Blakeway North: A Professional Development.

Blakeway North: A Professional Development.

This summer I spent three amazing weeks working for a television company based in Manchester. Blakeway North, the northern branch of Blakeway Productions, provided me with a valuable insight into the industry I hope to one day work in. To be completely truthful my ideal work placement would have been on a drama or film set learning more about the production side of things. At my time at Blakeway I would not learn anything new about filming or editing, even though I did sit in on an editing session which was a great insight into how to work more professionally. The things I did learn however were perhaps far more insightful. This is because they gave me new career options which I did not know I would have been interested in pursuing.

I love film making and storytelling, and visual narrative is something I love working with, and this is why I originally felt the obvious choice for a placement would have been on a set. However my experiences on placement broadened my areas of interest in the industry. Blakeway is a multi-award winning factual content production company. They make a wide range of TV shows for most of the major channels. The office I was based in, was used for content development, this meant the producers there would come up with creative ideas for new shows. The other primary role for the office was for it to be used as a hub for the current projects. When this happened it became a place for the production team to plan for their upcoming activities. In both of these areas I was able to help the team and gain experience at working on a professional level.

On the first day at Blakeway I was asked to do some shredding of old documents. This was not exactly what I had hoped for out of the placement. However I felt that no task would be too small and I did my utmost to be the best shredder that Blakeway had ever seen. I would implore all people on placement to share this attitude as it certainly worked to my advantage. After filling three bin bags with shredded paper in twenty minutes the machine over-heated and stopped working. It’s a rather daunting task to have to inform somebody you are supposed to be impressing that you have just broken a piece of equipment after being on the premises less than an hour. However, I was kindly informed it happened quite often and I was given a much better job. I was asked to do some time-coding for one of Blakeway’s current TV shows Benidorm ER. This was enjoyable responsibility and gave me my first taste of time-coding a script. The next day I was asked to do more time-coding by Production Executive Alison Lewis. This was for a beautiful documentary about Emile Sande’s journey to Mexico, where she discovered information on her inspiration, artist, Freda Kahlo.

There was plenty of other things to do whilst on placement other than getting advanced screening of up and coming shows. Research was an ongoing task throughout the placement. This would be set by different producers that needed information on a new subject matter which potentially could become a new show. I really enjoyed the research aspect in my role as it kept me busy in between tasks. I won’t dwell to long on research as the subjects Blakeway will be covering in new show are best kept a nice surprise. One of the things that most stood out for me Blakeway was my meeting with the boss, Sarah Murch. She invited me into her office for a chat and to give me the opportunity to discuss any of my ideas. Forming ideas is something I can do well, especially if it is in my areas of interest. As my ideas for potential documentaries would largely concern social-economical political themes and their effects on society, Sarah felt that many probably wouldn’t suit Blakeway. However she felt I would be more suited to a current affairs type programme. Sarah was very inspirational person. You could almost instantly tell she was a driven, focused and intelligent individual who knew how to run a team of media professionals. In fact the entire Blakeway team was a collection of inspiring individuals. For a start they all seemed so happy to be in their jobs and they worked with a really sense of purpose. They all had great industry experience and knowhow and were happy to share it.

For the last two weeks of my placements I mainly worked with a production team, who arrived mid-way through my first week. They had a brief to create a show about people partaking in house swaps. By the start of the second week I was primarily being used as an assistant producer helping to find people who wanted to be part of the show. This involved working closely with the team and observing them, which was very helpful in learning how to work in a professional manner. Unfortunately by the time they started going on location to shoot I had just finished my placement, so I missed out on that side of things, which was disappointing. However it will be nice to see the final product on the BBC when it is aired next month. At the end of my last day we had a brainstorming session where everybody attended and put forward ideas to be pitch to various channels. This was conducted by another fabulous producer Georgina Madley, whose effortless enthusiasm was always a source motivation whilst on placement. As Georgina was also in charge of development so I was always keen to observe her methods and working practice. It was really insightful to see progression of an idea of subject matter being transformed into a primetime television show.

I had a brilliant time at Blakeway and gained real insight into how much production planning is needed to make something to industry standard. The hard work starts long before you touch the camera or enter the edit suite. Without the development stage you would not have a quality narrative to form an entertaining television programme. The knowledge I have gained will hopefully improve my future endeavours.

Sheffield Doc Fest

Sheffield Doc Fest 2014

This year’s Sheffield Doc Fest brought together a collection of interesting and often inspiring factual films from around the globe. I was fortunate enough to attend the festival this year and I managed to see about three films each day. I feel disappointed that I didn’t actually see more, because with good planning you would be able to view about six or seven films each day. However I was not disappointed at all with the films that I was able to view. In fact I felt quite privileged to have the opportunity to see them. Many of the films that I saw were world premiers. The films ranged from the story of an Iranian girl, struggling to achieve her dreams whilst growing up in an un-accepting Iran, to the first look at the Chris Sievey documentary, the man behind Frank Sidebottom. There was a staggering range of films which would appeal to a wide ranging audience. The festival kicked off with a documentary about the band Pulp who are from Sheffield. This show was sold out and I was lucky enough to get one of the last tickets. There was a very special atmosphere that resonated around the City Hall where I watched the film, and I felt it set the tone for the rest of the festival.

