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About
I am a journalist and a producer from London.Originally from Istanbul, Turkey, I'm known for being a good storyteller and a detail-oriented writer with excellent observation skills. I worked at Hurriyet newspaper for nine years as a lifestyle columnist and senior reporter, writing more than 1600 opinion pieces and published interviews in total, reaching 18.8 million readers daily.One of my primary responsibilities as a journalist included interviewing prominent names in the television industry such as producers, writers, directors, all cast and crew, attending global press events, meeting talents in one-on-one settings on location, observing filming and production. My opinion pieces and published interviews about television include more than 35 well-respected names in the industry, including Matthew Weiner, Stephen King, John Carpenter, Kiefer Sutherland, M. Night Shyamalan, Morgan Freeman, Jon Hamm, Michael Hirst, Diane Kruger, Millie Bobby Brown, Rob Lowe, Joshua Jackson, Matt LeBlanc and many more. I visited and observed the productions on the location such as Glee, The Walking Dead, Deep State, Under The Dome, Deep State, Jessica Jones, The Bridge and interviewed talents and production crews. My opinion pieces include shows such as The Marvellous Mrs Maisel, The Crown, This Is Us, Stranger Things, American Crime Story: O.J. Simpson, Jessica Jones, The Defenders and G.L.O.W. My experiences during my assignments such as sitting next to Jennifer Getzinger observing her magical directing -which I first fell in love in Mad Men- in Jessica Jones, witnessing television history by observing all production operations including filming scenes of The Walking Dead in its Atlanta set, asking every single question that I had in my mind I had since a childhood spent with Stephen King's books to Mr King on the set of Under the Dome and many more allowed me to have a detailed understanding and knowledge of how a great production is made. As a little girl who lived and breathed television for as long as I can remember, these experiences with the prominent names in television, exploring their minds, asking all the questions to put a detailed portrait of the production and spending a remarkable time on sets during filming made me fall in love with television, in a completely different way. Whilst I was working as a senior reporter, I had the privilege to work in television, taking an active role in the reality show The Biggest Loser (known as Yeni Bir Hayat in Turkey) one of the most-watched reality shows in 25 countries worldwide, including the United Kingdom, the United States and Australiawhich was led by Married at First Sight Australia's mastermind, the Content Director of Endemol Australia, Tara McWilliams'. Working with Ms Williams in a one-on-one setting allowed me to grasp and internalize what lies behind great tv, what sort of multi-layered thinking is involved to make a great show and what makes a production successful.After Ms Williams' consultancy period was completed, I had the privilege to take the torch from her and kept supervising the Turkish adaptation of the show following her lead and oversaw both creative and technical parts of the post-production, storyline, and editing, appointed by the Executive Producer of the production, Mr Gokhan Mutlay of Gift Media. Fun fact about me: I was one of the first contestants of The Big Brother Turkey's first season known as 'Biri Bizi Gozetliyor' (then was based on Yellow Taxi due to copyright issues) back in 2001, which was the first reality show ever broadcasted in Turkey, becoming an overnight hit, making all contestants the most recognized faces during its airtime, lasting six seasons.After completing the show as the third runner-up, although I chose to lead a life away from being on the screen and went back to my studies, then pursued journalism, I consider this unforgettable show which had record-breaking/never-seen-before ratings as the first milestone that planted my interest in tv production. After moving to London in 2019 and having to take a very long coronavirus break from life and work like everyone, I followed my instincts on what gives us purpose in life and decided to try something totally unfamiliar to my profession, joined a non-profit organisation.Having worked in two different non-profit organisations in the past few years and enjoying having an impact on people's lives actively, I consistently found myself at a place that crave working for television. My love, passion and desire for television has become something that I can not contain anymore and I have been pursuing a career since then. Currently I am completing my modules on Screenskills and I am open to all levels of work.
ScreenSkills Training Passport
Melike Karakartal has completed the following modules within the ScreenSkills Training Passport.
