Project 3 - Professional Practice
Research:
Job Roles and Opportunities Mindmap:
Investigation of Media Job Roles:
Video Editor:
Involves editing videos in a creative and appropriate way, using a variety of advanced software.
This suits me the best out of all the job roles I have viewed and evaluated because I love the creative side of video editing and it is something I would love to pursue as a career in the future. I spend a lot my spare time watching YouTube videos and montages, where they use an array of editing techniques and special effects, which inspired me to create my own video edits. It also suits me as I believe I can quickly visualise a plan for my videos, using creative ideas.
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Skills needed for this role:
Good experience and understanding of Adobe Premiere Pro, Adobe After Effects, AVID, depending on what software the company specialises in.
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How could you get this role:
Apprenticeships could be a good way to enter into the industry in the role of video editor, whilst receiving a salary and gaining experience. Furthermore, there are professional courses in specific editing programmes, allowing you to show you have the ability to be a video editor, for the company you are trying to join. Also, university could be a good way to show your skills, and a high level degree in media on your CV will be very attractive to those who are hiring a video editor.
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Production Runner:
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Involves assisting wherever needed on productions and you will be assigned various duties, such as acting as a courier, cleaning the set, printing and distributing paperwork, call sheets as well as health and safety notices.
This could be suitable for me as I like helping people and being part of a team so it could be a good way into the industry before progressing to a different job role, such as logger or media coordinator.
Skills/tools needed for this role:
You need to own a fast and powerful laptop to be able to process paperwork efficiently and make you a reliable part of the team. A car is also useful as often you will act as a courier to deliver things to other workers. Also, you will need to be reliable, organised and punctual so that the rest of the team can depend on the runner to complete their simple tasks for them.
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How could you get this role:
Have a small amount of experience in the media industry, through college course or university degrees, for example. Show excitement and passion for the job role and possess the qualities needed for the role.
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Camera Trainee:
Involves working with all members of the camera crew, looks after cameras, cleans filters and specialist camera equipment. You will also be required to prepare kit and keep records, camera logs and other paperwork ready for the edit. In addition to this, you will need to have a good eye and understanding of composition of photography.
This could be suitable for me as I enjoy working with cameras and have a reasonable eye for photography, and understand what is need to make up a creative composition.
Skills/tools needed for this role:
A good-eye for photography, wide-range of knowledge for camera equipment and photography and a clear understanding of composition of photography.
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How could you get this role:
A media degree would be required for this role unless you can find another way into the industry through work experience, apprenticeships, or being promoted from a runner to a camera trainee.
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Director of photography:
Responsible for making artistic and technical decisions related to the final image. They carry out research to understand how to produce their vision through camera movement, lighting and framing and what kit and crew members they will need to achieve this.
This could be suitable for me as I have a good vision for photography, and enjoy leading people within a team, which would be an important part of this job as a director.
Skills/tools needed for this role:
An eye for composition is required and to know how to tell a story through a shot, understand camera and lighting techniques and using them to provoke emotions. Also, you will need technical knowledge of cameras, lens, monitors and lights. Furthermore, a good knowledge of post-production and editing will be necessary in order to create the best final image. You need to be able to make quick decisions, have great organisation and be a good communicator to coordinate the camera crew to produce the image you have visualised. ​
How could you get this role:
There are many routes into this role, however most people start as a camera trainee and work their way up. Others become a director of photography through being an assistant director first or progress upwards through the lighting department. High level qualifications will of course be required to originally enter the industry, before progressing through the job roles to become a DoP.
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Director:
The creative leader of a production. Their artistic vision is used throughout the whole process, from pre-production through to the final edit.
The executive producer employs them, who is ultimately in charge of a production. The director’s job is to imagine the script in a visual form. They work closely with the producers to select the heads of department, for example the production designer, director of photography and assistant director. Also, they choreograph where actors are positioned and how they move throughout the scene, as well as their delivery of dialogue.
