One of the first casualties of decreasing democracy and the rising probability of a dictatorship is the degeneration of the language. This was noticeable during the time when Spiro Agnew was Vice President of the USA during the later stages of the Vietnam War. Then, when someone in the military decided to murder one of their officers they named it “fragging”, which was a euphemism for slinging a fragmentation grenade into the officer’s tent. The results were obvious, but the slang somehow decreased the obscenity of the action.
Many of you will have noticed that this trend has continued and flowered with a whole selection of Big Brother type re-naming that has legitimized a million small cuts into the democratic fabric of our evolved societies.
Now we don’t have terrorists as the media have re-branded them freedom fighters if they find their views acceptable politically and morally, this despite the fact that they might behead some kidnap victims, now recast as prisoners as if this were a legitimate action, or blow up some children as if a 4 or 5 year old is a combatant.
The list of such anomalies is virtually endless and angers so many with rival views that there are many of us, myself included, who have simply stopped watching certain television stations or reading certain newspapers or magazines. Of course this devalues legitimate debate because we no longer put out trust in factual statements put out by the opposition’s media depending on our view.
I was having a fairly important economic debate with an economist yesterday and I quoted some statistics I had gathered the previous day from the fairly left of center Guardian newspaper. Their reaction was to reach for what they considered the more authorative Economist magazine to double check these “facts”. This is a very dangerous trend that shows itself in many ways.
Yesterday it was revealed that certain UK police authorities had mis-reported various crime statistics. Their contention was that they had got the total crime figures correct, but had under estimated the total number in the serious crime column as required by their statistical analysis. However, they went on, the figures they had given did tally with the method used by the courts to calculate these figures, Therefore, in an age where we are already very worried by the seeming rise in crime figures in this country we are told, on the one hand, that the figures were actually considerably worse than those previously listed, but don’t worry, the number of actual crimes committed has really decreased; really?
In the same time frame we were authoritively informed by the government that they have education at the very top of their agenda, and that this is an area of growing achievement. At the same time they abandoned almost their entire testing methodology after insisting it was adopted for the last years of their administration.
We all know of similar financial, health and defense issues to add to our litany of woe. And, instead of addressing the issues and trying to fix them, our government simply finds another piece of spin to re-label the problems and make them appear victories so that they can have a chance in future elections.
Right now the British government is committed to spending its way out of the present economic disasters and there is probably a good deal of sense in this as a general principle. However, wouldn’t it be great if just for once the money was spent on the infrastructure projects the country so desperately needs and deserves.
What a shambles of misleading liars this government is, and what a pity that their opposition is shaping up to be equally incompetent.
Friday, October 24, 2008
Thursday, October 23, 2008
BloggingForTheRepossessed
I had a bad feeling about the property market long before it became fashionable to do so. This was because I saw the beginnings of the collapse of the sub prime mortgage business in the States at first hand.
Yesterday I checked out the local property market by popping my head into the door of a couple of estate agents (realtors) and they confirmed what we all know. There’s virtually nothing good to report, with sales now a pathetic percentage of last year’s size and prices tumbling.
More scary was the news one of them shared in which he told me that the lenders are repossessing the defaulting properties much faster than previously. He felt these repossessions are, in some instances, a first rather than last resort. In his small local agency he had been given 4 repossessed homes to sell this week, whereas he used to get, perhaps 1 per month last year. This is an alarming rise, made more so by the fact that the agent told me he and the lenders know he has no realistic chance of selling these properties in the present market conditions. Ask yourself the question, so if you repossess the property but can’t sell it, who is benefiting?
This morning I had the opportunity to listen to BBC radio 4 at breakfast. The discussion revolved around the various views as to whether there was a purpose for blogging, now, or in the future.
The usual arguments were trotted out which I shall précis by stating the obvious, we write because we have to, its in our bloodstreams, and the upshot should be that in doing so we communicate to others our personal views.
Sometimes, like yesterday, a writer, using this medium just wants to share a mood, in that case, joy and happiness to lighten the general gloom, and sometimes, like today, to warn of some impending peril, and to make sure my audience is aware of the danger.
One of the major catastrophes of modern times is coming to pass, and its being misunderstood and relatively relegated in importance on our news among the welter of horrible economic news. I am addressing the issue of home repossessions. Let’s examine that sentence again, we are talking about taking away people’s homes, not a few, not hundreds, not thousands, but if this slide continues it could be hundreds of thousands.
We cannot let this tragedy happen, we must not allow it!
The main reason I make this statement so emphatically is not because I care any more than any of you about the individuals and families affected, because no one wants to see people suffer arbitrarily. No, although this is terrible, more awful will be the ramifications to our societies and countries if we allow a new underclass to develop. This will be the inevitable result if hundreds of thousands of people are to be effectively made homeless.
