Matt has been fortunate enough to get regular employment in the film and TV world since graduating from university in 2014. He has since worked his way through the production ranks with ScreenSkills support the whole journey - from a degree endorsed by ScreenSkills Select, to a place on Trainee Finder programme and then bursaries.
After finishing his degree at John Moores University in Liverpool, Matt moved back to his homeland of Northern Ireland at an opportune time when Game Of Thrones was calling for crew. “I decided to go for it and amazingly was brought on as a production trainee,” says Matt. “It was a steep learning curve and really busy because of the scale of it, but an incredible experience.”
He helped with loads of things around the production office, from making teas and general admin to transporting scripts to and from the sets. “People would ask me what my role on the show involved, but this was such a hard question to answer because I got the opportunity to do and see so many things’.”
Keen to utilise the skills and experience attained on the show and take the step up to production assistant, Matt reached out to ScreenSkills to undertake the Trainee Finder programme, which places talented individuals on films or high-end TV and children’s shows.
“ScreenSkills put me on the floor of a BFI film called Fanny Lye Deliver’d as production assistant/trainee AD, which turned out to be a live farm in the middle of Shropshire,” he laughs. “But it was a great experience. I got to see how everything works, especially on location, what everyone does working under the production manager.”
One of the biggest lessons for Matt was reading the call sheets, which helped him know everything going on in the day. “It would say things like ‘Matt is picking up this person at 3pm’. It required a lot of independence, which has been vital working on productions since.”
A few more production assistant roles on projects followed, before he took it up a notch as a production secretary on Mother’s Day for the BBC, where he was more office based, handling things like updating and issuing all the production paperwork, such as unit lists, crew contracts and databases, as well as travel and accommodation.
He then moved up to production coordinator – an important step towards his goal of producing. Initially he was an assistant production coordinator on shows like Marcella and the second series of Derry Girls where he also got the chance to handle script changes.
As a production coordinator on shows like Zone 414 and later Nova Jones for CBBC, he then took an active role in script management and amendments, which meant using the industry standard script software First Draft a lot. “The producers and directors would discuss any changes and send them over to me to input into a Final Draft master file, tracking all the revisions by colour,” explains Matt.
The software is vital to his work as a freelancer, but quite expensive to buy. Previously he used a licence from a producer, but that became unavailable, so again Matt decided to reach out to ScreenSkills, this time for a bursary. He was hugely relieved and appreciative when they offered him 80% of the total cost to buy the software.
“The process for applying was incredibly quick and smooth. I didn’t need to jump through hoops and ScreenSkills were really efficient and helpful,” says Matt. “They knew how important the software was to me and how it would help advance my career, which was great.”
In fact, he was so impressed that not long after he returned to ScreenSkills again for a bursary to do a John Yorke Story for Script Development course at the end of last year, and once more received 80% of the costs.
Since then, he has taken on a junior production manager role on the CBBC/Saltbeef TV kids teenage drama show Almost Never. “I’m getting to work more with the crew in the studio, ordering equipment for various departments, sorting out catering, all the practical elements, but also utilising my script experience where necessary,” says Matt. “The only thing is that handling all these things is a bit harder because of Covid and I have to be more budget aware.”
Fortunately, he’s done ScreenSkills’ Coronavirus basicawareness on production training and has the Production Safety Passport, as well as other Covid courses, so is fully versed in what’s required.
With ScreenSkills’ backing, support and training, Matt is confident he is on the right path towards becoming producer.
ScreenSkills bursaries are supported by BFI-awarded National Lottery funds, by industry contributions to the Film, High-end TV, Children’s TV and Animation Skills Funds and through money from the Television Skills Fund targeted at improving diversity and inclusivity. If you enjoyed reading about Matt's experience, why not share your story with us and showcase your skills and experience.