The need for trainee programmes
10/September/2024
As a recent film school graduate, I know the feeling of “What next?” all too well! For graduates like myself, trainee programmes can be a valuable way of gaining the experience needed to bridge that gap between university and a career as an industry professional. Trainee programmes like those run by charities such as ScreenSkills, the BFI, and Creative Access, to name a few, create a stepping stone for those who may not know someone in the industry.
These existing traineeships are a great start, but they are few and far between. More needs to be done, and now is the perfect time! With multiple large film studios currently being built around the UK, we are at the start of a new age for British film, and this should be embraced to allow for a reinvention of how the industry operates. Let’s formalise clearer pathways for those looking to enter the industry, increasing the industry's accessibility and, therefore, its diversity. Diversity of socioeconomic backgrounds, race and gender. By looking at this investment growth into the British film industry as a new age for British film, we can rethink these pathways of entering the industry, and traineeships are a great place to start!
Five large film studios are currently being built or expanded across the UK. The new 18-stage
Shinfield Studios opened in June 2024 near Reading and is expected to bring £600m annually to the UK economy. These expansions will bring extensive employment opportunities to a new generation of filmmakers. Now imagine if each of these new and old studios created a year-long trainee scheme training graduates and young people in different areas needed within film
production. This would create a more straightforward pathway for young creatives trying to find a way into the industry and, most importantly, get them real exposure to on-set work. These traineeships should cover roles such as varying AD and AC positions, vision mixers, camera, sound, production accountants, art department, costume and hair and make-up roles. They should also cover a wide range of less popular but just as important roles, such as on-set electricians and plumbers. These positions are often overlooked in film school courses but are always in need.
Creating more trainee programmes will also help the UK's fast-growing film industry avoid skill shortages, ensuring a secure future for further growth. The building of new film studios now being further spread around the country will also allow for an excellent opportunity to offer new generations of communities local to the studios' new job opportunities. For example, a new studio has been built in Barking, an area that once heavily relied on factory work as the community’s primary industry. With the decline of manufacturing work in the area, the community has struggled with a prolonged economic downturn. However, with the opening of a new film studio in the area, hundreds of new job opportunities are just around the corner, with the studio bringing in around £35 million per year to the local economy. The studio has developed a long-term community outreach plan to ensure that it offers many of these roles to the local residents. One of the initiatives is to work with the local schools to provide film clubs, talks on the industry, studio visits and classes on working within film.
So it is clear that some great work is being done to make film more accessible through different trainee programmes. If more studios work on outreach programmes for local schools and colleges, building up to entry-level trainee programmes for graduates and people of university age, they can create a clear pathway into the industry. This would help strengthen the skill sets of its workforce and ensure a secure future for the growth of the British film industry!
