The Edinburgh TV Festival is one of the key dates in the UK television calendar. A meeting point of industry professionals, ideas and decision makers. The place to be. However, for many people (including myself) the TV Festival has always felt out of reach. Tickets for the 4 days of seminars, masterclasses and networking events are expensive plus the cost of travel, food and accommodation quickly adds up.
As a freelancer, budgeting is always an issue. An unpredictable income stream means big outlays are always risky and Edinburgh, for me, always seemed like too big an expense to justify. That is where Spark Media came in to help. They very kindly offered a bursary to help with the costs of travelling to and attending the festival.
I’ve worked off and on for Spark Media for the last 3 years, working on Chateau DIY as both a Producer/Director Edit Producer, they actually gave me my first Edit Producing credit. I am very grateful for offers of work and the opportunity to improve my skills on location and in the edit.
So, in August, with my train tickets in my pocket and my bag packed I headed north. The train ride from the north-east of England to Edinburgh is beautiful. Riding up the east coast you skirt the stunning coastline before heading inland and into the city of Edinburgh. With the Fringe festival going on at the same time the whole city is busy, with street performers and flyerers trying to sell their shows the whole place felt alive.
At the TV Festival itself, I found it bustling. Filled with people from the BBC, Studio Lambert, Pact, NBC, and of companies and organisations of all shapes and sizes. I attended some of the talks about unscripted TV that discussed the range of challenges that everyone involved in the industry will be affected by from the dilution of audiences to shrinking advertising spend. Listening to the difference of opinion that the top people from Pact, Channel 4 and other channels have was amusing and informative and it was great to hear about the optimism for the future of TV.
I also went to several of the organised networking sessions. I chatted with other freelancers, some I already knew and some who I crossed paths with. It was interesting to chat to people at different stages of their careers, all with their own stories about how they got into TV and what they wanted to get out of the festival.
The most useful part of the festival, for me, was to chat one-on-one time I spent with some of the top execs and decision makers at different production companies. I got some great advice and tips that I have already acted on to put myself forward and in the minds of people when they are crewing up and deciding who to hire.
I made sure to attend the MacTaggart Lecture. It is one of the show pieces of the TV calendar, and it was great to see it first-hand.
I really enjoyed my time in Edinburgh and the chance to experience a side of the TV industry I had never seen before.