The same people will, to a very large extent feel disaffected and disenfranchised, cheated and abused. They will be angry, and a great many of their number will suffer social and educational disadvantage from this starting point. An increased and growing number of the dispossessed to support, nurture and assist would thus burden the remainder of the population.
Ironically the property market collapse has come at the precise moment when we require more housing to meet the growing population needs. Whereas we should be finding ways to encourage house building start ups we find ourselves with some of the lowest ever recorded numbers.
The government has again made the right noises about keeping people in their homes as much as possible and has issued a directive to the courts to make sure they point the mortgage companies towards this end. In practical terms this means that they are now going to be compelled to write a couple of letters to the people in arrears and make a phone call or two. It doesn’t mean directing the courts to put a stop to all repossessions for a hiatus period, of let’s say 6 months. That is what this situation demands.
Many of my readers will be reaching for their electronic pens to send me a message condemning me for not pointing out that a great many defaulters got themselves into this situation and therefore, being responsible for their own actions they should have to deal with the consequences. There are, obviously, some people that fall into that category. While protecting the innocent victims of global economic catastrophe some of the indolent and crafty will, by definition crawl through the cracks like such people generally do. But right now there is a greater good that must be served, even if it means some of these social cockroaches surviving to be found out another day.
However, and we must not lose sight of this, the population did not suddenly sprout a tail and become indolent and devilish. The lenders encouraged, in fact enticed borrowers to take up their totally irresponsible offers of funds that could never be repaid if any of the economic circumstances prevalent at the time changed. And they changed big time! People are beginning to lose their jobs, loans are no longer available, and property values have plummeted. As a result you have the iniquitous situation in which, in many instances, as low cost, fixed rate interest mortgages fall due they can only be replaced by variable rated principal and interest mortgages. This can mean an increase in cost of double at exactly the same moment when the property in question goes into negative equity! That is an insupportable conundrum for any homeowner and the natural inclination will be for them to simply give their keys to the mortgagor and walk away.
If you take a moral stance on irresponsible borrowing how about taking an equally moral position on irresponsible lending that created the situation. And, following this logical yellow brick road, how about blaming the government and FSA for failing to stop it, in fact encouraging this lunacy?
Again I repeat, we cannot let this property eviction campaign of rampant repossessions to happen or we will all suffer a terrible a whole series of long-term consequences.
It would be to our huge advantage to find ways to keep all these families in their homes over the next two to three years and stop these hugely damaging outcomes before they begin. It’s vital that we act now to prevent total property market disintegration fracturing the cohesion of our societies long term. If we take a longer, more enlightened view it will benefit everyone, not least all the families who will otherwise be out on our streets this winter.
Yesterday I checked out the local property market by popping my head into the door of a couple of estate agents (realtors) and they confirmed what we all know. There’s virtually nothing good to report, with sales now a pathetic percentage of last year’s size and prices tumbling.
More scary was the news one of them shared in which he told me that the lenders are repossessing the defaulting properties much faster than previously. He felt these repossessions are, in some instances, a first rather than last resort. In his small local agency he had been given 4 repossessed homes to sell this week, whereas he used to get, perhaps 1 per month last year. This is an alarming rise, made more so by the fact that the agent told me he and the lenders know he has no realistic chance of selling these properties in the present market conditions. Ask yourself the question, so if you repossess the property but can’t sell it, who is benefiting?
This morning I had the opportunity to listen to BBC radio 4 at breakfast. The discussion revolved around the various views as to whether there was a purpose for blogging, now, or in the future.
The usual arguments were trotted out which I shall précis by stating the obvious, we write because we have to, its in our bloodstreams, and the upshot should be that in doing so we communicate to others our personal views.
Sometimes, like yesterday, a writer, using this medium just wants to share a mood, in that case, joy and happiness to lighten the general gloom, and sometimes, like today, to warn of some impending peril, and to make sure my audience is aware of the danger.
One of the major catastrophes of modern times is coming to pass, and its being misunderstood and relatively relegated in importance on our news among the welter of horrible economic news. I am addressing the issue of home repossessions. Let’s examine that sentence again, we are talking about taking away people’s homes, not a few, not hundreds, not thousands, but if this slide continues it could be hundreds of thousands.
We cannot let this tragedy happen, we must not allow it!
The main reason I make this statement so emphatically is not because I care any more than any of you about the individuals and families affected, because no one wants to see people suffer arbitrarily. No, although this is terrible, more awful will be the ramifications to our societies and countries if we allow a new underclass to develop. This will be the inevitable result if hundreds of thousands of people are to be effectively made homeless.
The same people will, to a very large extent feel disaffected and disenfranchised, cheated and abused. They will be angry, and a great many of their number will suffer social and educational disadvantage from this starting point. An increased and growing number of the dispossessed to support, nurture and assist would thus burden the remainder of the population.
Ironically the property market collapse has come at the precise moment when we require more housing to meet the growing population needs. Whereas we should be finding ways to encourage house building start ups we find ourselves with some of the lowest ever recorded numbers.
