Read this in Welsh
What makes the screen industry unique in Wales?
When I started in this role, I was won over immediately by how welcoming and supportive our network is in Wales, how passionate our industry is about developing people and how proud they are of the extraordinary talent Wales has to offer. All this coupled with amazing companies, productions, studios and locations - I feel really lucky to get the chance to support our industry and work with lovely people in Wales every day.
What can freelancers based in Wales look forward to from ScreenSkills in 2024?
Where do I begin? We are so excited about the training and programmes we are designing and delivering thanks to the support of our brilliant Wales working groups. These are teams of senior industry professionals working in Wales who steer and shape how we invest all our funding each year. This means we can be really sure we are addressing skills gaps and making a difference. This year we have invested in developing Wales-based Heads of Department, intimacy coordinators, and a brand new hair and make-up transfer programme for professionals experienced in varying skin tones and hair textures who want to work in TV and film, plus crew in location departments, accounts, editing and much more. We are focusing on developing crew at every level so if you are in Wales you can look forward to more brilliant programmes and opportunities, plus hearing me shout all about it!
What do you think is a key area of focus for industry in Wales in 2024 and what is ScreenSkills doing to address this?
Based on the industry research that has been done, we’ll continue to be focusing on areas where skills shortages have been identified and ensuring that we focus on sustainability in all of the strands we deliver, supporting people at every stage of their careers.