I arrived at the festival not knowing what to expect. I had checked out the website before hand however I didn’t realise how vast it would be. In all honesty I was expecting a fairly small event. I had mainly arrived at this assumption because I had heard that there would only be 3000 people attending. Compare this to a music festival and it’s a tiny figure. However this festival is designed for media professionals and real film enthusiasts. This meant that virtually every screening was full. The choice of location for screening was fantastic. Most of the locations were in Sheffield City centre, where they used cinemas, theatres and large grand buildings such as the City Hall. However the best locations were outside of the city centre and involved going for a bus ride. The first journey I went on took me to the Devil’s Arsehole, which was actually a beautiful cave just outside of Sheffield. Here I watched the Oscar winning documentary 20 Feet From Stardom. This film was about backing singers from the sixties who had never made it as lead singers. However their vocal talent far surpassed many of their contemporaries. I had wanted to watch this film since I had heard about it a few month previous, but watching it in the cave made it a far more special occasion. The destination of the second bus ride was Chatsworth House, which is a breathtaking location about 40 minutes away from Sheffield. Here I was fortunate to see the world premier of All is Love, which was a film funnily enough about all things love. The film was made using only archive footage provided by the BFI. It was truly incredible to watch and what made the film so enjoyable was the phenomenal soundtrack which accompanied the moving images.

Doc Fest had so much to offer that I should carry on much longer to attempt to do it justice. Perhaps I should mention the cool freebies and daily wine receptions as well as the awesome networking opportunities, oh and the Art Gallery that they turned into a Night club! Instead I will merely just say check it out for yourselves next year. I promise if you’re passionate about film you will not be disappointed. Finally I want to thank Sarah Haynes and LJMU for providing the opportunity to attend this event and I sincerely hope that I can attend next year’s Sheffield Doc Fest.

To Blog or not to Blog that is the question?

For some people blogging is a way of life. It seems that perhaps it gives an individual a new found relevance in the wonderful world of all things web. Still to others it could be observed that it offers an opportunity to be listened to in a world that doesn't always want to listen. For somebody who has an opinion and want to engage that opinion in to convocation, a blog could be the answer. To have the platform to share your feelings, ideas and opinions with people outside your own inner circle of peers can be a rewarding experience. I certainly believe that many of us blog on the basis of I blog therefore I am. This can observed when communicating with avid bloggers, as you can sense their enthusiasm and fulfilment which they recieve from blogging. I guess you get from blogging what you put in. So as long as you enjoying it keep doing it. As for me I'm a lazy blogger to put it politely! I most definitely have an opinion and I love to express it. However I'm not particularly some who enjoys the spotlight or being the centre of attention. Having those attributes in your personality can certainly aid a good blogger but as I stated I do not. So where does this leave me? Well I suppose I am an occasional blogger. So you will hear from me from time to time but probably not as often as you'd like (said firmly with tongue in cheek).



I will follow this short article up with a couple of tales of summer activity thus far.

The Football Writers Association live event Liverpool

Last week I was fortunate enough to attend the Football Writers Association (FWA) live event in Liverpool. This is an annually event that discuses a range of footballing issues, in an open debate with a panel of journalist and ex-professional footballers. The debate occurs in front of an audience who are able to partake in the discussion. I took part in this as a representative of Liverpool John Moores University with two other students, Lee Reid and Robbie Hayes. As an Evertonian and media practitioner I was delighted to attend. The panel consisted of Paul McCarthy, the executive secretary of the FWA, Michael Owen (former Liverpool and England striker, now a BT Sport pundit), Alan Stubbs (Everton’s Under-21 coach), Andy Dunn (FWA chairman), Chris Bascombe (Daily Telegraph), Paul Joyce (Daily Express) and Jonathan Northcroft (Sunday Times). From start to finish it was a very enjoyable occasion, not only did we witness firsthand opinions from renowned journalists and personal sporting heros but we also provided with as much booze and posh nosh as we could consume. During the event I found out that the tickets would have been £25 for paying customers, which would have been a more than fair price considering how enjoyable it was. This left me feeling very fortunate that the University had offered us this opportunity, and also a little bemused more of my fellow students had not attended. During the event we had opportunities to meet some of the journalists and footballers that attended. This was possibly even better that all the free excellent food and drinks, even though the miniature steak and chips were excellent.We were seated next to the man who was writing an article for FWA on the event. He really was interesting and more than happy to converse with us about football and journalism.

The true highlight of the evening for me was meeting former Everton captain and now Everton under 21’s coach Alan Stubbs. At the interval I took the opportunity to speak to him and inform him I used to be a fan and enjoyed watching him play. This meeting proceeded to become a fifteen minute convocation, where we discussed the transfer market and the current shape of the Everton squad. Alan Stubbs was a really nice individual who seemed happy to spend time talking to fans. This sadly cannot be said for Michael Owen, the ‘Big name guest’ of the night. Owen a successful footballer for England, Liverpool and other major teams did not share the openness or politeness that the other footballing guest had shown us. Robbie a lifelong Liverpool fan who had been an adoring follower of Owen was sadly shunned on attempting to speak to him. This was a slight dampener on the event however that a side we all had a fantastic time.

