Media Parents

Monthly Archives: June 2018

media parents 2018 summer drinks & back to work scheme

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We’re really delighted to be announcing the 2018 Media Parents Back to Work Scheme sponsors at our summer party this week, where talented freelancers will be joined by  Channel5, MTV, ITV, Sister Pictures, Merman, The Garden, Raw TV, 360 Production, Barcroft Productions, Warner Bros, Tiger Aspect, Fosse Films, Outline Productions, Wadell Media, Boulder Creek International, Seefood and more.

Clearcut MD Rowan Bray and guests at Media Parents Summer Party 2017. Good times!

Clearcut Pictures are sponsoring the Media Parents Summer Party for the second year running – huge thanks to Rowan Bray and her team for supporting us again. We’ll be enjoying Clearcut’s hospitality in a leafy garden on Wednesday July 4th. http://www.clearcut.cc/

We’d also like to thank the Schedule32 team and Cornish Insurance for sponsoring the event too.

Media Parents Summer Party 2017 - join us in a Bloomsbury garden!

“We take away the time-consuming job of finding and booking accommodation for TV crews.”

Schedule 32 was founded in 2005 by Jo Clement. After organising many location shoots over 15 years in the industry, Jo saw a clear need for a TV-friendly hotel agency – a 24/7 operation, that’s always keeping the budget in mind, while offering a reliable personal service so that clients don’t have to rely on online bookings. http://www.schedule32.co.uk/

Thank you to everyone who joined us last year, we look forward to seeing you this year!

Cornish Insurance has built up an enviable reputation over 28 years providing unparalleled service to TV clients. Steve McNally, Rob Smith and the team are able to understand any risk presented, with experience and market insight. Cornish take great pride in dealing with clients, from individuals to Blue Chip Companies, with a personal touch. No other Broker or Insurer will be able to offer Cornish’s niche market products. By listening to customers’ needs Cornish have created products designed specifically for you and your business. To discuss your insurance needs please contact http://cornishinsurance.co.uk/

Please sign up to the guestlist via our watercooler at www.mediaparents.co.uk to join us on July 4th!

If you would like an application form for our 2018 Back to Work Scheme, please click here Media Parents Back to Work Scheme Form 2018

Meet Team Media Parents at our summer party - Amy Walker (left) and Joanna Gretton look forward to meeting you.

Join Media Parents www.mediaparents.co.uk for great jobs, training and events. Media Parents Back to Work Scheme 2018 is opening soon.

June 30, 2018 @ 5:46 pm Posted in Events, TV Returners, TV Training Comments Off

5 minutes with Zenna Barry, Production Coordinator scripted

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2018 would be the year of new adventures for me and when I awoke on Jan 2nd I decided that the time was right to get back into Media Production.  I had always known that once my children were more independent I could start thinking of resuming my career back into Production Management.  However I had some nagging doubts, writes returning scripted Production Coordinator Zenna Barry.

Returning Production Coordinator Zenna Barry https://www.mediaparents.co.uk/freelancers/14984/zenna-barry

Maybe technology would have moved on too much, perhaps my age and time away from production would go against me – these are some of the worries. Regardless, I decided to put the feelers out there to see what happened.  So I exhumed my CV and reached out to ex-colleagues in the industry to meet up for coffee and discuss a plan. A good friend and my Exec at Channel m,  Vanessa Williams,  sent me a few links to job forums and the Media Parents website.  It was whilst searching through the site that I came across this blog posts https://blog.mediaparents.co.uk/2017/12/poldark-and-victoria-offer-media-parents-returners-work-placements/ which sounded perfect!
Over the last 10 years I had been blessed with my 2nd child, taken voluntary redundancy and set up a successful photography business from home which enabled me to continue to be creative and earn whilst allowing the flexibility to be there for my family.  However, I have always had a passion for Drama and Film, but without any credits on relevant productions, breaking into this area seemed a daunting task. However, as long as I could prove my commitment to the genre, Media Parents would consider me for the placement…  result!!

