Channel 4 Production Training Scheme Begins! – with Rasheed Bello
I joined Bad Wolf, the production company behind hits including His Dark Materials, Industry and I Hate Suzie, as a Trainee Script and Development Editor last month as part of Channel 4’s Production Training Scheme. Before I started this role I worked for Bristol City Council and prior to that I was the Communications and Engagement Intern in the Mayor’s Office for three months. I heard about the Channel 4 scheme from joining Babbasa, a social enterprise in Bristol that helps young people to achieve their career aspirations.
I have always wanted to be involved in the storytelling process, particularly for television. Babbasa and my office roles have helped me to develop the skills and the confidence I needed to apply for a role in my dream sector.
My journey since starting the role has been exciting. I have been able to sit in writers’ rooms and take minutes and get an insight into how the relationship between writers, script editors, development execs, script execs and producers works. I have also been able to attend development sessions and Storylining sessions and take notes for these. It’s such a privilege to be exposed to different writers who have varying styles and as a result see drama and storytelling approached in a different way.
I am learning what it is like to work in the office of a production company -- it is lively and fast paced. The show we are working on is going into production soon so I am excited to be able to see what that is like in comparison to development. Bad Wolf have their own philanthropic organisation called Screen Alliance Wales to develop and nurture talent for television. I met the trainees working across various Bad Wolf productions.
Channel 4 and thinkBIGGER! have given us various training sessions and virtual meetings with different professionals in the industry. A couple of my highlights have been meeting Gwawr Lloyd a Channel 4 Drama Commissioning Editor. It was lovely to hear about her journey, and to have an honest discussion about what inspires her in terms of Drama. I also enjoyed talking to her about how she navigated being a script editor.
Diversity and inclusion is essential for the success of any industry and should be at the root of everything we do. It was inspiring to meet Babita Bahal, the head of creative diversity at Channel 4 and to learn about her journey into television. The work Channel 4, thinkBIGGER! and Bad Wolf are doing to open doors for everyone is inspiring.
