freelancers

The panel also highlighted the challenges freelancers continue to face during today’s testing economic climate.

Reema Lorford, COO of Gritty Talent, advised freelancers to spend time on developing their LinkedIn profiles. “It’s your living, breathing self and it may throw up new opportunities in adjacent, or even other, industries,” she said.

Sas Bonser, Talent Executive at BBC Studios Natural History Unit, added: “There will always be ups and downs. Just be willing to work across different genres – slight curveballs can be instructive in a career.”

In partnership with the National Film and Television School, the programme will provide free masterclasses, workshops, training and wellbeing sessions across two weeks in October 2023.

The sessions will be delivered online to ensure it is accessible to all freelancers across the country, and will explore topics as varied as financial planning, networking and development.

Sinead Rocks, Managing Director of Nations and Regions at Channel 4, said: “The TV production sector is facing unprecedented challenges and we know that many freelancers are struggling.

Alarm bells are ringing in the unscripted world. Concern for the health of the sector has soared following two recent events: Channel 4’s decision to axe a number of shows and a survey by broadcasting union Bectu revealing that nearly half of UK freelancers working regularly in unscripted TV are now unemployed.

The Channel 4 casualties included the cancellation of Four Weddings and Andrew Neil’s Sunday-night political show being put on hold.