Coffees, Car Crashes, and Unexpected Kindness: A Short Round up of my First Paid TV Role

It's come to a bitter sweet end but my first job in TV is now behind me. I have learned so much in the past 7 weeks and I couldn't have been welcomed into a more pleasant crew. I am honestly so grateful for the experience I had and am hopeful that there is a future in this industry for me. Here is a short round up of all the highs and lows of the production and how in just a few weeks my life was thrown around and changed entirely for both the better and the worst.

I started working on Worzel Gummidge S2 in the beginning of July, contracted to run through to late August. I was entirely new to the world of broadcast television, very nervous to meet everyone, and eager to please. My job was simply to man to tea table and provide the crew with refreshments and snacks all day in a Covid-safe manner to reduce the high touch point risk of the urn and sachets. It took me a couple of days to get into the swing of things but before long I had a system that worked for me, I knew what time I needed to get snacks delivered to set, and I was starting to remember everyone's drink preferences. For the first few weeks I was more than happy on the tea table, I was able to speak to all members of the crew and get to know them and their roles a little better but was missing out on actually seeing them in action. I lived for the gossip and the stories everyone would tell me and was just grateful to be there and get myself known by a few people. After a while and a few unit moves I was a little frustrated that all I could do was make teas and coffees as I wanted to show everyone I could do more but remained grateful I was in a prime position for getting to know people, networking, and making friends.

After speaking with Production about my willingness to step up into other roles and learn on the job, it was agreed that I could LFT daily which would give me the freedom to help out a little more providing there was someone able to cover or close the tea table. The freedom of being able to step away from the tea table was bliss! I thank our onsite Medic for covering for me often as she would usually sit with me in between her calls. I helped out mainly in the AD department as a Floor Runner moving equipment, locking off cars and pedestrians from entering shot, attending to cast needs and even spent a day covering for the Covid Cast Runner ensuring cast members had access to and were appropriately using PPE. I was enjoying myself much more, loved being at all the different locations and seeing how the production would adapt to different obstacles in each. Night shoots were interesting to say the least, much more coffee was consumed and driving home was an experience I did not anticipate to be so scary so maybe in the future I'll take up a hotel room or two instead of braving the roads at 4am. I felt much more useful, I was much happier, and was definitely gaining some confidence in myself and with the people around me when everything changed again...

5 weeks in, on my way to work, I was involved in a 5-car road traffic collision which completely wrote off my car and left me at home with mild injuries and no hope of finishing the production. It was completely inconceivable to me how something that was not my fault could throw my life around so dramatically. I was left without a car, no means of travel as the unit bases were all at least 45 minutes away from where I live, and I didn't know how long my injuries were going to affect me. I received a lot of support from the production and was called often by the 2nd, the Line Producer, and the Medic checking that I was physically and mentally okay after what had happened. With not knowing when or if I could return, inevitably, my role was filled by someone else and I thought that was the end, that my first job was over and I never even got to say goodbye.

10 days of work missed and once I physically felt able to work again, I reached out to our Line Producer who really pulled through for me. During my absence half of the production team had to work from home and isolate due to a Covid risk and therefore the production car was just sitting pretty at the offices. She offered to insure me on the production car which not only gave me back the hope I had lost about re-joining the production, but also the opportunity see everyone again, let them know I was okay, and finish what I had started. I did not return to the tea table but was upgraded to Production Assistant and helped out in the office over the last few days tying up loose ends and preparing for the final wrap and pack down. In the office I scanned and filed paperwork, dealt with two productions worth of confidential waste and went on a lot of shopping and postal runs. I cut, folded and prepared 100+ thank you cards and 100 gift bags before the final wrap. I really enjoyed my time getting to know the people behind the scenes who make everything work as up until this point I was based on set. The world in the office was a million miles away from the calm of the tea table but I was thriving in the new environment with the new responsibilities I was given.

I made great connections in the office who now are more than happy to recommend me to other productions and help advance my career. I was initially worried that the expectations I had of working in TV would be let down by the actual experience (classic anxiety!) but if anything the genuine kindness of the cast and crew at all levels exceeded my expectations and reinforced my love for filmmaking. Oh, and I finally made it to the corn fields! I couldn't have worked on Worzel and never make it to 10 Acre Fields, could I? My only regret is that I should have taken more photographs for myself to keep of the things I was doing, the locations we were in, and the people I was working with (within the legal bounds of what you can photograph on set, obviously) but otherwise I have so many memories to take away and seriously hope I get to cross paths with these people again in the future.

SD x