The Network Reunion. Bigger than any 90s pop band.

As anyone who’s been watching ITV2 on a Thursday Night will testify, reunions are pretty hot right now (the Big Reunion is my not-so-guilty pleasure:  5ive + B*Witched+ Atomic Kitten = 90s pop nostalgia heaven!) So to cheer up the seemly never ending winter, we thought we’d orchestrate a reunion of our own…

Atomic Kitten. Not Network alumni. Didn't get on our guestlist.

So last Tuesday night saw us brave the cold at the Camden Roundhouse, a legendary London venue that usually hosts the hottest music and performance acts  (properly hot acts, mind, not a faded 90’s pop star in sight) but, for one night only, we had the venue set up to welcome the brightest TV talent in the UK: our Network alumni.

Not Atomic Kitten.  On the list!

And what a reunion it turned out to be.  Networkers from the last 3 years came from across the UK (including 3 from Scotland – hello Kirsten, Andrew and Alison!) for an evening of masterclasses, career focus and just generally catching up with old mates and talking telly!

Network alumni. Two of these ladies came down from Scotland for the evening - that's impressive dedication.

We wanted the evening to capture the spirit of The Network in bite sized chunks so we put together a mix of what we do in Edinburgh.  Some fantastic speakers took up our invitation to deliver masterclasses.  The evening kicked off with chat from Sara Geater and Suzy Lamb.  Sara’s CEO of super indie FremantleUK, (you know, the group behind such blockbuster programmes such as The X Factor, Britain’s Got Talent, Celebrity Juice, QI and The Apprentice).  Suzy is Head of Production at Thames, Executive Producer of ITV’s Saturday night smash Take Me Out, and has a career spanning some of the biggest entertainment shows of the past two decades.  Plus she worked with Mister Blobby!  Sara and Suzy gave insight into their jobs, their career paths and spoke honestly about the qualities you need to succeed in TV.  I know everyone in the audience was deeply impressed by their down to earth attitudes and obvious love for what they do.  Inspiring.

Sue, Sara and Suzy from FMUK mingle with Networker Yvette Spedding.

From the world of big budget shiny floor formats to compelling documentary making. C4 factual commissioner extraordinaire David Glover gave an all too brief (i.e. the hour simply whizzed past!) lesson into documentary filmmaking.  David’s an engaging and passionate speaker, and had the audience rapt, as well as illustrating his talk with some fab clips including President Obama and The Plane Crash (one of his commissioned).  Plus he let slip some of his glorious indiscretions (which I won’t repeat - Chatham House rules apply for alumni events, I’m afraid) brilliant stuff.  Thank you to the lovely James Cooper from Square Eyes for hosting the chat.

David Glover (L) and James Cooper

As it was so near to Valentine’s Day, we couldn’t let our alumni go home without a date so our very own Cupid Rhiannon fixed up some speed dating with some of the industry’s best talent managers.  In a fabulous space overlooking the bright lights of Camden Town, a top team had one to ones with Networkers and some fledging relationships were forged – we heard of at least one job interview offer that came as a result of the speed dating!  A HUGE thank you to NBC Universal's Nicky Searle, BBC's Daniell Morrisey & Cecila Lawrence-John, ITVs Vikki Barron & Mairie Mactague, Channel 4's Jasmine Hayer, Cineflix's Jessica Wilson, Fever Media's Ruth Stevenson, and Amy Walker from Media Parents for giving up your evenings and being part of a frenetic but extremely fruitful event. 

BBC's Daniell Morrisey works his CV magic

And of course it wouldn’t be a Network reunion without lots of catching up with old mates – some beautiful friendships were rekindled- ahh!  Big thanks to our fabulous alumni for coming down and making it all happen.  Who needs 90s pop stars- you lot really rock.  

Caroline x

Want to work in TV? Top Tips for your Network application!

We want your application to be the best it can be. So here are quite a few tips to make it stand out. 

1. We welcome applications from people with an interest in ANY area of TV. 
   The TV industry is very broad and there are literally hundreds of roles you can consider!  We have profiled some of the most popular on our website here -  Want to work in TV? Which Job is for me? and the Creative Skillset website is also useful guide: www.creativeskillset.org/careers/.
2. You don't need to have had any experience of working in television BUT you will have to demonstrate that you LOVE TV. 
   It’s not enough just to say you like watching TV. Can you prove you have lots of ideas? What have you done that demonstrates your interest? Do you have a YouTube channel?  Do you blog about TV? Has TV changed your life in any way? Remember, we don't want to hear about student projects that you doing as  part of your course, you need to tell us what exciting, creative things you've been doing in your own time.
3. The TV industry thrives on ideas, so show us that you are capable of coming up with things that haven’t been done before or looking at things from a fresh perspective.
   
   
4. We want to get an idea of who you are so use your own voice and be honest! Please tell us what you think, rather than what you think we want to hear.
5. Make sure you check your application carefully for spelling and grammar mistakes. If you know spelling and/ or grammar isn't your strong point, do ask someone to check it over for you.  It’s scarily easy to miss your own mistakes!
6. Make note of the word count and don’t go over it.  You don’t necessarily have to use the maximum number of words, but please do make sure your answers are as complete as possible.
7. Please make sure you have supplied accurate contact details, including email address and mobile number.
8. Please use a personal email account (e.g. Hotmail, Gmail, etc.) rather than one supplied by your work/ college as we’d like to keep in touch with you and offer you future opportunities.