Experience
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Freelance columnist, Reporter
• Freelance columnist, reporter. • Analysis of television series in a cultural and sociological aspect, interviews with talents, producers, writers, and directors in the television industry, both globally and locally. • Travelled on occasion, conducted interviews with talents, producers, writers, and directors in the television industry, and attended global press conferences on assignment. • Feature articles and interviews include critically acclaimed series The Marvellous Mrs Maisel, The Crown, This Is Us, Stranger Things, American Crime Story: O.J. Simpson, Jessica Jones, The Defenders and G.L.O.W.
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Journalist, columnist, senior reporter
• Wrote more than 1600 opinion pieces for Hurriyet Kelebek five days a week for almost a decade, covering a broad spectrum of topics including social media trends, social trends, current affairs, international and local news, social shifts caused by politics in the last decade in Turkey, popular culture, feminism, security issues, inequality, diversity, social media, violence against women, business affairs, digital market, arts& culture and many more, blending stories with not only anecdotes from history and philosophy, but also new findings in psychology in a context where the world is always in change with technology. Lifestyle columns include reviews on music, books, arts, cinema, television series, and entertainment news. • Senior reporter for Hurriyet Kelebek, conducted on-location and telephone interviews in movie, television, and entertainment industry, mainly in London and Los Angeles, travelling by assignment. One-on-one interviews include well-respected names such as Stephen King, John Carpenter, M. Night Shyamalan, Diane Kruger, Matthew Weiner, Morgan Freeman, Michael Hirst, Millie Bobby Brown and many more.
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Associate Producer, Writer
• Associate Producer, Writer and Editor of the Turkish adaptation of the Australian reality show The Biggest Loser, Yeni Bir Hayat, one of the most-watched reality shows in 25 countries worldwide, including the United Kingdom, the United States and Australia. • Wrote Turkish adaptation of the series, also supervised both creative and technical parts of the post-production, social media management, storyline process and editing.
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Columnist
Columns about latest arts and design news from the world.
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Features Editor
• Features Editor for Elele Magazine is the first original women’s magazine in Turkey, founded 43 years ago. Covered multiple areas, including women’s rights, social issues in developing countries, social trends; conducted interviews and wrote feature stories on leading female politicians and businesswomen and prominent names in the entertainment industry. • Took a lead within the editorial team, wrote feature articles, tailored different news treatments, produced cover shoots, exercised editorial judgment in story ideas and conducted interviews with key personalities. Feature articles and columns include topics on women's rights in developing countries, social trends, feminism, social media, technology, and fashion and beauty.
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Journalist, reporter
• Worked as a journalist, reporter, and editor for Radikal, one of Turkey's most progressive daily newspapers, which was shut down in 2016. Tailored different news treatments, worked in strict deadlines, and delivered content with the highest editorial standards. Wrote feature stories covering various topics and conducted interviews for the weekend supplement Radikal Cumartesi. Also served as the editor of fashion and design supplements published monthly. Conducted interviews with the leading talents in cinema, television, music, and entertainment industry in Turkey and overseas. Music interviews include legendary groups such as Depeche Mode and Guns'n Roses.
Education and training
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Tackling harassment and bullying at work
ScreenSkills Funded
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ScreenSkills Training Passport
ScreenSkills Funded
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ScreenSkills Training Passport
ScreenSkills Funded
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Addressing unconscious bias: basic awareness in the workplace
ScreenSkills Funded
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Introduction to working in the screen industries
ScreenSkills Funded
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Family tree
ScreenSkills Funded
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Safeguarding for all: basic awareness for the screen industries
ScreenSkills Funded
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Tackling harassment and bullying at work
ScreenSkills Funded
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Job Doctor - Unscripted TV
ScreenSkills Funded
Certificates
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Tackling harassment and bullying at work
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The Mark Milsome Foundation - Film and TV Online Safety Passport Course
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Safeguarding for all: basic awareness for the screen industries
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Tackling harassment and bullying at work
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Addressing unconscious bias: basic awareness in the workplace