Furthermore, they instruct other members of the crew, such as lighting, wardrobe and make-up supervisors, to ensure all technical aspects are in place to get a great scene filmed.
During the post-filming process, they lead the editing of a film, preparing a ‘directors cut’. This is later reviewed by producers and financiers before agreeing the final cut.
This could be a potentially a suitable job role for me in the future, as I enjoy leading teams, and feel I am able to use my own creative visions, as well as incoorporating other peoples ideas, to produce a great final product. I have experience of this in my drama GCSE, where I helped choreograph the scene, alongside my role of the sound designer.
Skills/tools needed for this role:
Good leadership skills, allowing them to work with lots of different people in the process and inspire them to make the best final product possible.
They need to be able to make creative decisions, and to be able to envisage all aspects of the film, and execute it.
Furthermore, they must have a high-level understanding of the film production process from start to finish, technically and creatively.
Lastly, there is a lot of pressure on the director, and they need to be able to stay calm in this kind of environment, and continue to make creative decisions, even when things aren't going as intended.
How you could get this role:
There is a multitude of different pathways to becoming a director. Some begin working in theatre, some originate as screenwriters, some come up through the assistant director route, others come from the camera department. This career can be started by getting work in a production office, or as a runner on set, before climbing up through entry-level positions.
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HE Careers Fair: Investigate a selection of media degree courses:
At Bournemouth university, they offer a media production degree course, where you will study digital film, audio production, script-writing, digital media, design, media perspective, audiences and more. This allows you to graduate from the course with a variety of skills which will make you very appealing to the media industry. Ex-students have progressed into the media production companies, at entry-level jobs such as runners and camera trainees, a great first step. This is interesting to me as its in a really interesting location and covers a wide range of areas and skills on the course, which I'm sure would make me feel much more experienced. However, the length of the course is off-putting as I want to enter into the media industry quickly, so an apprenticeship would be more appropriate.
Additionally, they provide a Television Production degree course, which involves a range of study topics such as TV craft, principles, media scholarship, screening concepts, understanding media, production, portfolios, and more. This has many direct links to television broadcasting companies, where ex-students have progressed to big companies such as, Premier League and This Morning. This course interests me as my main career goal is to work for a television production company, using practical TV skills that I would learn about during this degree.
However, some aspects of the course are less interesting such as the portfolios that are needed alongside the practical work, as I enjoy the practical side a lot more than the theory, however I understand that this is a sacrifice required to be successful in the media industry. Furthermore, the lecturers have high levels of experience working first-hand in the industry, meaning the knowledge they pass on could be extremely valuable for me in finding my career path in media in the future. This made the course more appealing the to me as I could see more direct ways into the industry through the lecturers, as a result of performing well within the degree.
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Furthermore, at Brighton: City Campus University, they offer a Film and Screen Studies degree, where you will study histories, theories, industries of screen media. There are also a lot of practical tasks, such as, documentary and film-making, TV studio production, journalism, photography and script-writing. This gives you great links into the film industry, as Brighton has many connections and contacts, which has allowed ex-students to progress quickly to entry-level jobs, at Film 4, Cannes Film Festival, X Factor and Studio Canal.
This course interests me due to its array of practical film making skills, as video editing is my career focus. Some aspect of the course interest me less such as the history of film-making, this may be important for the degree but I know it will be used very little when working practically in the modern industry.
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Moreover, another media course at Brighton: City Campus university, is the 'Moving Image' degree, where students study a multitude of genres in media combined with practical projects. This provides students with links into the film-making industry and studios. The large amount of practical tasks on this course as it is focused on film production for entertainment and understanding the process behind it, makes this degree appealing to me. Although, the camera-work required for film-production is less interesting for me as I am more engaged in the post-production process such as video editing.
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Investigating Apprenticeships:
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After carrying out some secondary research on www.screenskills.com, I now have a much better understanding of the idea of an apprenticeship, and it is definitely something I will be interested in incorporating into my own progression route into the industry in the future:
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Various companies provide alternative progression routes into the media industry such as apprenticeships. These can allow employees to grow and improve their skillset in specific areas, such as video editing, visual effects, film, audio production and television.