The government has again made the right noises about keeping people in their homes as much as possible and has issued a directive to the courts to make sure they point the mortgage companies towards this end. In practical terms this means that they are now going to be compelled to write a couple of letters to the people in arrears and make a phone call or two. It doesn’t mean directing the courts to put a stop to all repossessions for a hiatus period, of let’s say 6 months. That is what this situation demands.
Many of my readers will be reaching for their electronic pens to send me a message condemning me for not pointing out that a great many defaulters got themselves into this situation and therefore, being responsible for their own actions they should have to deal with the consequences. There are, obviously, some people that fall into that category. While protecting the innocent victims of global economic catastrophe some of the indolent and crafty will, by definition crawl through the cracks like such people generally do. But right now there is a greater good that must be served, even if it means some of these social cockroaches surviving to be found out another day.
However, and we must not lose sight of this, the population did not suddenly sprout a tail and become indolent and devilish. The lenders encouraged, in fact enticed borrowers to take up their totally irresponsible offers of funds that could never be repaid if any of the economic circumstances prevalent at the time changed. And they changed big time! People are beginning to lose their jobs, loans are no longer available, and property values have plummeted. As a result you have the iniquitous situation in which, in many instances, as low cost, fixed rate interest mortgages fall due they can only be replaced by variable rated principal and interest mortgages. This can mean an increase in cost of double at exactly the same moment when the property in question goes into negative equity! That is an insupportable conundrum for any homeowner and the natural inclination will be for them to simply give their keys to the mortgagor and walk away.
If you take a moral stance on irresponsible borrowing how about taking an equally moral position on irresponsible lending that created the situation. And, following this logical yellow brick road, how about blaming the government and FSA for failing to stop it, in fact encouraging this lunacy?
Again I repeat, we cannot let this property eviction campaign of rampant repossessions to happen or we will all suffer a terrible a whole series of long-term consequences.
It would be to our huge advantage to find ways to keep all these families in their homes over the next two to three years and stop these hugely damaging outcomes before they begin. It’s vital that we act now to prevent total property market disintegration fracturing the cohesion of our societies long term. If we take a longer, more enlightened view it will benefit everyone, not least all the families who will otherwise be out on our streets this winter.
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
JustJoking
In this world, where property prices are slumping, jobless rates increasing and banks being bailed out it sometimes takes a joke to remind us that the world is basically funny and its people special. I’m very fortunate that a great many people send me jokes regularly, for which many thanks. I decided today, instead of our discussing our common trials and tribulations to share a joke I was recently sent.
One day the Israelis and Arabs finally realized that if they continued fighting, they would someday end up destroying the world. So they sat down and decided that the fairest and least destructive way to settle the whole dispute was with a dogfight.
The negotiators agreed that each country could take five years to develop the best fighting dog they could. The dog that won the fight would earn its country the right to rule the disputed areas. The losing side would have to lay down its arms.
The Arabs found the biggest, meanest Dobermans and Rottweilers in the world. They bred them together and then crossed their offspring with the meanest Siberian wolves. They selected only the biggest, strongest puppy from each litter, killed all the other puppies and fed them the best food. They used steroids and trainers in their vital quest for the perfect killing machine.
After the five years were up, they had a dog that needed iron prison bars on its cage. Only their trainers, using extreme caution, could handle this ferocious beast.
When the day of the big fight arrived, the Israelis showed up with a strange animal. It was a nine-foot-long Dachshund.
Everyone felt sorry for the Israelis. No one else thought this weird animal stood a chance against the growling voracious beast chained up in the Arab camp.
The bookies predicted the Arab dog would win in less than a minute. The cages were opened. The Dachshund waddled slowly, and seemingly unconcerned toward the center of the ring.
The Arab dog leapt from his cage and charged the giant wiener-dog. As he got to within an inch of the Israeli dog, the Dachshund opened its jaws and swallowed the Arab beast in one bite. There was nothing left but a small bit of fur from the killer dog's tail.
The Arabs approached the Israelis, shaking their heads in disbelief. 'We do not understand,' said their leader. 'Our top scientists and breeders worked for five years with the meanest, biggest Dobermans and Rottweilers. They developed a killing machine but your dog ate him in one bite, what happened?'
'Really?' the Israeli General replied. 'For five years, we've had a team of Jewish plastic surgeons in Beverly Hills working to make an alligator look like a Dachshund.'
One day the Israelis and Arabs finally realized that if they continued fighting, they would someday end up destroying the world. So they sat down and decided that the fairest and least destructive way to settle the whole dispute was with a dogfight.
The negotiators agreed that each country could take five years to develop the best fighting dog they could. The dog that won the fight would earn its country the right to rule the disputed areas. The losing side would have to lay down its arms.
