Aspiring make-up artist Savannah Sullivan’s screen career journey received a boost when she got accepted onto ScreenSkills’ Film Trainee Finder programme.
The year-long programme is a new entrant initiative that offers paid production placements to those looking to join the screen industry, providing on-the-job experience alongside training courses and industry masterclasses.
Having grown up between the Caribbean and Somerset, Savannah had been studying at Bath Academy of Media Make-up when she first heard about the programme and how it had helped others in her position at the academy.
Having admittedly been “at a loss” about how to get into the industry, her interest in make-up had seen Savannah apply for various counter job, admitting “It wasn’t what I wanted to do. This (film) is definitely where my heart lies and where I want to continue.”
Being accepted onto the programme soon offered Savanah the chance to realise a long held dream. She said: “Since I was 10 I wanted to get into the film and screen industry so it’s something I had been working towards since I turned 18 and even slightly before!”
She was placed on three productions through Trainee Finder, working as a hair and make-up trainee, and relished the experience of having a busy schedule. “I was fortunate to work on a BBC feature, the Netflix feature Persuasion and finally a Disney/Marvel Feature. I had never had a contract before so these productions were my first contracts and they were a dream come true.”
It’s an experience that Savannah feels has put her career aspirations firmly on track, “I definitely feel that it helped develop my career and has shaved years off of me grinding on my own. I feel set up with enough knowledge to keep pursuing my career as well as meeting people who I can’t imagine living and working without. Each production was unique in their own way and helped me to learn incredible amounts and have set me up for an ongoing career.”
Would she recommend applying for Trainee Finder to others? “Absolutely, with both hands. It’s the best decision I’ve made to date.”