This content was submitted by Pauline Burt
I’m Pauline Burt, the founding CEO of screen development agency, Ffilm Cymru. Having taken an early interest in film and TV at school I would write and adapt scripts for fun and arranged short periods of work experience for my final school year (with a theatrical costume supplier, a TV post-production house and local TV broadcaster). This gave me a chance to learn about the varied roles. I followed up with an English and Film & Media degree at Stirling University, where I won a scholarship to UCLA film school, taking their producers programme. That was a defining moment in understanding the business (finance, legal and market) of film and developing a network of contacts, several of which led to jobs.
Have you benefited from any ScreenSkills support so far?
I’m not sure if ScreenSkills existed when I was starting out. But, I have been impressed by courses they offer to support continued professional development, as well as their Trainee Finder service to help connect creative companies with trainees. I’ve attended their Covid training and have my eye on their virtual production courses, which is likely to be a growth area - it’s important to keep learning in a fast-paced industry, so I’ll be signing up for virtual production courses to keep up!
We also made it standard for productions we find to put their cast and crew through ScreenSkills’ Covid safety training. It’s a straight-forward, practical and measurable way to keep sets safer.
What is the most interesting/remarkable/proud moment or achievement of your career so far?
One of my proudest moments was seeing a cohort of trainees - all of which had come from challenging financial circumstances - growing in confidence and skills through Ffilm Cymru’s Foot in the Door training programme, which ScreenSkills supported with funding. It was a life changing experience for them and for me - opening up opportunities to overcome barriers and gain an incredibly rewarding career. Those individuals worked on titles including Apostle (Netflix), Hidden (S4C) Keeping Faith (S4C), Dream Horse (Warner Bros) and Save the Cinema (Sky).
If you could give advice to someone interested in pursuing your job role or a career in the screen industries more generally, what would you say?
Use every opportunity to find out about the sector and the roles within it from trade publications like Screen International and Broadcast to networking events (BAFTA has student rates), careers resources such as those on the Discover Creative Careers website. Apply to companies for shadowing and work experience (these should be paid at living wage, if not contributing to a formal qualification) and talk to as many people as you can. Opportunities can come from unexpected places!