The Arabs found the biggest, meanest Dobermans and Rottweilers in the world. They bred them together and then crossed their offspring with the meanest Siberian wolves. They selected only the biggest, strongest puppy from each litter, killed all the other puppies and fed them the best food. They used steroids and trainers in their vital quest for the perfect killing machine.
After the five years were up, they had a dog that needed iron prison bars on its cage. Only their trainers, using extreme caution, could handle this ferocious beast.
When the day of the big fight arrived, the Israelis showed up with a strange animal. It was a nine-foot-long Dachshund.
Everyone felt sorry for the Israelis. No one else thought this weird animal stood a chance against the growling voracious beast chained up in the Arab camp.
The bookies predicted the Arab dog would win in less than a minute. The cages were opened. The Dachshund waddled slowly, and seemingly unconcerned toward the center of the ring.
The Arab dog leapt from his cage and charged the giant wiener-dog. As he got to within an inch of the Israeli dog, the Dachshund opened its jaws and swallowed the Arab beast in one bite. There was nothing left but a small bit of fur from the killer dog's tail.
The Arabs approached the Israelis, shaking their heads in disbelief. 'We do not understand,' said their leader. 'Our top scientists and breeders worked for five years with the meanest, biggest Dobermans and Rottweilers. They developed a killing machine but your dog ate him in one bite, what happened?'
'Really?' the Israeli General replied. 'For five years, we've had a team of Jewish plastic surgeons in Beverly Hills working to make an alligator look like a Dachshund.'
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
Qualifications
Occasionally I am asked why I have failed to list my qualifications on my resume. The reason for this omission is simple and obvious; I don’t posses any qualifications and I wouldn’t falsify my very lengthy CV.
Trust me I’m a highly intelligent person, offered entry to MENSA after taking a preliminary test, truly the reason for this lack is not because I didn’t have the ability to gain the bells and whistles of academic excellence. At every opportunity I was too busy, too young, or too old or not simply too tired to be bothered enough. This lack is entirely my own fault and responsibility but I did have good reasons at every stage.
As I’ve written previously in various other articles and blogs I dropped out of school early to rush headlong, and somewhat blindly after a career in film production. I was exactly 16, which was the first legal age you could leave school in those far off days. My father, who apparently had turned down an opportunity to go to Cambridge when he was very young prior to the war to pursue his original career as a structural engineer was more than keen that I went to university. To that end he insisted I qualified to enter higher education and then could take a year out to find out the realities of employment.
Following the line of least resistance and being a lazy sod, I discovered that you could then take the necessary tests to get into the California education system over the road from where we lived in the American Embassy. I remember my joy at discovering how comparatively easy it was and I was offered the chance at an American university, which I deferred. Approximately forty years later I think I’d better tell them I wouldn’t be taking it up!
I went on to start my career at the run. Working on wonderful films and for the Ministry of Defense via a small Soho media production company called Searchlight and even more fun, the Avengers TV series. From this run of work I found a friend called Mike Lytton, and together we started making small documentaries. Before we knew it the films were getting bigger and we even got cinema distribution internationally.
Now I was about 21 and had a burgeoning career. I thought it was high time I had an education to go with it. I applied to be amongst the first intake for the National Film School (it didn’t add the word television to its name for a few years) but was informed that I needed to have qualifications prior to obtaining entry. However I was offered the opportunity to teach one of the classes. I remember them telling me that the pay for the job was less than I then paid to my own assistant!
Years of a productive, creatively satisfying and remunerative career followed. I was in my middle forties before I returned to academia.
I found myself working at the Bournemouth Film School, first as an Associate Lecturer, then onwards in many roles including lecturer, Acting Course Director, Course Director, then moving to the Northern Film School at Leeds Metropolitan University where I was Course Leader and Head of Production for the MA Film Production and led the putting together and validation of their Foundation Degrees in Media Production. I sat on the validation and academic committees and then moved on to the University of East London where I was Director of the Media Production Centre. In addition to this I had two other academic and research Directorships and then became an External Examiner for the Open University Validation Service at various higher education establishments in this and other countries.
During this period I delivered academic papers at conferences and became National Secretary of the Association of Media Practice Educators and organized and hosted their conference at my university. I felt that the time had come for me to finally obtain some higher education of my own; after all I had been giving out degrees for about a decade!
I saw a Masters degree in scriptwriting at Salford advertised and applied. I was invited to come and sit their entrance test, which I did. I was taken into the room with the lecturing staff that told me that although I had passed the test with flying colors I should be teaching the course. They intimated that it would be silly, and faintly embarrassing for them if I took up the place on offer, so I didn’t. It was then proposed that I pursued a practice-based doctorate to accompany the film I was then making, called Full Circle. This would have involved me in running three university Directorates, making a film, serving as National Secretary of AMPE and now writing a few hundred thousand words for the doctoral thesis. I declined this opportunity.
So here we are, making films, writing books and screenplays, doing a bit of business and serving the Open University Validation Service, but still with not a qualification to my name but giving them to others. Life is awfully strange sometimes.