Essentially, an apprenticeship is when you are employed to work and receive training at the same time. This allows you to come out of the apprenticeship with a considerable amount more industry experience than when you first applied. The training usually lasts a minimum of 12 months and is paid for you by the company, whilst you receive a working wage – a great situation for the employer. Moreover, you will be allocated time off to study for whichever stage of education you are currently situated in.
At the end of your time as an apprentice, now that you are qualified in the area you were training and working in, your potential salary will be increased, and it is at this point when you may be presented with the opportunity of a permanent role within the same company, or you may make the decision to use the experience gained from the apprenticeship, to go elsewhere and a role in an alternative production company that is more suited to you.
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Different apprenticeships have different entry requirements; however, you will legally need to be at least 16 years old and not currently participating in full-time education. The main thing that will allow you to stand out to the employers, and increase your chances of receiving the opportunity, is not necessarily your qualifications, but more importantly your enthusiasm towards work, as well as your ability to communicate clearly and use your creative ideas effectively, in order to benefit the team of current employers.
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Progression routes and opportunities suited to my area of specialism:
According to the website Screenskills, ‘The traditional route to becoming an editor is to start as a post-production runner or trainee and go on to become an assistant editor.’ This statement could prove to be true in my case, as I am looking to avoid going to university, so the opportunity of an apprenticeship could prove to be a way into the industry and I would be likely starting as a post-production runner or hopefully, in the best case scenario, an assistant video editor. This would allow me to progress and gain a lot of industry experience before progressing to the role of the main editor.
However, there are many routes to reach this position, and with social media growing in popularity all the time, free-lance opportunities are readily available. This could be another starting point that would make up an important and attractive part of my CV, as having previous experience working as a free-lance editor for clients, could allow me to enter the industry at a higher level than post-production runner. This conveys how I am able to reach my ultimate goal of an editor from a different angle, especially after working towards a qualification in AVID and also Premier Pro if necessary.
When researching further, I discovered many opportunities that coincide with the role of the editor, which is one of the main reasons I am particularly interested in this area of post-production in media. For example, you can work in the television broadcasting industry, producing VT’s for live programmes, you could work in marketing to edit adverts for products on social media and television, you could even work in the film industry and edit movies and documentaries. In conclusion, this role has so many levels that you can take it to, and as I grow in experience, I hope to cover many different areas of editing in different industries, and I am very excited to give my all in order to achieve these dreams in the future.
5 year career development plan:
In the future, my main career goal is to become a video editor, particularly in the sports television industry. There are a number of steps I am hoping to take in order to achieve this. After being successful in my GCSEs, I have started my Level 3 Creative Media Production & Technology course, this will help me be more qualified, as well as giving me a good level of experience using industry level software, such as Adobe Premier Pro, After Effects and Photoshop, as well as a great understanding of media as a whole. My aim is to complete the two years on the course and be awarded a distinction, making me as appealing to the industry as possible at this stage.
After this, I am hoping to independently complete a professional course in the editing software of AVID, to prove my skills in this particular department to the industry, making me reliable and experienced – two very important qualities to possess when looking for a job.
Additionally, during the time after college, I am hoping to receive work experience/volunteering, as a part of the media team at Portsmouth Football Club, using my brother as a contact, who has previously worked there as the big screen director in the stadium. I would be likely to be on the role of a runner or a camera trainee, and I would love to continuing working for them in the future, as it combines my passions of media and football, and would be a fantastic stepping-stone in reaching my ultimate aspiration.
Continuing on, at this stage, in roughly 3 or 4 years, I will be looking for my first entry-level (or higher) job into the industry, most likely as an apprentice, with my qualifications in media and video editing, as well as experience working for the media team in a professional football club, hopefully proving attractive to employers. From here, I would work hard and prove my media expertise, in order to progress through the ranks in the work place, edging closer to the role of video editor in the future.
