The Bristol TV industry is growing... can you play a part in it?
Free training targets local accountants...
Do you work in finance in the Bristol area and love television? Would you like to join the booming and dynamic world of TV production in your area?
The ScreenSkills HETV Accounts Industry Transfer Programme is a FREE intensive training scheme to find the best local talent to fill a skills shortage in TV production here. It’s supported by the ScreenSkills High-end TV Skills Fund with contributions from UK highend TV productions.
The programme offers extensive training sessions with a leading industry accountant via Zoom, expert advice on how to break into high-end TV AND the chance to apply for one of 12 paid 14-week placements with a production company in your area.
So if you’ve always dreamed of working in the industry and are ready to make a move now, apply to take up this fantastic opportunity.
There are 20 places for candidates living near one of three UK production hubs: the North West, Yorkshire and Bristol. The deadline is October 23, and the course runs every Saturday from November 7 for five weeks.
Who is it for?
We want to hear from accounts workers with at least one year’s paid experience in a responsible finance position, living in or around Bristol.
But applicants can be from all walks of the accounting world - you could be a CFO or a payroll assistant.
You’ll need to convince us you are serious about a career in television accounts - serious enough to be available for a 14-week paid placement after the course if you land one.
The ScreenSkills HETV Accounts Industry Transfer Programme is one of a range of initiatives aimed at recruiting new entrants and encouraging a more diverse workforce, including those returning to the industry after a career break.
What does the programme offer?
The training is led by highly respected production accountant Neil Cairns, who has 20 years’ experience working on Outlaw King, Under the Skin, The Nest and T2 Trainspotting.
Neil will deliver ten intensive 90-minute training sessions that will show you how to meet the specific demands of the industry, including: Tracking costs of multiple consecutive episodes at the same time.
How to keep control of the figures before, during and after shooting.
Reporting costs per episode and per series.
Getting to grips with the different budgeting systems the industry uses.
Running payroll for cast and crew.
There will also be a 90-minute Introduction to working in TV seminar with company MD and author Matt Gallagher (thecallsheet.co.uk)
And you’ll get the chance to land one of those 12 paid placements, lasting 14 weeks, with a high-end television production company in your area.
‘never been a better time’
Kaye Elliott, ScreenSkills Director of High-end Television, says: “The High-end TV Skills Fund delivers the crucial support needed to meet the skills demands of a fast-growing UK-wide industry.
“There has never been a better time to transfer skills learnt in other industries into a new career working in TV. This industry-led programme will provide all the training and networks to kick-start your new career.”
the industry... and your place in it
According to the BFI, there was over £1.6billion spent on high-end TV drama in the UK in 2019 - and as production resumes into 2021 we will need talented recruits to take on the challenge.
Although your first role might be relatively junior while you learn the ropes, the opportunity for progression is huge.
Covid-secure filming is already back under way in the UK, showing the resilience that promises a quick bounce-back to the boom levels of 2019 production.
Shows created around Bristol include Sanditon and Poldark. So if you can see yourself working on some of the country’s top dramas, visit Screenskills.com or search for ScreenSkills HETV Accounts Industry Transfer Programme.
ScreenSkills is the industry-led skills body for the UK’s screen industries: animation, film, games, television including children’s and high-end, VFX and immersive technology. We work across the whole of the country to build an inclusive workforce with the skills needed for continued success, now and in the future. The project is being managed by the callsheet.co.uk on behalf of the High-end TV Skills Fund.