Trust me I’m a highly intelligent person, offered entry to MENSA after taking a preliminary test, truly the reason for this lack is not because I didn’t have the ability to gain the bells and whistles of academic excellence. At every opportunity I was too busy, too young, or too old or not simply too tired to be bothered enough. This lack is entirely my own fault and responsibility but I did have good reasons at every stage.
As I’ve written previously in various other articles and blogs I dropped out of school early to rush headlong, and somewhat blindly after a career in film production. I was exactly 16, which was the first legal age you could leave school in those far off days. My father, who apparently had turned down an opportunity to go to Cambridge when he was very young prior to the war to pursue his original career as a structural engineer was more than keen that I went to university. To that end he insisted I qualified to enter higher education and then could take a year out to find out the realities of employment.
Following the line of least resistance and being a lazy sod, I discovered that you could then take the necessary tests to get into the California education system over the road from where we lived in the American Embassy. I remember my joy at discovering how comparatively easy it was and I was offered the chance at an American university, which I deferred. Approximately forty years later I think I’d better tell them I wouldn’t be taking it up!
I went on to start my career at the run. Working on wonderful films and for the Ministry of Defense via a small Soho media production company called Searchlight and even more fun, the Avengers TV series. From this run of work I found a friend called Mike Lytton, and together we started making small documentaries. Before we knew it the films were getting bigger and we even got cinema distribution internationally.
Now I was about 21 and had a burgeoning career. I thought it was high time I had an education to go with it. I applied to be amongst the first intake for the National Film School (it didn’t add the word television to its name for a few years) but was informed that I needed to have qualifications prior to obtaining entry. However I was offered the opportunity to teach one of the classes. I remember them telling me that the pay for the job was less than I then paid to my own assistant!
Years of a productive, creatively satisfying and remunerative career followed. I was in my middle forties before I returned to academia.
I found myself working at the Bournemouth Film School, first as an Associate Lecturer, then onwards in many roles including lecturer, Acting Course Director, Course Director, then moving to the Northern Film School at Leeds Metropolitan University where I was Course Leader and Head of Production for the MA Film Production and led the putting together and validation of their Foundation Degrees in Media Production. I sat on the validation and academic committees and then moved on to the University of East London where I was Director of the Media Production Centre. In addition to this I had two other academic and research Directorships and then became an External Examiner for the Open University Validation Service at various higher education establishments in this and other countries.
During this period I delivered academic papers at conferences and became National Secretary of the Association of Media Practice Educators and organized and hosted their conference at my university. I felt that the time had come for me to finally obtain some higher education of my own; after all I had been giving out degrees for about a decade!
I saw a Masters degree in scriptwriting at Salford advertised and applied. I was invited to come and sit their entrance test, which I did. I was taken into the room with the lecturing staff that told me that although I had passed the test with flying colors I should be teaching the course. They intimated that it would be silly, and faintly embarrassing for them if I took up the place on offer, so I didn’t. It was then proposed that I pursued a practice-based doctorate to accompany the film I was then making, called Full Circle. This would have involved me in running three university Directorates, making a film, serving as National Secretary of AMPE and now writing a few hundred thousand words for the doctoral thesis. I declined this opportunity.
So here we are, making films, writing books and screenplays, doing a bit of business and serving the Open University Validation Service, but still with not a qualification to my name but giving them to others. Life is awfully strange sometimes.
Monday, October 20, 2008
SomeAdviceForThoseStartingOutInTheBiz
About two or three times a month I get a call from someone telling me that they have a younger relative, or the son or daughter of a friend who is looking to break into one part or other of show business.
Firstly let me make it very clear that there simply isn’t a one size fits all answer to the question of how to best get ahead in show business. Generally I am a fan of getting an education where and when you can, after all, a bit of knowledge can’t hurt can it? Well, in show business it actually could. There are leaps of faith in the creative arts that are best taken in sublime ignorance. I started that way, without any film education other than that I picked up on the run. I made my first few films in blissful ignorance, armed only with naïve self-belief, ambition and drive. Hopefully some talent was in that mix, but I dare say that came a long way behind dogged determination and optimism based on mostly wishful thinking.
It wasn’t until I was 21, some five years into my filmmaking career that I thought it would be a good idea to go back to formal education. I applied for the then fairly new National Film School, and was rejected. The reason given being that it was then just for post graduates and I needed to get a degree prior to applying again. However, based on my resume at that time, I was offered some teaching at an Associate Professor level. I could have taught the class I couldn’t get into!
I never took up anything other than an occasional Guest Lecturer role anywhere until many years later when I became an academic myself. But that’s another story.
I don’t want to appear to be too harsh, or negative, because I was once one of those kids looking to get ahead and I do realize that it can all seem very confusing and worrying when you’re starting out. The story of most of the aspiring talents reminds me of my bright friends when we were in our first schools who were then were sent to very good schools where everyone was as bright, or even brighter than they were. This was a shocking surprise for many of them, some of whom never really recovered their initial confidence, convinced of their own fallibility and lack of any consequence.
