Unit 335 - Planning a career in media
1.1 Self evaluation
1.2 Action Plan
This is my action plan for after college, it contains multiple different jobs and university courses that I could do to better my knowledge. I looked at 3 different universities that all have a filmmaking course, 2 apprenticeships and 2 job roles.
1.3 University Application
I will be living with my parents as accommodation so, I wouldn't need to think about how to manage my money into different parts, like bills and food.
Industry Advice
I spoke to Jordan Tomkins, who is the Managing Director at PYTCH, and asked him some questions on how he got to where he is today.
What does your job role entail?
I am the Managing Director. As we are a relatively small business, this means I am responsible for staffing, HR, finance, ensuring all of my clients’ projects are well serviced and delivered to a high standard, and the overall strategy and direction of the business.
What pathways did you take to get where you are in the media industry?
I started planning live music events with my friends when I was about 14. We would book venues, arrange bands, book equipment and technicians, and put on under-18s club nights. We also had a few guest stages at festivals. I studied audio engineering at University where I got the opportunity to do a work placement. On my work placement I did everything from sweeping floors and making tea, loading trucks, and cleaning equipment, right up to going onto site and learning everything there was to learn about event production. After graduating, I got a job as a technician at PYTCH. As the business has grown and changed direction I have tried to ensure I am constantly learning and developing my skills across different creative industries.
What advice would you give to someone who is just breaking into the media industry?
Don’t say no. You never know where an opportunity might arise - as soon as you find yourself thinking you might be above doing a job, or would prefer to do something more ‘fun’, you limit your capacity for learning and developing. Some of my best experiences have been doing things that I thought I really wouldn’t enjoy or was reluctant to do.
Would you suggest starting your journey as a runner and working your way up to where you want to be?
There is no set path. Job titles like ‘runner’ and ‘assistant’ are, in my view, too narrow. But yes, sure, start at the very bottom, because if you haven’t done the worst possible jobs and worked the longest hours, you can’t hope to understand the people around you, and you will struggle to earn respect amongst your peers. My personal bugbear is when people believe that they can be a ‘manager’ with zero experience of actually doing the hard work. Unless you have done it, you can’t possibly hope to manage it!
What would your day to day role look like during different parts of production?
For me, I am one step removed from the day to day of production most of the time. My job is in the pre-planning, ensuring all of the facilities are booked, my staff are able to do their jobs effectively, and the budgets are clearly defined. However, I still get on a sound desk or behind a camera once in a while!
If you have any additional information you think would be useful then I would be very grateful to receive this!
The industry is incredibly competitive but also very hungry for good talent at the moment and there are a variety of avenues to get into work. I would not rely on courses and formal education but consider what other avenues might be open to you - you may not get a job as a camera operator straight away, but you could certainly get experience in lots of companies in junior roles.