HOW I BROKE INTO THE INDUSTRY
Inspirational first-hand accounts from professionals working in the arts and media
CONTENTS 1.
INTRODUCTION
2-3.
A SONGWRITER
4-5.
A FILMMAKER
6-7.
AN ACTRESS
8-9.
A JOURNALIST
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INTRODUCTION My name is Jordan Moore and I’m currently a student at Goldsmiths University. I am coming to the end of my third year of a 4-year Media and Communications degree and my greatest aspiration is to become a scriptwriter/director. After hearing many stories about graduates struggling to find work in the media industry or find work that directly relates to their degree, I decided to share my concerns with others. As a Fixer, I was able to help create this booklet, which offers young creative people like myself guidance on gaining confidence, clarity and direction. Hopefully it will allow them to pave a clearer path into an industry that is ever-changing.
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A SONGWRITER LAURENCE HOBBS WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT DO YOU DO? My name is Laurence Hobbs. I’m a music producer and songwriter. I’ve got a real passion for music and I’ve promoted, managed, looked after, and worked with a lot of upcoming and quite well known acts. HOW DID YOUR CAREER BEGIN? I was 14 when I had my first band at school. My generation was excited about music and I was in a succession of bands as a keyboard player. I also found a club for songwriters and it was a life-changing experience. You provided a song and the band played it on the night. At the time I was looking after a girl called Amanda Wilson, who’s gone on to become one of the biggest artists in the world - she was like Mariah Carey at 14 - and we wrote loads of songs together. Then one day at the club I was offered a deal which led to a song becoming a gold and platinum disc. Two years ago I signed to Notting Hill Publishing. They have a contract in the Far East and I’ve had success in Japan. I’ve also been working with a lot of new people recently, including Shane Ward, Sam Smith and Pixie Lott. WHAT DID YOU USE AS A SOURCE OF CONFIDENCE? I’m not a particularly confident person, but I am confident in what I know. The first song I ever wrote, I played to my band at 14. They laughed and I thought to myself, that’s it. But now I’ve written songs that have topped the charts in five different countries. Belief is important. The worst thing would be sitting in your bedroom at 21 thinking you’re good, but you’re too scared to show people what you can do. Imagine yourself at 30. If you’ve tried everything and it didn’t happen then you can at least say you tried. If I knew at 21 that I’d be where I am now, I’d think it was worth the journey.
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HAS THERE EVER BEEN A MOMENT WHEN YOU’VE FELT CLOSE TO GIVING UP? The moment my band split up I thought, what do I do now? My life until 27 was us in a band and we were going to make it. Instead I had the realisation that my whole life and what I’d known growing up was gone. HAVE YOU EVER EXPERIENCED ANY MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT THE INDUSTRY? In the music industry people think that every artist is the next big thing. If you create enough hype then people will actually believe it. Really, you’ve got to back it up. WHAT IS THE BIGGEST OBSTACLE YOU HAVE COME ACROSS? Lack of confidence. Music is a career where you have to stand up and say ‘I’m a good artist, give me a chance.’ I never really did that. Even now artists ask me to write their songs – I don’t go up to them and ask to write a song for their album! HOW DID YOU OVERCOME THE OBSTACLE? Despite what anyone says, you have to think you can be better. I used to think I’d be a songwriter and I’d be rich. But it didn’t happen. So, I went around it. I started a club, then another club and I started to do other things to get me roughly where I wanted to be. I think it’s really important to look at other ways to achieve your ambitions.
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NIRA E Y O I FEM
WHO ARE YOU AND WHAT DO YOU DO? My name is Femi Oyeniran. I’m an actor, film-maker and political commentator. I’m self-employed and an entrepreneur. HOW DID YOUR CAREER BEGIN? When I was 17, I went to a local audition for a film called ‘Kidulthood’. That was the start of my career as I eventually got the part. It’s a classic. Most young people in the UK have seen it, and older people have too. It’s a genre-defining film and from there I was able to get an agent and build my career. WHAT DID YOU USE AS GUIDANCE DURING YOUR JOURNEY? I just work hard and don’t say no to anyone. I do as much as I can and try to extract as much from a day as possible. My family is a source of inspiration and now I have my own kids I’d say I’m even more driven than I was before. HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH REJECTION? You work hard and you get results and opportunities. I’ve got to the stage in my career where I have to make it work. I’ve been doing this for ten years, so if people aren’t going to put me on, I’m going to put myself on. I’ve got a family so I can’t really say, “I’ve spent the last decade doing this, but this is not what I’m supposed to be doing”. It’s never too late to change your career but I don’t want to. This is what I want to do and I’m going to do it.
