Ursula Byrne
Teaching is something I've always considered as a potential career. Like many people I'm still struggling to decide what to do in the long term. I feel it's important to keep my options open and not pigeon-hole myself when it comes to my future.
Although I couldn't stay for the entirety of the talk (due to personal reasons) what I did hear was really very useful. Ursula is an ITET manager, dealing with the administration for the PGCE courses at Bangor and Aberystwyth university. She started by making a very valid point that most people have one teacher they remember from their education whether it's for the best or not. Most people can identify with the practice of teaching.
The video Ursula wanted to show us sadly didn't work, but she went on to explain some of the benefits of teaching as a career, how young people can be refreshing, different, be funny, full of energy and willing to give feedback, teens even more so. Teaching is a creative activity, and there are many personal ways to teach.
Ursula went on to explain that England's teacher training is different to that here in Wales. If you wanted to teach primary school children the places to apply are Bangor, Cardiff and Swansea university. Secondary schools are a little different and many, many places offer the course depending on what subject you want to specialise in, however if it is outdoor activities and art, Bangor is the only institution to offer the course.
Sometimes training on the job is a possibility, especially if a school has a certain method of teaching. Some offer graduate schemes. For teaching in secondary schools you need a degree in your chosen subject, this isn't always the case for primary school but you must have at least a grade C in maths, English and science at GCSE level. These grades are rising to a B in 2014.
As for previous experience, most courses require that you gain teaching experience during your studies, this isn't often the case with secondary schools but it is advised that you try and observe lessons taking place, it will go on to help in the interview and it doesn't hurt knowing what's current in the curriculum. The careers department whether locally run or at school/university can help get the necessary placements as they often have connections with local schools, they can also help with the relevant checks (such as a CRB) that might be needed to work in some places.
Although you don't have to be able to speak welsh (not even if you work in a welsh school in some cases) they are in extremely high demand, and you can do training courses to improve your language skills prior to applying for positions.
To apply you go to GTTR (Graduate Teacher Training Registry) where you can also get information regarding where to train and do course searches. The process is similar to that of UCAS where you apply to go to university.
During an interview you can expect to be asked questions such as 'why do you want to be a teacher?' you must show a genuine interest in teaching, children, show good communication and interpersonal skills, and have a good sense of humour. Maintaining good relationships with your mentors and learning support is a good idea, learn from them, always act on good advice and show energy and determination and perseverance, you won't always land your dream job first time!
You will also be expected to complete a written task (usually a 250-300 word piece on a pre-determined subject), a literacy and numeracy test, and to deliver an oral presentation.
This was as far as I got in this talk, I felt it was very useful though, and Ursula was very pleasant, encouraging and her talk was easy to understand too. I felt as if teaching could be a real potential career.
Make your own damn movie!
Jason Devitt
I was really, REALLY looking forward to this talk, and I was hoping that it turned out to be as good as it sounded.
Jason is a local film maker who's now got several full-length films under his belt and more to be released over the coming years. He has his own production company called Witchward productions.
One of his most well-received creations, Vampires: Brighter in Darkness which was nominated for several awards at the Portobello film festival 2012. It was made on a budget of £20'000 and you can watch the official trailer here.
Jason has no official qualifications in film-making he says he 'just got off my bum and did it' and advises all wannabe film-makers to do the same. Despite his lack of qualifications his resume is very impressive, with only 5 years in the business he was 3million fans worldwide, a series shown on sky called Witchward, which was made into a film and he's now in the process of making his 3rd full length feature.
Here are his steps to making a film:
Preparation, find your winning concept. Think about what others might want to see, judges at competitions are bored with seeing arty-farty films. Business is key, keep it simple, keep it stupid, films that are easy to understand will sell. Finally, remember that your general audience is 8 years old.
Write your script, don't read it or correct it until it's finished, expect to write at least 3 drafts before it will be ready. Don't show it to anyone until the end of the first draft.
The pre-production comes next, try to realistically estimate how much it will cost to produce as you will always overspend. The biggest expense will often be paying and feeding your actors. It's important to know your filming plan inside out. In terms of raising finance, try crowd funding websites like Amazing kickstart. Approach local business and offer parts in your films for the premises or staff. There are specific film funders such as the British Film Industry also.
Learn how to deliver a good pitch, try and use existing films as an example (e.g. Noddy in Toyland meets Silence of the Lambs). Be positive and excited about your idea, it will come across better, remember that raising the funding can take a long time to complete. Also, the more people involved financially, the more red tape you may encounter, as well as people trying to take over the creative stages. You must want to invest in your own film.
