Media Parents

Hello,  We’d like to invite you to the Media Parents networking evening in Bristol on Tuesday 28^th June, it’s going to be a great opportunity to meet top end editorial TV production talent, and we are pleased to announce that Nick Shearman, Knowledge Commissioning Exec, Network will be joining us.

What is Media Parents?

www.mediaparents.co.uk is a new jobs and social networking website for experienced media people.  The Media Parents site showcases experienced talent, lists flexible and standard TV and film contracts, it has a blog, a chat forum and a thriving network, like a mini LinkedIn for media.

What happens at the event?

The networking event will take place from at BBC Broadcasting House on Whiteladies Road, you must be on the guest list to come along.  Execs introduce their companies and colleagues, and then station themselves at tables to chat with freelancers for approx 8 minute slots.

Freelancers bring a CV to discuss, and without the direct pressure of a job interview it’s a great opportunity to put a face to a name in a relatively informal setting.

Herefollows a short biog and photo of all execs attending, they can all be found and contacted through the NETWORK page at www.mediaparents.co.uk:

BBC :

Nick Shearman

began his career in TV in 1984 when he joined the BBC as a researcher working on programmes including Crimewatch, before moving on to produce films like Great Railway Journeys, Great Journeys, and Byline for The Tales From Prague season. He also made drama-docs and set up a series called War Walks with Professor Richard Holmes.

In 1995/6 Nick was at the forefront of the docu-soap boom when he made Vets School and turned it into the long-running series Vets In Practice, following it with series such as Holiday Reps, and Bath Rugby Club.

In 1998, he left the BBC to set up a Bristol office for Tiger Aspect. Here, Nick helped to develop and oversaw numerous projects, including the award-winning Foot ‘n’ Mouth Diaries for Channel 4 and Bailiffs for BBC One.

Nick joined RDF as an Executive Producer in 2002, making shows for all the terrestrial channels. These included Holiday Showdown, which won an RTS award and was nominated for a BAFTA; Ladette To Lady; Rock School; the first two series of Oz & James’s Big Wine Adventure; Anthea Turner: Perfect Housewife and The Truth About Size Zero.  He left RDF for Eyeworks At It and then re-joined the BBC in March 2008.

Nick is coming along because Media Parents feels it’s really important for Comm Eds to meet high level talent, and vice versa.

Chris Hutchins

is Head of Talent for Factual and the NHU at BBC Bristol.  He is a vocal advocate of flexible working, and spoke in favour of this at the Media Parents flexible working meeting in Bristol here:

https://blog.mediaparents.co.uk/2010/12/media-parents-flexible-working-meeting-bristol-–-who-said-what-1/

Helen Hagelthorn

has worked as a Talent Manager and Talent Executive at Bristol BBC since 2009, looking after production talent for both Factual/Features/Daytime as well as the Natural History Unit.  Before this Helen worked at RDF West as Production Resources Manager, again hunting out the best freelance talent productions. She has also worked as a Project Manager at post production house, Films @ 59.  Before Children, Helen was a South West based Assistant Producer working on a variety of output covering all topics:history, cookery, household management, child rearing and football!

Pete Lawrence

is an Executive Producer in Daytime and Features at BBC Bristol.

Jude Gray

Jude trained as a chartered accountant with Coopers & Lybrand before joining the BBC as a Personnel Trainee. Delivered strategic HR advice in several Divisions (Factual & Learning, Radio & Music, DEC, Nations & Regions) and in four locations (London, Scotland, Bristol and Wales).

Her key interventions include culture change, restructuring, employee relations, talent management and she has a particular interest in how to develop high performing teams.

Zodiak Media Group:

Julia Waring Head of Talent, RDF

came to RDF to work as part of a production team for a C4 programme, and joined permanently in May 1997, as Head of Light Entertainment and Features for RDF Rights. Julia started in the TV industry in 1984 as a secretary in drama and worked her way up to Series Producer via a mix of factual entertainment, features, travel and cookery shows at various indies. After working on the LE and Features Desk until 2000, Julia was then put in charge of in-house production after which she became involved in recruitment at RDF. In 2004 Julia became Head of Production Talent working mainly for RDF TV, but contributing to recruitment across the Zodiak group.

Mark Hill Head of RDF West

joined RDF Television in 2006 from the BBC where he was Deputy Head of Network Factual in Bristol, creating and executive producing some of the BBC’s most successful shows across Daytime, BBC1, BBC2 & BBC3; including Bargain Hunt, Flog It, Antiques Roadshow, Holiday Swaps, 20th Century Roadshow, Antiques Inspector, The Curious Gardeners, Fresh Food & Desperate Midwives. Prior to the BBC, Mark worked in the independent sector for Pearson and for three ITV companies, including GMTV and five years at LWT Factual.