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WHAT IS THE BIGGEST OBSTACLE YOU HAVE COME ACROSS? In the UK there aren’t that many roles for young black guys on TV and that’s hard. My white friends go to more auditions than me and they get more roles than me and that’s hard too. Elsewhere it might be different, but here in the UK it’s tough. However, I wouldn’t say that’s an obstacle, I’d say it’s a challenge and challenges are there to be overcome. It’s difficult trying to do what I do when you have children, especially knowing that I’ve got a law degree and that I could go and get another job. Sometimes you’re not really making money but you’re working hard. I don’t think people always understand that. WHAT ADVICE COULD YOU GIVE TO OTHER YOUNG CREATIVES? Work hard and stay focussed. Nothing is given to you and nothing comes for free. If it comes for free or it comes to you easily, you’ll lose it quickly. There’s always going to be someone that’s better than you, so stay hungry and relevant. In this industry I think hard work always wins over talent. But if you’ve got a talented person who works hard, then you’ve got a monster. Fame doesn’t pay anything, it doesn’t pay your bills and being famous in itself means nothing. It’s empty and superficial. You need to look for substance as substance lasts a long time while fame comes and goes. Nobody is famous forever, everybody has their seasons and there are peaks and troughs. Remember to love what you do and what you have. Feeling passionate about what you do is much more important than fame. WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE FUTURE? I have a film called ‘It’s a Lot’ which is out now - I filmed and directed that. I’ve also just produced a film called ‘The Intent’ which is due out at the end of the year. I’m doing lots of things at the moment. I’m a Commissioner on the Digital Democracy Commission, which was set up by John Bercow, Speaker of the House of Commons, to look at how Parliament can improve their use of digital technology. I’m busy! I’m always writing films and trying to get films off the ground. I constantly keep myself engaged and working because I’m self-employed and if I don’t work hard, I don’t make money. If you have a job you show up to work every day, do your thing and hide. If I don’t work, then I don’t eat. I couldn’t tell you all that I’m doing but the most important thing is ‘The Intent.’ It’s a big deal.
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AN ACTRESS YVONNE HAYS
WHO YOU ARE AND WHAT DO YOU DO? My name is Yvonne Hayes. I’m an actress and a model based in London. HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED IN THE INDUSTRY? I used to watch a lot of films as a child and one of the films that really affected me was a movie called ‘Roots’. As a little black girl and the last in the family of seven, I was exposed to a lot of things like music and movies at a young age. My sisters used to model and I used to tag along, and then when I got a bit more confident, I thought, ‘I’m mature now and I would love to get into acting.’ For me, acting is an embodiment of life. Acting reflects life - good, bad, ugly, beautiful – and I love the fact that I can be a part of that, playing different roles.
WHAT DID YOU USE AS A SOURCE OF CONFIDENCE IN YOUR JOURNEY? When I started, I had no formal training. I just went straight in for it, took a chance. For me, it was the fact I knew I wanted to do it, and I believe that if you want something, you have to go and get it. You can’t sit down somewhere and think it’s going to come to you. For me, it’s that self-belief and I guess I’m just naturally confident. But with the acting, it took me a while to do it because I wanted to mature in my mind and be comfortable in front of the camera. So first I got into modelling and after that I felt a lot more comfortable. It’s just the passion that drives me and motivates me.