When describing your idea for a new programme, consider the following step by step guide

STEP 1:  The Idea

• What is your idea?
• Think about what audience it would appeal to. What age are they? When/what time are they likely to watch TV?  
• Think about what channel your programme is most suited to and why. Is the programme in keeping with the channel brand?
• What is different about your idea, what makes it unique?
• Are there any similar shows?        

STEP 2:  How would the show work

• Think about how the format would work. Is it a series or a one off?
• What is the content of the show? How many episodes? How long would each programme be? Would it work as a long running format?
• Would there be talent/presenter in it? What is it about the talent you've chosen that appeals to the audience and the channel?
• Thinking about your audience, where in the schedule would it sit, what time and what day?

 STEP 3: The Pitch

• Can you sell the idea in a sentence? 
• Titles matter. What title will hook this particular audience?
• What are the strong points about your idea that you should emphasise?
• Why should your programme be commissioned?
• How can your idea engage people beyond what they see on TV?  For example, is there scope for interaction through websites, phone lines and social media?:

Applications are considered and places awarded by The Network committee,so this is your chance to get your ideas read by some of the biggest names in the TV industry! Visit thenetwork-tv.co.uk to apply today!

PLEASE REMEMBER THAT THE CRITERIA FOR 2014 HAS CHANGED. IF YOU ARE IN FULL TIME EDUCATION YOU MUST BE IN YOUR FINAL YEAR OF COLLEGE/UNIVERSITY AND AVAILABLE TO WORK IN 2014.

Behind the scenes of TOWIE....

Total excitement here at Festival Towers as we got exclusive access to Britain’s favourite dramality show – TOWIE!

Because we know that there’s a million job roles in telly, and sometimes it’s hard to find out who dos what, we asked the stars of Essex - Lydia, Arg, Joey and Sam to step behind the cameras for once to interview their fave crew members…  and they did! 

 
Watch it to find out how Lydia get on filming with false eye lashes and what are the real “pros and cons” to working behind the scenes on TOWIE… yes there are a few cons…  hard to believe but it’s true!

But its all worth it in the end and you can’t help but see there is a LOT of LOVE flowing from the cast to crew! Awwww…… 

So if you think you want to work in TV, APPLY to join The Network this August for loads more insider info... and  one day you too might be able to work behind the scenes on TOWIE, Celebrity Juice, Eastenders, Hollyoaks or whatever you fancy!

As always, a big thanks to all the peeps at TOWIE and ITV2 (especially Phil, Rhonda and Corin) who allowed us to get an exclusive sneak peek behind the scenes of TOWIE and really show you guys what it means to work in TV!
 
Good luck!

P.s… Our application tip of the day….

Be creative! 
 
Visit the website for ALL the hints and tips!

And remember...

The Network has launched....

And we are off….! Yes, TheNetwork 2012 is open for business as of today!!!

For those of you who don’t have a clue what I am on about, let me explain.  Every year, the TVFestival takes 65 industry newbies up to Edinburgh for the most immersive and exciting intro to working in telly there is.

It’s called TheNetwork and, quite frankly, we think it’s a rather marvellous way to find out what really happens in tellyland.  

Over 4 days, the lucky 65 will be attending talks and workshops led by top producers from BBC , ITV, Sky and Channel 4, and, even more excitingly, they will be getting the chance to network, network, NETWORK with all the movers and shakers from the industry who attend the TV Festival.

It’s an incredible opportunity and one that is open to anyone over 18 who wants to work in TV but hasn’t had the opportunity yet.  

If that sounds like you, then get yourself here and get applying.  If that sounds like someone you know, then nudge them over to the website and get them applying.

Be warned – we don’t just give out places willy-nilly, so wannabe Networkers will need to put some oomph into their application… we want to feel their passion for telly! 

Okay, we’re ready … bring on the applications!!!

Caroline Meaby,
Director, MGEITF Talent Schemes

Inspiring Diversity, Banishing Boxes'

Holly and I spent last Friday at Channel 4 last Friday for PACT’s Equality Act – Inspiring Diversity, Banishing Boxes’ event.  4 panels, each looking at a different area of diversity, produced by BBC, Channel 4, Sky and ITV.  

It’s easy to think about diversity in TV in fairly narrow terms, so what I thought was great about this event, was that the debate included issues around class, gender and age as well as addressing issues around representation of disability and ethnicity, both on and off screen.

The event pulled together an excellent, and of course very diverse, range of speakers and chairs, including Cbeebies star Cerrie Burnell, Maroon productions Paul Blake, broadcaster John Stapleton, Wall to Wall’s Alex Graham Baby Cow’s Henry Normal and Sky’s Lucy Lumsden.    

But I have to hold my hands up and admit my personal highlight was Baroness Floella Benjamin asking all us Playschool babies in the audience to identify themselves and their favourite window (yes, my hand shot up, and it was the round window if you’re interested.)

It may be poor quality but a very cool pic none the less!

Apart from Floella, I was really impressed by was the no-nonsense advice from certain panellists, particularly presenter Nikki Fox on making adjustments for disabled production staff – along the lines of don’t make assumptions on what people will and won’t need,  just ask them, they WON’T be offended! - and the totally accessible legal advice from lawyers at Lewis Silkin. Also it was great to catch up with Endemol, Skillset and all the other supporters of our own campaign to being more diversity off screen through the MGEITF talentschemes.  

Talking of which… on February 13^th we’ll be opening for applications to TheNetwork, which we think is the best and most accessible introduction to TV there is. We are really keen to spread the word about the scheme and we’re always available to come and give targeted talks about the scheme to underrepresented groups so do get in touch if you have any ideas on that or if you wish to receive our postcards to distribute yourselves. 

Caroline Meaby

MGEITF Talent Schemes Director