Wolfblood – Sept – December 2015
What Role did you aspire to at the beginning of your placement?
At the beginning of my placement in the production office I aspired to learn the roles and responsibilities of a production assistant. This role was most appealing to me at this entry stage.
Do you aspire to a different role now?
After my placement in the production office I would still like to work as production assistant however looking ahead, I aspire to reach the role of a production secretary. I would hope to achieve this role once my knowledge of the job and all it entails develops and I gain more experience in the production office.
Can you give a brief description of work carried out as office runner, including any examples.
The day to day tasks I carried out as an office runner on Wolfblood were helping to run and distribute the daily call sheets, photocopying and organising office supplies and also providing refreshments for cast and crew.
Within the office I helped assist with casting auditions for the Wolfblood extras. I achieved this by helping to manage applications, contact and relay information to the auditionees, and help with the organisation of the auditions on the day.
I travelled to set on a daily basis to assist with the distributing of production paperwork. Within the office I organised the collection of confidential waste and arranged for confidential data shredding facilities to be provided.
As well as working in the production office I spent time working on set as a runner. On set I assisted the Third Assistant Director through helping transport cast from the different departments and making sure that refreshments were provided.
What have you learned, what has been most valuable?
From the process I have learned how to deal with problems quickly and efficiently. I am aware of daily tasks that need to be completed to assure the smooth running of the production office as well as, how to file, organise and produce production paperwork.
I have gained valuable knowledge from this experience and I have learnt that organisational skills are essential. I have developed these skills through organising auditions and finding a variety of people to attend over a short period of time. I have learnt how to communicate with a wide range of people, and deal with many different issues.
My skills developed over time working in the production office and I gained new skills such as producing the script timings document. This was a task that I had never carried out before and the knowledge of how to do so was completely new to me. I feel this skill is very valuable for me to move forward and use the skill within another production office environment.
What areas do you need to focus on next, or improve further through your training in order to become employment ready?
In order to become employment ready in a production office I believe that I need to focus and understand the script development side. In the future I would like to have knowledge of essential software that would allow me to deal with any script issues that might come up.
I believe I need to focus on my telephone skills, it would help me greatly when dealing with situations and would hugely improve my communication skills. I would like to confidently help solve issues quickly and efficiently in the production office.
Production Coordinator comments
Alex’s confidence grew over the period, as did her understanding of production processes. Always happy to help and with guidance, once given a task she battled away until it was completed. She always had a smile on her face and worked hard throughout the time with us.
Caroline Broome/ Production Coordinator. Wolfblood 2015