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Since the last entry I have undergone various work experience opportunities, of which has led to an actual freelance position and have completed my final short film drama for college.

Regarding work experience, I was fortunate enough to secure work experience with the production company Glo.Live based here in Edinburgh. They are a company that specialise in corporate live streaming video content and after establishing contact via email and having an in-person meeting; I secured 6 days of work experience. During these 6 days I assisted at a two-day live conference on the development of AI and multiple days at Edinburgh University EFI working on exhibition/live performance and live panel Q&As.

I started off by shadowing the team and learning about what they do, and how they do it. But I quickly jumped into action, getting more hands on. I started as a runner and camera operator, but then was shown and trusted to handle the PTZ and vision mixer. I had a great time with the team and learned so much on the job. I felt valued and like a real member of the creative industry.

I have been fortunate that Glo.Live were so impressed by my effort and contribution that I have now become a freelancer for them where they have contacted me with paid work offers 3 times now. This is great, and such a confidence boost, to not only be getting paid for work before my college course is over but also to know that I am evidently capable on the job.

I am confident that I will receive more work opportunities from them going forward, of which will help me continue to grow and develop my skills outside of college and grow more confident as an independent freelancer, knowing my value and worth as a contributor and establishing a wider network.

This boost in confidence also helped me going into the production of my final project. Knowing that I am capable and someone people value working with, just really helped focus me when it came to directing and leading the shoot on my short film.

My short film was a rather large project; shooting on 7 different locations (including another 7 around different Edinburgh locations), had a £400 budget on costumes and props, multiple different creative aims and ideas, and a very tight schedule. The shoot however went incredibly well and had no hiccups. There were so many assets and avenues for things to fall short and go wrong, but I was focused, motivated and confident that it just all came together. I am still in the editing process whilst writing this, so I am hoping the finished product shows all this.

Learning is a lifelong endeavour; but I am surprisingly happy with where I am now in my education and career. As a director, I have proven through every project that I am capable, and where there has been room to improve, I have taken that on board for the next. I have continued to push learning the technical skills I felt weakest with, for example camera work, but the more time I have spent working with peers who know more, the more confident I have become. This also a skill, along with others, that will grow and develop through work experience. It is so exciting and rewarding to already be pursuing freelance work before even completed my HND. This summer I want to try and help those who have helped me, with some of their personal projects and take what I have learned to help them, and further improve my own abilities. By the end of the BA next year I want to feel like a true independent filmmaker.

Since the first entry I have completed the “External Client Project”, started the “Scene Recreation”, and have had an opportunity for work experience.  I have also been engaged in many email conversations with other businesses or independent freelancers to discuss other work experience opportunities. This last month has really given me the experience of what it really feels like to work in the industry, going from one project to another, taking on last minute opportunities, whilst trying to establish a network of connections.

The “External Client Project” provided a valuable lesson in team leading as a director, trust, and communication. During the post-production process, I became quite anxious over the state of the rough cut and responded poorly by trying to take things into my own hands. This naturally resulted in the actual editor being upset in response. I should have simply communicated by issues, which we then did and sat down together to fix the issues. I then left them to finish off the edit; and the result was great. This was the first time I have had to direct or lead post-production; so, I was a little inexperienced and poor at how to instruct the crew. But I learned that it is important to be engaged throughout the entire editing process, to communicate with the crew and to trust people in their roles.

Through the “Scene Recreation” I got the valuable experience of working with actors.  I took the casting of the roles very seriously and requested audition tapes. This worked to my benefit as it helped to cast actors who took the process and the roles seriously as they took the time to learn the lines and audition. The dedication and commitment are what I found important. For the one role I gave guidance on how to reach a specific subtle Welsh accent, which the actor absolutely nailed. For the other it was about putting across the character profile. On the shoot days, I found I was able to make both actors comfortable and have fun even in between takes when they were possibly just sitting around. This experience has helped me grow as a Director and I will take the lessons into the “Short Film Project”.

I also managed to gain a last-minute work experience with Ashley Dick from the company Cinora. After attending a guest lecture at the college, I sent Ashely an email seeking work experience and was invited to join her for a documentary interview. This was a great experience as I was able to see how a set operates outside of a college environment. I took on the role of Production Assistant, helping where needed. The shoot was a very last-minute opportunity for them and so it was great to see how things really are set up under pressure in the real-world; showing that you must act and be ready to go whenever things pop up. It was also great seeing professionals comfortable with their craft setting up and working; particularly the DOP (who I worked closely with) to prep the set.

Over the last month, and continuing, I have also been reaching out to people for more work experience opportunities and trying to establish connections. I also had a very successful screening of the Firrhill High School documentary I directed, which will hopefully be taken by various interests and spread throughout the UK.

This month has really helped me feel like a true professional and that I am already part of the industry. By working with people outside of college, building connections and having my own independent screening; I feel more confident, comfortable, and mature as a filmmaker. Over the next month I want to seek more opportunities that allow me to learn from others in the industry, which will also help to build by network. I want to say yes to as many things as possible to develop my skills, expand my knowledge and continue to grow as a filmmaker.

Over the first semester I have tried to take on new challenges, and step into the role of camera operator more. This has helped build my confidence in using a camera, leading me to take on an outside college opportunity filming a music video at a live performance for an established artist. By taking on this challenge, I was able to try new things that I have not yet come across during my education. However, whilst I have improved my confidence and comfort with camerawork some of the more technical aspects and science still go over my head; only more time and further learning through will help change this.

The first project of the year, ‘The Big Idea’, helped my build my confidence and knowledge at using software such as Adobe After Effects, something that was also established in my SWOT analysis. For this project I sought help from one of my lecturers and watched online tutorials. This helped me learn how to do new things on After Effects, which really helped improve my finished project. I was personally quite happy with my efforts and finished product. I would like to continue developing my comfort and skills in After Effects.

I have learned to appreciate my skills and take comfort in the knowledge of being good at certain things required for this course. Whilst some technical skills and knowledge is still growing, I can appreciate my abilities to organise, time-keep, manage, document, liaison, communicate and direct sets. Over the last year I believe I have proven myself beyond my own expectation to excel with these skills, and I finally feel that I am putting them to use by following my passion. I have recently finished a 30-minute documentary for a client, which has received glowing praise. This has really helped in removing of some the self-criticism around my place in this industry.

Going forward, I want to push myself to improve my skillset and take on more difficult shoots in the next projects. The client project showed that I am well organised Director, but the nature of the non-fiction film did not allow me to push my creative mind. The upcoming Scene Recreation will allow me to experiment with a range of different shots, along with some new challenges as a director. This will help inform the creative process for the final short film. I will seek more opportunities outside of college, to help build my experience, filmography and network.