I also remember how frighteningly clever and prescient some of our film and media students were at the Bournemouth Film School. When we were running that course there were huge numbers of candidates for every place and half of them on the course already had an M level degree before they got to enter our program. It’s very intimidating and a great deal of it is unnecessary.
A great many of the people wanting to be in the creative industries simply are not suited to them. The prime reason is fairly obvious but needs stating here, it is because the majority of jobs within the industry are itinerant and therefore there is hardly any security, either economic or social. If, by your nature, you seek security and a warm, nurturing environment, then these are not the industries for you.
Naturally, every person proposing someone truly believes their relative or friend is the possessor of wonderful gifts as a talented ingénue, ready to be the best creative talent in the country. Usually they are described as being a bit shy, or not pushy enough but generally they are only lacking their first opportunity. Quite often when I speak to the prospective student or employee they are either not so convinced on the route they are pursuing or have any wish to listen to me, or anyone or anything else that contradicts their beliefs and aspirations. I’ve lost count of the number of times I have spoken, as a favor, to these young people, and realized, after two minutes, that they’re simply not willing to listen.
Their families are most often looking for an opportunity in the form of a job, or a pointer in the right direction. Sometimes they seek advice on where to go to university to best further their chances in their future search for a career in entertainment.
I guess I get more than my fair share of these enquiries because I am in the business, and have extensive knowledge of, and still occasionally work in higher education. So this is my general answer to all those people who ask me, and others these same questions, now and for the future.
The first question is one you should ask yourself. Do you really want to be in a business that is hugely demanding, and will give you criticism, sometimes very tough employment opportunities, amazingly long hours, intense competition from large numbers of very talented people and more often than not, bad, poorly paid start up jobs?
That’s what you have to think about first. Not the dreams of amazing money, easy chances with the opposite sex, unlimited fun and the chance to prove how brilliant you are! If you’re very lucky, in fact, unbelievably lucky, you might get a reasonable career in the creative industries. Most people in it end up doing jobs that were not their original choices. There simply are not enough roles for you all to be stars, and not nearly enough jobs as director or producer to boss other people around.
Most of the newcomers will do well to become one of the many thousands of Prop people, carpenters, plasterers, painters, hairdressers, make up, CGI artists, stunt artists, extras, bit part players, camera assistants, sound recording team, editors and hundreds of other back up, but vital roles that there are always well paid jobs for in the industry.
Whatever a newcomer has to do, following an educational or apprenticeship route is fine, if it suits them. Sarah, one of my lovely daughters undertook a film degree at Surrey University’s Farnham campus. She obtained a very well deserved, good degree and her graduation film was, by common consent, one of the best produced at the college. It won awards and made money, both of which are rarities. The irony is that after achieving all of this, and having a father, grandfather and husband in the business, she quit it, loathing the industry with a healthy contempt.
If you’re looking for help please feel free to contact me on tony@bcreativelimited.com and I’ll try to point you in the right direction at no initial charge, that’s for free for those of you who are cynical.
First published on http://www.tonyklinger.co.uk/
Firstly let me make it very clear that there simply isn’t a one size fits all answer to the question of how to best get ahead in show business. Generally I am a fan of getting an education where and when you can, after all, a bit of knowledge can’t hurt can it? Well, in show business it actually could. There are leaps of faith in the creative arts that are best taken in sublime ignorance. I started that way, without any film education other than that I picked up on the run. I made my first few films in blissful ignorance, armed only with naïve self-belief, ambition and drive. Hopefully some talent was in that mix, but I dare say that came a long way behind dogged determination and optimism based on mostly wishful thinking.
It wasn’t until I was 21, some five years into my filmmaking career that I thought it would be a good idea to go back to formal education. I applied for the then fairly new National Film School, and was rejected. The reason given being that it was then just for post graduates and I needed to get a degree prior to applying again. However, based on my resume at that time, I was offered some teaching at an Associate Professor level. I could have taught the class I couldn’t get into!
I never took up anything other than an occasional Guest Lecturer role anywhere until many years later when I became an academic myself. But that’s another story.
I don’t want to appear to be too harsh, or negative, because I was once one of those kids looking to get ahead and I do realize that it can all seem very confusing and worrying when you’re starting out. The story of most of the aspiring talents reminds me of my bright friends when we were in our first schools who were then were sent to very good schools where everyone was as bright, or even brighter than they were. This was a shocking surprise for many of them, some of whom never really recovered their initial confidence, convinced of their own fallibility and lack of any consequence.
I also remember how frighteningly clever and prescient some of our film and media students were at the Bournemouth Film School. When we were running that course there were huge numbers of candidates for every place and half of them on the course already had an M level degree before they got to enter our program. It’s very intimidating and a great deal of it is unnecessary.