Video Producer and Editor - Job Application:
Dear Human Resources at DreamingFish,
After reviewing your exciting job description of the role of video producer and editor, I believe I have the required experience, skills and passion for the role, and would like to apply for this position.
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My main aspiration is to be a video editor, hence why I have been practicing and enhancing my editing skills for the last 5 years. Additionally, I have spent the last 2 years at Chichester college, developing my skills in Adobe Premiere Pro and After Effects, which I understand are required for this role. I feel I am capable of producing the ‘mad video editing skills’ that you are in need of, as I have spent several years free-lance editing for clients and I love to edit short montages to practice these effects and techniques in my spare time, gaining over 1,000 subscribers on YouTube as a result.
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Furthermore, I have previous experience in making the school’s ski trip video, using many effects and techniques, which was very successful and shown to the whole school, in order to advertise for the following year’s trip to Italy. To make this video, I had to work in a team, as I had someone film the footage for me and then transfer these files to me, so that I could edit the final product. I really enjoy working in team environments, as I think it is a great opportunity to bring everyone’s ideas and skillsets together, to create something amazing.
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I believe my passion, experience and love for filming and editing would be a great asset within your team, and it is something I would love to be a part of, I look forward to hearing from you.
Kind Regards,
James Guy
Freelance Videographer and Video Editor - Progression Route:
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To be able to be qualified to receive the role of Freelance Videographer and Video Editor, I would complete the full two years at Chichester College, in order for me to learn the skills required, of setting up equipment, shooting and the post editing of the content in Adobe Premier Pro, After Effects and continue to improve my use of Microsoft Office.
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After this, I would begin to gain experience in the industry, through applying or volunteering to do entry-level jobs within the media industry, to make me more appealing for apprenticeships and permanent jobs in the future, by showing my reliability, hard-work ethic, time management and that I am able to work independently or as a part of a team.
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Furthermore, to enable me to be able to put these skills into practice, I would apply for a multitude of apprenticeships within videography and editing, in the hope of receiving a permanent job at the end of the apprenticeship. This would allow me to be qualified in these areas, as well as to reach the ‘minimum of 5 years of professional experience in video production’, in order top make me applicable for the position within Crate47 at Brighton Studio.
Additionally, by the time of applying to Crate47, I would have produced a large array of work which could be edited into a showreel to portray my skills in a practical and creative way. As a result, making me more attractive to the employer, as my words could be backed up by my finished products of video production, audio and graphics within these pieces of work.
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Creative CV:
Peer Critiques - Discussing Future Career Roles:
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When discussing the different career choices with my peers suited to our own independent areas of interest and specialism, we weighed up different possibilities to see which would be the best career for each of us, within our group. The feedback I received from my peers was that I had a good eye for video editing, and that I was editing in an advanced way, especially for the short amount of time I had spent using Adobe Premiere Pro.
My peers critiqued my work in Photoshop more than some other areas, as the effects I used were less advanced and I found it more difficult to use the tools to edit photos than videos, making me think video editing would be a more suitable route than photo editing. This is due to the fact that I am good at understanding the uses of video effects and how these can be beneficial for the final product.
Furthermore, my camera work skills have shown promise, and my peers complimented the steady footage I have recorded without the use of a tripod, and said that they were well composed and that I had used the correct amount of headroom for shots within my LookBook, meaning the role of camera operator also came into discussion for a future career path for me.
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References
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Mindmapped research: CrashCourse, 7 September 2017, YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TpAHZJc5In0
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Screenskills Research:
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Editor:
https://www.screenskills.com/careers/job-profiles/film-and-tv-drama/post-production/editor/
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Apprenticeships:
https://www.screenskills.com/education-training/apprenticeships/
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Production Runner:
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Camera Trainee:
https://www.screenskills.com/careers/job-profiles/film-and-tv-drama/technical/camera-trainee/
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Director of Photography:
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Director Research:
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