Week 10 - The Updated PowerPoint

Having made the changes as suggested, I went to the next production meeting with more confidence than last time. Overall, Julia was happy with how it turned out and this meeting was spent going through fine tuning suggestions. There is just a few more things I will work on this week, and then I will email the final draft back to Julia in readiness to send the pitch off to the BBC commissioners. Julia said she will organise who it is we will send the pitch to and work out how exactly to go about doing that for BBC.

This week I was also able to take part in a production for a corporate promo video. There is a local business in the outskirts of Grimsby that wanted ECP to make them a promo video, particularly showing off the production process in their factory. I got experience in being a runner for the day, but as there was also a professional cameraman there I was able to see how he went about his job. It was interesting and insightful to see how he directed people to get the shot he wanted. What impressed me was he clearly knew what he was doing and knew how to get the shots he wanted.

Watching Julia in the role of a producer was also interesting as this is perhaps the role I would want when I leave uni. The role of producer clearly requires good communication skills with the clients as well as the team. It also requires patience, as when people aren't co-operating as hoped, or if the production is a bit behind schedule, the producer is the one that needs to keep a level head.

My role as a runner included setting up equipment for the different scenes and carrying the equipment between sets. There was an awful lot of equipment as they used cameras, tripods, a track and dolly and three point lighting. I was able to set it all up no problem, as I've had experience with all this kind of equipment from uni.

Overall a very good experience and I'm glad I took part in it.

Reflections on Week 10

Although I was just the runner in this shoot, I still felt like it provided me with a wealth of experience. I have done promo videos in the past, but what stood out to me in this shoot was the professionalism of the crew. In previous shoots, I was working with students. In this shoot, I was working with industry professionals who knew what they were doing. I also felt like I was useful, as I was kept very busy setting things up and carrying equipment.

Another thing I like about this job is the connections and contacts you can make with clients. Doing promo videos a lot means you meet a lot of new people, and if you do a good job for them or stand out in some way, maybe they would be more likely to hire you for something in the future.