Jane Lomas Exec Producer, RDF West

joined RDF from Diverse where she was executive producer on Man vs. Wild (Discovery/Channel 4), Mission Everest (Discovery/Channel 4), Tribal Wives (BBC Two) and Mission Africa (BBC One). Prior to Diverse Lomas was at BBC Bristol from 1998 to 2004 with credits including; DIY SOS (BBC One), The Bachelor (BBC Three) and Flog It! (BBC Two).

Lucy Carter

Who Do You Think You Are? executive producer Lucy Carter has joined Diverse in a new role leading the development team.  Diverse is part of Zodiak Media.

Angela Oakhill, Head of Production for RDF West and Diverse

Angela Oakhill

Head of Production at RDF Television West and Diverse Television (biog to follow).  Pictured here at the Media Parents flexible working meeting in Bristol, Angela Oakhill is a practical advocate of flexible working and has employed production staff flexibly through Media Parents.

Steve Rankin

Executive Producer, Diverse (photo and biog to follow).

Icon Films:

Harry Marshall, Joint Founder of Icon Films, Creative Director, Executive Producer.

Harry Marshall

Joint Founder of Icon Films, Creative Director, Executive Producer Harry Marshall was born and brought up in India where his father taught him how to catch elephants using binoculars, tweezers and a jam jar. He won an open scholarship to read English at Oxford University has traveled extensively through Asia and in particular the Himalayas where he learnt it is a bad idea to turn your back on a yak.

In 1990 Harry founded Bristol based independent Icon Films with his partner Laura Marshall.  In addition to directing key productions, Harry acts as executive producer across Icon’s output and directs the development team.   Much of his time is spent identifying new talent, both on-screen and production staff.

Shows Icon Films have produced include River Monsters, Headhunters of WWII and Monster Crocs.

Parthenon Entertainment:

Alison Bradburn

Head of Production, Parthenon Entertainment, Bristol (photo and biog to follow).

Aqua Vita Films:

Bernard Walton’s

Executive Producer credits for Aqua Vita films include  “Braving Iraq” PBS/WNET “Gorilla School” ANIMAL PLANET, narrated by Kevin Spacey “The Bearman” FIVE, and “A Man Among Bears” NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CHANNEL, ITV GLOBAL “The Wolfman” FIVE and “A Man Among Wolves” NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CHANNEL, ITV GLOBAL  “Farming Matters” with Jonathan Dimbleby; “Rural Matters” HORSE AND COUNTRY TV.`

Bernard Walton is Creator and Series Producer of BBC ONE primetime series “Time Machine”  “Talking With Animals”  BBC ONE  “Cousins”  BBC ONE.   Bernard is also the originator and producer of over 20 WILDLIFE ON ONEs with Sir David Attenborough, BBC ONE SPECIALS and NATURAL WORLDs and PD of BBC productions ie “Survivors”, “Tomorrow’s World”, “UK Safari”.

Big Squid:

Richard Higgs

Emmy Award Winner Richard Higgs is MD of animation company Big Squid. (Biog and photo to follow).

World of Arthur Cox:

Kaia Rose, Producer, World of Arthur Cox

Kaia Rose

Producer, World of Arthur Cox

ArthurCox is a BAFTA winning Bristol-based animation and production company that specialises in all things moving. We create commercials for broadcast, online content and internal communications and have won awards at film festivals around the world; from short animations and live action features all the way through to archive films and mobile apps, we focus on good design and good stories. With a talented team of Directors who write, design, animate and edit, the studio outputs a broad and strong diverse style of filmmaking, which you can see by visiting www.worldofarthurcox.com.

Media Parents:

Maggie Walsh

Maggie began her career in theatre, studying acting and costume at Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois, USA.  She has lived and worked in the UK for 15 years: working in Post Production Sound, as the Administrator at De Lane Lea in Soho, and going on to work as a Co-ordinator in Feature Films, TV Drama and Documentaries.  She has worked on multi-million pound projects, with a cast of thousands, and been 1 in a crew of 12 on a very low budget film.

And here are some photos of a couple of previous events – as you can see, it’s a good laugh:  https://blog.mediaparents.co.uk/2011/02/tiger-aspect-meets-media-parents-gallery/

https://blog.mediaparents.co.uk/2011/05/media-parents-met-vera-splash-and-rival-at-envy/