CT6 Creative Platforms

Joseph Standen

To work within Television and Film Production

Progress to:
Director/ Cinematographer Writer Producer

After I graduate from university I intend to gain as much experience in the field. This will enable me to not only build up a strong list of contacts but will also help test all the skills I have learnt on work experience and at university so far. I understand that professional jobs such as Director positions will be available straight away, especially to a person who has recently graduated.
An entry level position such as a runner, production office runner or a third or fourth AD position will give me the chance to excel and stand out from the others in the same position to hopefully push me into a higher job.

A list of job profiles are available on: http://www.skillset.org/uk/ http://www.prospects.ac.uk/ https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/Pages/Home.aspx

You could work as a runner in any area of film or TV production, including:

the production office on set (in a studio or on location) art departments or animation studios post-production (editing) facilities.

The job can be very varied and you would be asked to carry out a wide range of tasks, which could include:

collecting and delivering equipment, scripts and other items fetching lunches and making tea and coffee distributing messages and post filing and photocopying answering the phone and greeting visitors driving vehicles around sets or between locations finding props looking after studio guests keeping sets clean and tidy.

Working as a runner is a common starting point in film and TV. The job would allow you to see the various stages involved in production, and get the experience you need to move on to other jobs in the industry.

You might lead a small team or a large cast and crew, to direct full-length feature films, short films, live or recorded television programmes, commercials, music videos or corporate videos. Your main purpose would be to make the creative decisions that guide the rest of the crew. Your work could include:

meeting producers commissioning a script or an idea for a documentary interpreting scripts and developing storyboards deciding on how the production should look and where it should be filmed planning the shooting schedule and logistics hiring the cast and crew guiding the technical crew directing the actors (or the contributors to a documentary) supervising the editing to produce the final 'cut'.

In some cases you might write your own scripts and raise finance for projects. On some productions you might also operate camera or sound equipment this is particularly common with documentaries or productions with a small budget.

CV and Covering letters - These are still to be uploaded to the blob but I have created three CVs that will be valuable to launching my career. These are:
Runner CV This will help me into a entry level

position Part time work Vital in supporting myself Director A more involved, creative CV that will help make my application memorable and also detail my important skills and work experience.

Show reel I will edit this together once I have completed my

CT6Fiction unit. The Short film George Begins will be the best piece of work I have done to date and will be necessary to me having a successful show reel. I will also include work from projects I am also undergoing at the moment. Business Cards I am going to create two versions one a runner entry level and the other a Director/Cinematographer card which I will use to brand myself as an independent film maker. Vital when pitching to create my own projects.

My Strengths are that I am creative and ambitious. Im not afraid of putting in the hard working and going the extra mile to complete something I am passionate for, or even, something that just has to get done. I like to use logic to solve tasks and enjoy communicating and selling, especially when it comes to expressing a new idea to someone, or trying to pitch to an audience.
My biggest weakness is that I am doubtful of a career in the industry, I believe that for our generation of graduates it will be especially hard to excel in the industry we want to work in especially with large numbers applying for the same jobs. However I enjoy making films, and whether this makes me rich or not, producing an idea from an initial spark to the final touches in the edit is what keeps me motivated. I believe that if you work hard enough you can achieve anything.

I am using my blog http://joestanden.tumblr.com/ to keep a diary of my progress. I will use this once I graduate to build attention and awareness of future projects. It is also a very valuable tool for jotting ideas and notes, particularly with this unit as I can dump show reel, CV and business card ideas. The web has been very useful for researching into jobs and also for sourcing ideas for different and creative business cards and showreels.

I have used my Blog to post examples and also Examples of my sample ideas, designs and progress

There have been a number of useful examples of show reels that have provided inspiration for mine. I will soon start storyboarding my ideas. A company I did work experience with has a wide range of show reels for all of their directors. This will be useful in designing mine: http://mustardlondon.com/

20th Feb sketches/design for show reel + business cards 28th Feb Hand in CT6 Fiction 3rd March Edit together show reel 8th March Finish designs for Business Cards 15th March Complete and upload CVs 20th March - Gain feedback on promotional material 25th March Buy domain and order business cards 20th April Assemble material into press kit. 28th April Hand in!