I feel privileged to have attended this event and would recommend other students to take up other similar opportunities in the future.

Recently I have been ill and spent some time in hospital. This was due to losing the feeling in my legs and left hand side. This was caused by inflammation in my brain and spinal cord. Today I found out that my symptoms are the same as multiple sclerosis (MS) and if unfortunate in the future I could get MS. I am optimistic that this will be an isolated episode and I should fully recover over the next month.

On reflection of the time spent in hospital I was very impressed by the hard work and professionalism of the nurses. I recall one nurse coping single handedly as two patients in the same afternoon needed stabilising. Even though doctor’s carryout life saving surgery it is important not to forget the nurse’s work. The same nurse that probably saved two live that day then stayed two hours after her shift ended to write a report so the next nurse working fully knew the situation. That was two hours unpaid and after a twelve and a half hour shift. That type of dedication and work ethic is something that should be commended. In fact all the staff that I met during my stay in hospital were excellent and some were even inspiring. I am so grateful we have the NHS it is an institution to be proud of.

Anyway back at University now and cannot wait to get back to doing what I love and maybe even be inspired to work harder and be more committed after my time in  hospital.

Will Christoph waltz away with it?

Christoph Waltz an actor who most of us will have only been familiar with since Inglorious Basterds in 2009. Waltz is in line for his second Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor. He won his first playing Hans Landa, in Quentin Tarantino’s Inglorious Basterds, and once again this nomination is provided from a performance in a Tarantino film. In this role he plays a bounty hunter called Dr King Shultz in the film Django Unchained. One of the reasons he is profound in his performances is that Tarantino wrote them with Waltz in mind. Tarantino has the insight and knowledge to use non-Hollywood actor and with good effect.

In both performances he is captivating and amazing to watch. Even though the two characters he plays are different in their nature there is a similar feel to them. Hans Landa is a Nazi in World War II who is responsible for rounding up any Jews hiding in France. In fact Landa is the villain in the film, however due to his performance he is almost likable. In Django Unchained he plays the role of bounty hunter who frees Django (played by Jamie Fox) and then goes in search of Django’s captive wife. Again Waltz puts in a charismatic performance, and even more likable than Landa as he is the heroic team mate of the protagonist.

Will he win? I don’t know...

I hope he does his performance was certainly award winning, as he has already won the Golden Globe Award. However the Academy Awards do not always agree with the Globes. My gut feeling is it may go to Tommy Lee Jones for his performance in Steven Spielberg’s Lincoln. Lincoln is certainly a film that may make American Academy voters feel some sort of patriotism towards the cast of the film. Not to take anything away from Tommy Lee Jones, he won he would be a deserved winner. I would like to Chrisoph win, and if he keeps teaming up with Tarantino there will be plenty more nomination to come.

Will Daniel have his Day?

Will Daniel have his Day?

Daniel Day-Lewis is set to become The Academy Awards (Oscars) most prestigious winner. If he wins the Oscar for his role as Abraham Lincoln, in the Steven Spielberg film Lincoln, he will earn his third award for Best Actor in a Leading Role. No other actor has done this in The Academy’s eighty-five history. What is more fascinating with Day-Lewis’s career is the overwhelming amount of awards he has received in his relatively short acting career. He has appeared in only twenty films yet has won eighty-seven internationally recognised awards. That is ratio no other actor in the history of film has even nearly replicated.

The recognition he receives is largely due to the fact he is method actor. This means he will become the character during his time of making the film. This dedication to a role ended in broken ribs during the filming My Left Foot as he spent two weeks hunched over in a wheelchair. During the filming of The Last of the Mohican’s he lived off the land, and learned how to hunt and fish. He also carried a rifle around the film set at all times. In his performance as Bill the Butcher in Gangs of New York, he learned how to be butcher. When he contracted pneumonia on set he refused medication because his character would not have been able to the receive treatment. Due to the efforts Day-Lewis puts in to his work he refuses to make back to back films. This gives him the opportunity to select films which he wants to invest his time in too. However this seems to be positive for his career, as he is in more demand as an actor, as film makers know they will be getting quality if not quantity.

Will he win his third Oscar? Yes!

The politics of this film will ensure he wins, as he is playing the man who abolished slavery in America. Therefore without Lincoln there would be no Barack Obama. Putting the politics on one side, Day-Lewis’s performance is nothing short of extraordinary. Every envisagement I have ever had of Abraham Lincoln came to life in his performance. When watching him act I felt like it was Lincoln I was watching. As an audience member when he was screen I somehow forgot I was watching a movie. The film contains other notable performances from Tommy Lee Jones and Sally Field, however Day-Lewis truly steals the show. He deserves his third Oscar.

I can’t say he is the greatest actor of all time or he is my favourite but I would say no other actor has better selection of acting performances on film. He just has not made a bad film that he plays the lead role. This is down to the dedication he puts in to his art and for that he deserves the recognition.