Returning Coordinators Zenna Barry and Mike Ogden at Dock10 Studios

With that encouragement I decided to contact Michaela Eccleston, Head of Production at Red Production to ask for advice with the Drama industry.  We met for a coffee in-between her very busy schedule and she was so generous with her suggestions, even offering some work experience at Red which I accepted with open arms. Getting something on the CV sealed my acceptance onto the MP HETV Drama Return To Work Programme, funded by the HETV Drama Levy Fund, as managed by Creative Skillset. Doors were really opening for me and I felt grateful and excited.
Our first training was held at Dock 10, Media City and would be a day of meeting the other returners and updating our covering letters and CVs.  Day two and we were preparing for the networking night ahead with role plays & mock interviews. All scary stuff if you haven’t been in that mindset for a while. We also met Head of Development for CBBC Ros Attille for lunch, who gave us lots of great tips & encouraged us that the industry needs more Production Coordinators & Managers – very welcomed news.

Zenna Barry with Ros Atille and Mike Ogden at MediaCityUK

Feeling like Alan Sugar’s next apprentice I arrived with the team at Warner Brothers to put all our preparations into practice.  Networking went really well and I felt really positive that this was the right direction for me to take. Next stop we were at BVE Expo at Excel, a great place to listen to industry experts and network with ex-colleagues and new contacts.

Zenna Barry with returning Coordinator Paula Watkins, and Sister Pictures Coordinator Maja Wlodarczyk at Media Parents IWD Drinks

Over the past few months I have been on placement at Tiger Aspect on Sean Bean’s new drama Curfew, thanks to Frith Tiplady and her team, and I’ve been working with my mentor Michaela Fereday nee Eccleston and Media Parents towards a future career plan.
My advice to other media parents thinking about coming back in : don’t let the fear of the unknown stop you from giving it a second go.  I am extremely positive about a future in HETV drama production. There’s no better time. Don’t doubt – believe and go for it!

@ 4:57 pm Posted in Freelancer Profiles, TV Returners Comments Off

how to edit remotely by Ian Brown, Editor

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I have been in British Television for over 20 years and in that time I have been lucky enough to work on programmes as diverse as Peter Kays Phoenix Nights, Cold Feet and Dragons’ Den to the multi award winning “Ups” documentaries, writes Editor Ian Brown.

Editor Ian Brown : https://www.mediaparents.co.uk/freelancers/11059/ian-brown

As a well respected finishing editor and colourist, the majority of my career has been spent working out of the regions’ top post facility houses, usually in big air conditioned rooms with fancy sofas and hot and cold drinks on tap but after the birth of my twins in 2012, I began to wonder if we could do things differently?

My youngest son Thomas has Cerebral Palsy and it became clear that if I could build a finishing suite at home, I would be able to have far greater control over my family’s work life balance.

A traditional finishing suite can easily set a facility back six figures but they all have one thing in common, without a skilled operator, they are worthless. I had the skills, I just needed to find a way to build a reliable home system.

In 2013 I began to forge a relationship with Matt Aindow at Scan computers in Bolton. As my plans progressed I spent time meeting the back room boys at Scan in their labs. Using a mixture of professional and gaming components we began to realise my dream of a facility class home finishing system. We added a Tangent wave control surface to give my system world conditions and it came up trumps.

Within days of me getting it home in February 2015, I was called on to grade a rock promo for Sitcom Soldiers, then edit a number of charity films, content for art exhibitions and a 5K grade on the British feature film “Off Piste”. It also allowed me to work from home whenever I was called on to edit TV programmes. Large parts of ITV’s Unbelievable moments Caught on Camera, Les Dawson Forever and Britain’s Darkest Taboo’s were cut in a cellar in Bromley Cross on my 3XS system.

Tom

Too often the demands of  working in Television combined  with the pressures of raising a young family lead to a talent drain out of the industry. I am reluctant to commit to working long unsociable hours especially when you add in a commute but as television fragments into more of a cottage industry I think this kind of home working is the future.

Send me a drive, discuss the brief and I can edit, online and grade around the needs of the schoolrun by picking up extra hours once my children are asleep. With high speed broadband, it is easy to do approvals over the internet. I consistently bring in my jobs on time and in budget whilst enjoying seeing my children blossom.

The way the team at Scan have worked hand in hand with me to see through my dream has been faultless and I am now often in the enviable position when I do go into town, of working on kit in high end facilities that cannot touch my home system for speed, grunt and reliability.

Yet much more important than that I am able to keep my skills as a high end finishing editor in the market place whilst juggling the family life balance that comes with having a child with complex special needs. Thanks to scan I am able to work on your project when you need me :-)

https://www.mediaparents.co.uk/freelancers/11059/ian-brown

June 7, 2018 @ 10:11 pm Posted in Freelancer Profiles, How To Comments Off