Gareth Ellis-Unwin is Head of Film and Animation at ScreenSkills. He started with a Saturday job back in the eighties emptying bins and sweeping floors.
At school he wouldn’t get any careers advice on how to break into the screen industry, so he didn’t have a defined route in. He did a BTEC National diploma in Media and from there he got into Ravensbourne College of Design and Communication in London and got a BTEC Higher National Diploma in Program Operations.
First few jobs after graduating were as a Production office runner and as a Post production office runner, when he started trying working out where he wanted his career to lead him.
He finds his career is divided into three acts, like any good movie. The first, where he started as a Floor runner, then became an 3rdAD, 2ndAD, then 1stAD.
At 25 years old, he had his first experience as a 1stAD in a feature film Trinity. He continued to be a 1st AD for 12 years. He travelled the world, working for small productions as well as very big shows, enjoying being part of the storytelling industry, but soon realising they were his stories.
In 2006 he set up his own production company, Bedlam, with his mate from Ravensbourne College, producing 8 films so far, receiving a BAFTA nomination for his first film and won Spirit and Dinard awards. The second was the King’s Speech, that got him an Oscar for Best Picture in 2011 and still remains the highest grossing British independent film of all time.
The third act of his career is ScreenSkills, helping people find their way into the industry and progressing their careers. He loves hearing the stories of people he spoke to at panels and that ScreenSkills has helped.
“I encourage everyone to look at the website there’s loads of great detail on there, there’s Careers maps, training opportunities, there’s the ScreenSkills community, I encourage you to set up your own profile, feel free to follow me on the platform and if you haven’t found what you were looking for please reach out to us, send us an email or give us a call, we’re here to help you”.