Who you need to create your film. The crew, there is the director, the producer(s), cameraman, lighting, sound, runners/assistants, make up/hair and catering (remember no horse meat!). You can save a lot of money if you do more than one of these jobs yourself, but it could potentially take up more time, or you might end up making mistakes with so much to think about!
The importance of a good storyboard is stressed, it's easier to follow than a script during filming, and useful during editing. It can also be used to help the actors know what's expected of them.
Locations are important too, research them before you approach funders, as you may need permission to film in certain places. If they are outdoor remember to get back up locations in case of bad weather
As for actors (a topic Dave Fisher and I know all too well at this point) are also vital. Apparently, they can be unreliable, dreamers, not rooted and can often have conflicting egos. Basic acting skills are really their only essential need, but willingness, punctuality and good chemistry are all useful too. Good acting can be edited later (I'm not sure I entirely agree with this).
Next up is a production schedule (now this I can't agree more with!) try to link scenes that can be shot together, be aware of potential set backs and what to do if one of your actors calls in sick. To ensure everyone is early, given them a time an hour before you expect to begin. If you can, set everything up the night before.
Make sure you have public liability insurance, and that everyone involved has read and understood (and signed) their contracts. Have 100s of image release forms on hand in case anyone ends up being in your shots from the public. Image release forms for buildings are also important especially if they're really noticeable, listed or private. Apparently, it is legal to film anywhere in the UK in public for free. Some councils will try to charge you, but they can only legally stop you if you are causing an obstruction, or noise pollution.
And now it's time for the filming. Spend time on getting your lighting and sound right, don't forget your script and storyboard. Get your actors to 'over act' off-screen before a shot so that they appear natural on film. Try to do a minimum of 4 angles for each scene (extreme close ups, close ups, mid shots, long shots are some examples). Use depth of field to be creative, don't film every shot flat on and remember the 180, and rule of thirds.
So once you've shot & edited your film what next? Well there are festivals to enter your work in, don't forget to watermark anything you submit. Set up a website for the film, and expose it to potential distributors. The internet seems to be the way forward for most film makers, as you can send it global but some people still like to have a physical DVD or Blu-Ray. Use self distribution as a last resort as it is very costly.
At the end of the talk, several of us stayed behind to ask questions, but there weren't many as Jason had covered a LOT of ground during his slot. It would have been nice to have had a bit longer as it was quite hard to keep up with taking notes. However, for me I felt this talk to be the MOST useful of all at Creative Futures this year. I was also lucky enough to win a copy of Vampires: Brighter in Darkness, but I am yet to watch it.
Documentary production for TV & Home Video
Anthony Masi (via Skype)
We had to book a slot to attend this talk, so I hoped it would be useful. Thanks to Dave Robinson for setting up this talk!!!
Anthony Masi is a producer of documentaries for TV/Blu Ray and DVD. His documentaries tend to span across a great deal of time. He started his company Masi Media in 2006. One of his biggest creations is a documentary about the Friday 13th series.
Another of his documentaries was created around the 25th anniversary of the release of the first Halloween movie (released in 1978). It took Anthony over a year to create it, he brought actors, writers and producers in to interview.
Write your script, don't read it or correct it until it's finished, expect to write at least 3 drafts before it will be ready. Don't show it to anyone until the end of the first draft.
The pre-production comes next, try to realistically estimate how much it will cost to produce as you will always overspend. The biggest expense will often be paying and feeding your actors. It's important to know your filming plan inside out. In terms of raising finance, try crowd funding websites like Amazing kickstart. Approach local business and offer parts in your films for the premises or staff. There are specific film funders such as the British Film Industry also.
Learn how to deliver a good pitch, try and use existing films as an example (e.g. Noddy in Toyland meets Silence of the Lambs). Be positive and excited about your idea, it will come across better, remember that raising the funding can take a long time to complete. Also, the more people involved financially, the more red tape you may encounter, as well as people trying to take over the creative stages. You must want to invest in your own film.
Who you need to create your film. The crew, there is the director, the producer(s), cameraman, lighting, sound, runners/assistants, make up/hair and catering (remember no horse meat!). You can save a lot of money if you do more than one of these jobs yourself, but it could potentially take up more time, or you might end up making mistakes with so much to think about!
The importance of a good storyboard is stressed, it's easier to follow than a script during filming, and useful during editing. It can also be used to help the actors know what's expected of them.