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HAVE YOU EVER EXPERIENCED ANY MISCONCEPTIONS ABOUT THE INDUSTRY Because I was modelling, I already had a taste of what it’s like in the entertainment business. With acting, I thought it was easy and that anybody can do it. You learn your lines and that’s it, but when I started, I learnt that there is a lot more to it. There are a lot of emotions and a lot of discipline is involved, which is one of the reasons why I’m at drama school now. I thought if I’m going to do this, I’m going do it properly. I’ve been at drama school for 6 months. Drama school gives me that formal training and an environment to network with likeminded people. I want to be able to spread my wings and appeal to not just an African audience, but to mainstream ones as well. HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH REJECTION When you go to a job interview sometimes, you don’t get a call back and sometimes they’ll tell you haven’t got the job. It’s the same thing with acting. In fact, it’s actually worse, because it’s down to a combination of things – how you look and talent. In terms of the way you look, it’s not always what you think. Sometimes if the storyline has a mixed-race little girl, the parents will obviously have to be black and white. But if you go in for an audition and they’ve already cast a white little girl, you might get the role as the mum but if you don’t, you might feel bad but you have to understand. It’s the script, it’s the story and that means a lot, but I just take it with a pinch of salt. You are who you are and because I understand the intricacies of it, I don’t get upset. WHAT ADVICE COULD YOU GIVE TO OTHER YOUNG CREATIVES? The one word that springs to mind is happiness. Just be happy and I say that because you’re working with people on lots of projects and everyone’s different. In order to move up, you need these people. No man’s an island. You have to work with people and for people. You have to be humble always, keep your feet on the ground. You might realise that your real friends are outside of what you’re doing. Inside there are a lot of “yes, yes” people. Outside is where I get real advice. Remember to be nice to people. You have to have tough skin. You have to know, no matter how good you are, you could be better, and there’s always someone out there better than you. Never walk into a room expecting attention or approval.
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A JOURNALIST N A U
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I V A
J M A
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WHO YOU ARE AND WHAT YOU DO My name is Gavin Ramjaun. I’m a presenter and correspondent with London Live, ITV, LBC and Yahoo News. HOW DID YOU START YOUR CAREER? I went to university and studied banking, business and economics, the total opposite of what I’m doing now. My studies were all about numbers, maths, economics, things like that. I ended up getting a bit of work experience with BBC Wales in Cardiff, where I went to university, and really enjoyed it. I was trying to get as much experience as I could. I had a stint on Hell’s Kitchen and made loads of contacts. After that year, I supplemented my income with work in other industries and worked in a clothes shop. I got a freelance job with the BBC and made the most of it, meeting a lot of people there. I got the opportunity to screen test for children’s BBC and do Newsround. I had a couple of auditions, met the coaches, and got a lucky chance to do Newsround. I did that for 3.5 years, then BBC Breakfast for about 5 to 6 months, then BBC News Channel for 9 to 10 weeks. After that, I moved to ITV to do what was Daybreak and since then, I’ve moved on to This Morning, LBC and London Live.
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OBSTACLES FACED ON THE JOURNEY The obstacle that I faced getting into the industry was getting paid work early on to support myself. I always had to work at a clothes shop or temp job in order to do low-pay or unpaid shows, which were all good experience. It’s not a long-term job; it’s not stable or a permanent job. It’s as and when they want you, and that’s the biggest obstacle to getting into the industry and keeping the motivation. Some people enter wide-eyed and go into it with big dreams and big goals, only to realise that there are few opportunities with the sheer volume of people coming in. So it’s about making it work for you and finding ways to support yourself. DEALING WITH REJECTION The first job I went for I didn’t get. It was for a production company and I was gutted. There have been times when I was put up for shows and was shortlisted, and then was taken off the shortlist. It’s a revolving door process. One moment you’re in and then the next you’re out – it’s a fluid industry. You can never know what to expect. ADVICE TO YOUNG CREATIVE Come to the industry with a good knowledge base about what’s out there and what’s in the sector. Know what competitors are out there, know what their strengths are, know where you can improve. Don’t be unnecessarily critical, but know where things can be made better. Have an idea of what entry role you would like to be doing in 5 years’ time. If you only have a vague idea of that, that’s fine. For those wanting to get into the industry, know the opportunities and where they lie and what you have to do to do that job well. Network where you can. There are people in positions of power who can make things happen. You can be made aware of opportunities that are coming up.
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FOR MORE INFORMATION www.creativeskillset.org www.bfi.org.uk www.prospects.ac.uk
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These are the views/opinions/experiences of a young person, and should not be relied on or substituted for formal advice
Fixers is a campaign that helps young people ‘use their past to fix the future’ and is part-funded by the National Lottery through the Big Lottery Fund