A great many of the people wanting to be in the creative industries simply are not suited to them. The prime reason is fairly obvious but needs stating here, it is because the majority of jobs within the industry are itinerant and therefore there is hardly any security, either economic or social. If, by your nature, you seek security and a warm, nurturing environment, then these are not the industries for you.
Naturally, every person proposing someone truly believes their relative or friend is the possessor of wonderful gifts as a talented ingénue, ready to be the best creative talent in the country. Usually they are described as being a bit shy, or not pushy enough but generally they are only lacking their first opportunity. Quite often when I speak to the prospective student or employee they are either not so convinced on the route they are pursuing or have any wish to listen to me, or anyone or anything else that contradicts their beliefs and aspirations. I’ve lost count of the number of times I have spoken, as a favor, to these young people, and realized, after two minutes, that they’re simply not willing to listen.
Their families are most often looking for an opportunity in the form of a job, or a pointer in the right direction. Sometimes they seek advice on where to go to university to best further their chances in their future search for a career in entertainment.
I guess I get more than my fair share of these enquiries because I am in the business, and have extensive knowledge of, and still occasionally work in higher education. So this is my general answer to all those people who ask me, and others these same questions, now and for the future.
The first question is one you should ask yourself. Do you really want to be in a business that is hugely demanding, and will give you criticism, sometimes very tough employment opportunities, amazingly long hours, intense competition from large numbers of very talented people and more often than not, bad, poorly paid start up jobs?
That’s what you have to think about first. Not the dreams of amazing money, easy chances with the opposite sex, unlimited fun and the chance to prove how brilliant you are! If you’re very lucky, in fact, unbelievably lucky, you might get a reasonable career in the creative industries. Most people in it end up doing jobs that were not their original choices. There simply are not enough roles for you all to be stars, and not nearly enough jobs as director or producer to boss other people around.
Most of the newcomers will do well to become one of the many thousands of Prop people, carpenters, plasterers, painters, hairdressers, make up, CGI artists, stunt artists, extras, bit part players, camera assistants, sound recording team, editors and hundreds of other back up, but vital roles that there are always well paid jobs for in the industry.
Whatever a newcomer has to do, following an educational or apprenticeship route is fine, if it suits them. Sarah, one of my lovely daughters undertook a film degree at Surrey University’s Farnham campus. She obtained a very well deserved, good degree and her graduation film was, by common consent, one of the best produced at the college. It won awards and made money, both of which are rarities. The irony is that after achieving all of this, and having a father, grandfather and husband in the business, she quit it, loathing the industry with a healthy contempt.
If you’re looking for help please feel free to contact me on tony@bcreativelimited.com and I’ll try to point you in the right direction at no initial charge, that’s for free for those of you who are cynical.
First published on http://www.tonyklinger.co.uk/
Sunday, October 19, 2008
SundayBloodySunday
Do you remember when Sunday was a quiet day, when nothing happened, shops and entertainment were firmly closed, and there was a pause to breathe and think between last week and next?
It isn't like that in the Anglo American world any more, and it is all the less for the change. I happen to be Jewish so my rest day, my Sabbath, is a Saturday, but I grew up in the UK and therefore, not being overly religious myself, I was happy with sleepy Sundays.
Now you go to the shops on Sunday and they are packed with people who look fraught and tense, not relaxed or with their families, not taking the time to smell the air. Their lives are all the more limited because of this lifestyle change.
As I suggest above the reason for the old style Sunday in the UK and the States is religious in origin, and traditional thereafter. There was a group in the UK called The Lord's Day Observance Society who made sure the rules were kept. As a teenager I remember being hugely frustrated that there was absolutely nothing to do on a Sunday because of the efficiency of the Society's resistance.
I was one of those angry teens who battered at their reactionary gates to remove their silly rules. Our argument went roughly like this, "It does no harm if you just allow a local grocery shop or cinema or supermarket to be open for a couple of hours."
History tells us that once you remove the finger from the dyke the waters will flood in and sweep away everything in its path. Taking our metaphors a little further, once you open Pandora's Box you cannot put away the little devils you have unleashed.
We were wrong, I was wrong, our argument was wrong. I know we can't do anything about this now, and I'm sorry that we will be leaving our children such an inheritance. But next time someone argues for a small change to your life think about it very carefully before you agree.
It isn't like that in the Anglo American world any more, and it is all the less for the change. I happen to be Jewish so my rest day, my Sabbath, is a Saturday, but I grew up in the UK and therefore, not being overly religious myself, I was happy with sleepy Sundays.
Now you go to the shops on Sunday and they are packed with people who look fraught and tense, not relaxed or with their families, not taking the time to smell the air. Their lives are all the more limited because of this lifestyle change.
