The Royal Television Society Careers Fair is back this autumn and it will be huge! On Monday 7 October 2019 at Edgbaston Stadium, you can get all the latest tips, tricks and practical advice to help you land that all important first job in TV. This event is UNMISSABLE if you have ever thought about working in telly.
From 10:00am – 16:00pm, there will be panel sessions with production teams, influential creatives and talent from the biggest shows and brands. You can also expect bootcamps, CV advice, networking opportunities, and insight into the different jobs and training schemes that are available.
Exhibitors
Look out for our special Film Birmingham stand to find out how you can engage with Birmingham’s film and television office as a student, production company or location scout.
Other companies exhibiting include: BBC Academy, BBC Blue Room, BBC Doctors, BBC Midlands Today, BBC School Report, BBC WM, BECTU Sector of Prospect, Channel 4, Edinburgh TV Festival, Full Fat TV, ITV, National Film and Television School, Presenter Promotions, Producers Forum, The Writer’s Guild and many more!
Sessions available on the day:
10.30am-11.15am: The Secrets Behind TV Sport
The world class BBC Sport department kicks off the panel sessions. Find out the secrets behind working in Sport from the people behind one of the biggest live events in the annual calendar – Sports Personality of the Year (SPOTY) to sports documentaries and journalism. Panellists talking to host Richard Wilford (BBC WM Sport) are Michael Jackson, Deputy Editor, SPOTY; Jo McCusker, Editor, BBC Sport, Documentaries; and Natalie Pirks, BBC Sports News Correspondent
11.30am-12.15pm: How to Get Ahead in Entertainment Television
Join host Trish Adudu as she talks to Charlie Irwin (BAFTA award winning Exec Producer Britain’s Got Talent, other credits include Saturday Night Takeaway and I’m A Celebrity); Francesca Palmer (Series/Senior Producer of Let It Shine and The Voice UK Series 1 – 5, now Development Executive at Panda TV); and Mark Sidaway (BAFTA award winning Entertainment Exec Producer who produced ten series of The X Factor and developed Pop Idol). They will be giving you top tips on how to break into this highly competitive, yet incredibly rewarding field.
12.30pm-1.15pm: Everything You Need to Know About Making Factual Programmes
Suzanne Virdee hosts, discussing this popular and intriguing area of programming with Jodie Allt, Production Co-ordinator, Blue Planet II; Simon Evans, Executive Editor, Love Productions (GBBO, Britain’s Missing Top Model) and Jeff Wilkinson, award-winning Series Director/Producer Director (Celebs in Solitary, The Big Crash Diet Experiment, Panorama)
1.30pm-2.15pm: The Essential Guide to Short Form Content
Dan Foster from the BBC Academy reveals everything you need to know about creating great short form content. Learn about the different types of short form; how to create content, plan, and distribute material that stands out online and encourages people to share it!
2.30pm-3.15pm: Get Ready For Your TV Job
Managing Director of theunitlist.com and TV Line Producer, Jude Winstanley guides you through the essential tools to equip you successfully for a job behind the TV camera including essential TV freelancer tips, job hunting and writing a CV.
3.30pm-4.15pm: The Grand Finale – Love Island, Radio 1 and BBC Three
Nasfim Haque, Commissioning Editor, BBC Three; Aled Haydn Jones, Head of Programmes, BBC Radio 1; and Mike Spencer, Series Editor, Love Island reveal what it’s like to work on these audience winners and reveal the secret to their success.
Activities
You can have a go at presenting, to act in a drama, make content on your phones and much more:
Lights, camera, action – take your place in the crew of BBC One’s popular daytime drama Doctors.
Join the Midlands Today team and make the editorial decisions on what goes into the programme.
Commentate on your favourite football team for BBC WM Sport.
Join the BBC engineers on a magic carpet ride … and learn a few tricks of the TV trade.
Come and talk about all things technology with the BBC Birmingham Blue Room team – showcasing tomorrow’s BBC, today. Try the amazing augmented reality apps and exciting VR content including a sneak peek at the highly anticipated ‘Berlin Blitz’ the latest Virtual Reality experience from BBC’s VR Hub. Get hands on and find out all about the jobs behind the tech.
Find out how to spot ‘Fake News’. Join us for this exciting workshop and get checking facts and sources, and filtering our false information.
Join us for a portable green screen experience where you will get a chance to present the news and you can play an interactive game developed by award-winning Aardman where the player experiences being a BBC journalist in the heart of the newsroom.
Get top tips on how to shoot video on your Smartphone: What’s the illusion of depth? What’s the rule of thirds? Why do selfies always look bad? Learn basic principles for using your smartphone to create broadcast quality sound and video. These drop-in sessions take place across the day and are suitable for any mobile device, but all camera apps mentioned will be for the iPhone. Please bring your phone, earphones (with an in-built mic) and a selfie stick (if you have one available) to get the most out of the session.
Tickets
This event is open to everyone but is designed for those with no more than two years’ television experience. Tickets for full members of the Royal Television Society are complimentary but MUST be booked in advance, 1 tickets will be allocated per member – please provide your membership number when booking.
Early Bird Price £5 per ticket until 1st July 2019, £10 a ticket after 1st July 2019. Fees are plus VAT. Tickets cannot be purchased at the door. Group bookings are discounted to £5 per person. For group bookings (over 10 people) please email RTSMidlands@rts.org.uk.
All tickets are non-refundable. Please note – Minors must be accompanied by a fee paying adult.
Event details
Mon, 7 October 2019
10:00 – 16:00 BST
Edgbaston Stadium
Birmingham
B5 7QU
For more industry information, visit our news page.