apple.com/today.
The expanded program will bring career-building mentorship, training, resources and all-new curricula in app design, podcasting, spatial audio production and filmmaking to even more young creatives from underrepresented communities across the globe.
While various classes are being pushed by Apple, not every public session will be available in every location. For instance, a new app design program will only be hosted at Apple Store branches in New York. Meanwhile, art and design courses will only run in Milan and Taipei; Miami and Washington D.C. will have books and storytelling; Berlin, Nashville, Chicago and Paris will offer the music, radio and podcasts program; and London, Sydney, Beijing, Tokyo and Bangkok will be the location of photography, film and TV classes.
The aim of Today at Apple Creative Studios is to foster creative education for young people who struggle to find similar classes elsewhere. The initiative connects participants with Apple mentors as well as over 30 nonprofit community partners who specialize in areas like books and storytelling, app design, radio and podcasts, photography, film and TV. Programs are designed to celebrate creative skills and talents that could potentially encourage social change in each community.
Deirdre O’Brien, Apple’s senior vice president of Retail + People, said in a statement, “Our stores have long provided a platform to showcase the great talent of local artists, and our retail teams are proud to play a role in supporting creativity within their communities and creating a place where everyone is welcome. We’re enormously grateful to our Apple Creative Pros, our retail team members and local partners, who together make it possible for us to expand access to free arts education and mentorship to even more communities.”
Last year, more than 400 youths participated in Creative Studios programming, with some creators getting to showcase their creations in Apple Music, Apple Books and elsewhere in the Apple ecosystem.
“It was an honor to share my passion for Apple technology and storytelling with these young people. Technology entered my life at a young age and completely changed my trajectory. My hope for these published authors is that they continue to tell the stories of their lives. The world needs their point of view,” said Rudy P., an Apple Creative Pro at Apple Carnegie Library in Washington.