Locations are important too, research them before you approach funders, as you may need permission to film in certain places. If they are outdoor remember to get back up locations in case of bad weather
As for actors (a topic Dave Fisher and I know all too well at this point) are also vital. Apparently, they can be unreliable, dreamers, not rooted and can often have conflicting egos. Basic acting skills are really their only essential need, but willingness, punctuality and good chemistry are all useful too. Good acting can be edited later (I'm not sure I entirely agree with this).
Next up is a production schedule (now this I can't agree more with!) try to link scenes that can be shot together, be aware of potential set backs and what to do if one of your actors calls in sick. To ensure everyone is early, given them a time an hour before you expect to begin. If you can, set everything up the night before.
Make sure you have public liability insurance, and that everyone involved has read and understood (and signed) their contracts. Have 100s of image release forms on hand in case anyone ends up being in your shots from the public. Image release forms for buildings are also important especially if they're really noticeable, listed or private. Apparently, it is legal to film anywhere in the UK in public for free. Some councils will try to charge you, but they can only legally stop you if you are causing an obstruction, or noise pollution.
And now it's time for the filming. Spend time on getting your lighting and sound right, don't forget your script and storyboard. Get your actors to 'over act' off-screen before a shot so that they appear natural on film. Try to do a minimum of 4 angles for each scene (extreme close ups, close ups, mid shots, long shots are some examples). Use depth of field to be creative, don't film every shot flat on and remember the 180, and rule of thirds.
So once you've shot & edited your film what next? Well there are festivals to enter your work in, don't forget to watermark anything you submit. Set up a website for the film, and expose it to potential distributors. The internet seems to be the way forward for most film makers, as you can send it global but some people still like to have a physical DVD or Blu-Ray. Use self distribution as a last resort as it is very costly.
At the end of the talk, several of us stayed behind to ask questions, but there weren't many as Jason had covered a LOT of ground during his slot. It would have been nice to have had a bit longer as it was quite hard to keep up with taking notes. However, for me I felt this talk to be the MOST useful of all at Creative Futures this year. I was also lucky enough to win a copy of Vampires: Brighter in Darkness, but I am yet to watch it.
Documentary production for TV & Home Video
Anthony Masi (via Skype)
We had to book a slot to attend this talk, so I hoped it would be useful. Thanks to Dave Robinson for setting up this talk!!!
Anthony Masi is a producer of documentaries for TV/Blu Ray and DVD. His documentaries tend to span across a great deal of time. He started his company Masi Media in 2006. One of his biggest creations is a documentary about the Friday 13th series.
Original Friday 13th movie poster
Another of his documentaries was created around the 25th anniversary of the release of the first Halloween movie (released in 1978). It took Anthony over a year to create it, he brought actors, writers and producers in to interview.
Original Halloween movie poster
Following the success of his previous epic retrospective documentaries, Anthony went on the work on a Jaws documentary. Prior to being a film-maker Anthony was a magician and creating these huge pieces became his new calling in life. It seemed he was a natural at production!
The creation of his business was fairly straight forward, only the paperwork created any challenge. Soon after he got funding very quickly for the filming of the Friday 13th documentary. He explained that obtaining the funding for each documentary was different and depended on several factors, changes in the industry, cast and crew's demands for more money to do interviews and the current economic climate has had a lot of impact on the funding he has received. Using a film clip can also incur a very hefty charge, upwards of $10'000 a minute! He ended up handing over a cheque to Paramount for a staggering $80'000! He received $500'000 to make the Friday 13th documentary but explained his budget for the Scream retrospective is no where near as big.
Like many he uses crowd funding as an option for his work, and stresses the importance of showing enthusiasm when approaching potential funders.
Anthony hopes to create a Hellraiser retrospective, working closely with Clive Barker to tell the stories about what filming was like, also in the pipeline is a Psycho documentary.
Finishing with some tips for filming documentaries:
Be aware of how much footage you shoot, everyone has an opinion and wants to be heard but you will have a LOT of footage to sift through.
Have people sign release forms BEFORE shooting the interview.
Always find out if there is a topic or topics an interviewee doesn't want to talk about before the interview to save you and them from embarrassment.
Don't send the interviewees clips of their interview before the release, guaranteed they won't like something in them = more work for you!
Working alongside friends can often be hard and can cause friction.
I felt very lucky to be able to be a part of this talk, clearly Anthony has done very well for himself and continues to find work. Of course it wasn't easy, and like everyone else who's in the industry his entry wasn't straightforward or simple. I don't think I learned a great deal from the talk, but it was very enjoyable. Once again, thanks to Dave Robinson for organising it!
