ABSTRACT
The introduction to the book brings together an under-researched intersection of several fields relating to youth, employment in the creative industries, and transitions into work given that there has been a structural realignment of pathways into employment more generally. It describes the focus of the book: how young people enter into and navigate new activities in creative work and its implications for the changing world of work, opportunity, and mobility. There are five main sections. First, the meaning of creative labour in precarious times; secondly, what is at stake in becoming a creative worker, considering identities and the role of formal education; thirdly, a review of the creative and cultural industries, and a consideration of differences between sectors and fields; fourthly, a consideration of the literature of youth cultures and youth transitions; and, finally, a review of training and education interventions, particularly those on offer in creative arts fields to young people from socially marginalised communities. The chapter outlines the key research questions that animated subsequent chapters in the book, including the following: how entry into informal media economies in local markets advances our understanding of how young people are navigating precarity? How people ‘become’ creative workers? What are the differences between becoming a creative worker in one field (e.g. games design or film) and another? What is the relationship between debates about the creative economy, urban regeneration, and opportunities for young people? How does an understanding of youth cultures help us to make sense of changing labour markets? And, finally, in what ways do forms of learning and mentoring, especially in nonformal and out-of-school projects, create the conditions to support young people, especially from socially marginalised backgrounds, entering into the creative workforce? The introduction concludes by reviewing the contributions in the chapters that follow.
