The Bristol session featured a talk from junior casting and location researcher Jacob Lloyd and runner/production secretary Frankie Forsyth from Channel 4 series The Dog Academy, which is made by Five Mile Films.
The duo explained their roles and identified key attributes. Lloyd cited “being personable”, while Forsyth said “versatility” was needed to ensure shows ran smoothly.
One of the hardest parts of starting your TV career is the jump from Runner to Researcher.
What are the hacks needed to be spotted and earmarked for promotion to the next step? What are the soft skills and hard skills that will make Producers want you to stay on their teams? How have the roles of Runner and Researcher changed over the years? Which skills do you need to level up on in 2024, the year A.I will do basic Runner tasks like transcribing and spreadsheet analysis?
Santana: “I arrived here, jobless, from the Canary Islands in 1994, and wanted to carry on editing.
“I did a very short online course in order to get into low-budget TV. It was great experience and led to me working on National Geographic documentaries.
“You shouldn’t be sniffy about low-budget productions as an editor because it’s fantastic experience. When you’ve got really tight deadlines, it makes you think quicker.”
In my experience, the key to getting your foot in the door of the TV industry is a combination of luck and hard work. If you’re offered a job, you really have to give it your best even if you're only making tea all day. Being passionate is how to get noticed.
In the first of our series of 'Tips in 60 seconds', Rebecca Stewart gives the lowdown on being a runner.
Rebecca is a graduate of Television Current Affairs Journalism MA at City University London, an RTS Futures member and currently working as the RTS Digital Multimedia Producer.
