Your dream is to become the next fresh face in television, or maybe you picture yourself behind-the-scenes as Hollywood's top director. It sounds like an exciting field, but film and television has been a tough industry to break into for many graduates. Hence why film and TV programs popped up across the country.
It had a very specific mandate, says Jean Desormeaux, speaking of Sheridan College's Advanced TV and Film program. Industry came to Sheridan and said 'you've got great graduates but none of them really understand how to engage and integrate into the industry and you need a program to do that.' As a professor and program coordinator for the college's Advanced TV and Film program, Desormeaux says postgrad students have the opportunity to acquire more knowledge and hands-on experience in the industry.
Everything we do is premised on industry practices, he says. Once we get into the applied process, the producers run the show, the directors direct the show, and everyone does whatever they do in their own specific roles to complete a task within a specified timeline.
Breaking into the media industry after graduation wasn't as tricky for Kristen McGregor. I graduated in 2006 from Ryerson and I started working in children's media immediately after in children's television and web media, says McGregor, producer at Sinking Ship Entertainment. As a graduate from Ryerson's Bachelor of Arts, Radio and Television, McGregor soon found herself with the desire to gain more knowledge in her field. I started to move up the job ladder and suddenly I'm in positions working for educational children's media and making decisions about it, and I'm like 'I don't really understand how kids learn,' she recalls.
McGregor says she dedicated two more years to her academics, taking her master's in cognitive development in children at Columbia University. I think having the cognitive development master's helped because it gives me the confidence when I'm making decisions, that I'm making them in an informed manner, she says. I want that knowledge that gives me the power to do that.
While McGregor continues to master her craft in children's media, Desormeaux says students must quickly learn whether they have the aptitude and the character to work in this incredibly competitive industry. Drive is also an important trait, he adds. One of the things I really like is the volunteerism and the connectivity with groups outside the controlled environment, I think that's terribly important for both filmmakers and artists.
McGregor shows through her media career, and Desormeaux through his teachings in television and film, the truth to the saying the more education, the better. We try to train them to educate themselves, says Desormeaux. We put them in situations where they must meet people in the industry, so they begin to speak the talk and communicate with people who are working filmmakers. They develop a confidence and we've had success with this approach.
Photo: Steex/Thinkstock