As I suggest above the reason for the old style Sunday in the UK and the States is religious in origin, and traditional thereafter. There was a group in the UK called The Lord's Day Observance Society who made sure the rules were kept. As a teenager I remember being hugely frustrated that there was absolutely nothing to do on a Sunday because of the efficiency of the Society's resistance.
I was one of those angry teens who battered at their reactionary gates to remove their silly rules. Our argument went roughly like this, "It does no harm if you just allow a local grocery shop or cinema or supermarket to be open for a couple of hours."
History tells us that once you remove the finger from the dyke the waters will flood in and sweep away everything in its path. Taking our metaphors a little further, once you open Pandora's Box you cannot put away the little devils you have unleashed.
We were wrong, I was wrong, our argument was wrong. I know we can't do anything about this now, and I'm sorry that we will be leaving our children such an inheritance. But next time someone argues for a small change to your life think about it very carefully before you agree.
Saturday, October 18, 2008
TheFuturePart2
In my most recent blog on this site I made myself a hostage of fortune when I predicted the future of our world. I have, thank you, received a great many communications about this. Some of you believe I am being unduly pessimistic, whereas others take the opposite view. Usually this signals to me that I have got it about right. But today I wanted to add a little more detail to this picture.
I wrote that the recent happenings in the economy meant that the old forms of capitalism have met their end. On the brighter side so have all forms of socialism. I say this because with all its manifest faults it is clear that capitalism can and usually does work when it is in balance and well managed, whereas socialism is a totally busted flush which has never worked for the benefit of the citizens of any country that has had the system foisted upon it.
The immediate future of the leading economies will be more effectively policed and the regulations more stringently applied, but it will still be a market driven economic model that prevails.
The reduction in available funds will, most likely, mean that once the immediate emergency has been addressed the percentage of the Gross Domestic Product being spent on government projects will be reduced. This is a bonus since this percentage; especially in countries like the UK have become bloated and insupportable.
When Obama becomes President, which he shall unless he manages to accomplish political suicide between now and the election, there is a distinct possibility that he might try his version of a New Deal to revitalize America if the recession bites too deep. I don’t know if he can afford not to do so in such a scenario.
Due to losses incurred by all kinds of local and regional funds there will be a concomitant reduction in the amount of cash available for anything the authorities consider non-essential projects. This will affect the quality and feel of life but is probably unavoidable over the next 3 to 5 years.
Businesses that thrive during economic prosperity will begin to suffer in the next few months, particularly fee charging specialists such as lawyers, accountants, consultants and certain purveyors of banking, financial advice and insurance.
Most seriously hit in many of the economies are mortgage brokers and estate agents (realtors) who have seen the volume of sales and their values drop through the floor but I suspect that there will be big winners in those that rent property as those prices are starting to climb and supply is finite whereas demand is bound to increase fast.
Despite all this, if our governments continue to respond with the same sense of urgency they have developed over the last month when dealing with the imploding economy then we need have no fear for social cohesion.
Now what was the good news I was going to forecast? Oh yes, Manchester United will win another trophy or two, the sun is going to come out tomorrow and my name is not Little Orphan Annie.
I wrote that the recent happenings in the economy meant that the old forms of capitalism have met their end. On the brighter side so have all forms of socialism. I say this because with all its manifest faults it is clear that capitalism can and usually does work when it is in balance and well managed, whereas socialism is a totally busted flush which has never worked for the benefit of the citizens of any country that has had the system foisted upon it.
The immediate future of the leading economies will be more effectively policed and the regulations more stringently applied, but it will still be a market driven economic model that prevails.
The reduction in available funds will, most likely, mean that once the immediate emergency has been addressed the percentage of the Gross Domestic Product being spent on government projects will be reduced. This is a bonus since this percentage; especially in countries like the UK have become bloated and insupportable.
When Obama becomes President, which he shall unless he manages to accomplish political suicide between now and the election, there is a distinct possibility that he might try his version of a New Deal to revitalize America if the recession bites too deep. I don’t know if he can afford not to do so in such a scenario.
Due to losses incurred by all kinds of local and regional funds there will be a concomitant reduction in the amount of cash available for anything the authorities consider non-essential projects. This will affect the quality and feel of life but is probably unavoidable over the next 3 to 5 years.
Businesses that thrive during economic prosperity will begin to suffer in the next few months, particularly fee charging specialists such as lawyers, accountants, consultants and certain purveyors of banking, financial advice and insurance.
Most seriously hit in many of the economies are mortgage brokers and estate agents (realtors) who have seen the volume of sales and their values drop through the floor but I suspect that there will be big winners in those that rent property as those prices are starting to climb and supply is finite whereas demand is bound to increase fast.
Despite all this, if our governments continue to respond with the same sense of urgency they have developed over the last month when dealing with the imploding economy then we need have no fear for social cohesion.
Now what was the good news I was going to forecast? Oh yes, Manchester United will win another trophy or two, the sun is going to come out tomorrow and my name is not Little Orphan Annie.
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