4 Talent Opportunities
This is now closed and applications for 2010 will open in Spring.
The five of us-myself, Hannah, Gannesh, Tom and Alice, have arrived in the big, colourful, glass world that is Channel 4, ready to begin what should be a fantastic week. We are reunited with Lauren and Hussain, who we met at the interviews and everyone is full of smiles and excited chatter.
Following an introduction to the week, we enter what will become our second home, the screening room. The first film we watch is last year's winner, Margaret Brown's Beyond Myths. Watching the film that the 2008 jury chose, gives us an idea of the standard of film we can expect to see and also gets us thinking about what we all think makes a really good documentary.
We arrived bright and early to start our first full day in the hothouse. Now, I am aware it is only the second day but today really has made its mark. Not only was I completely blown away by the films we watched, we also met MICAHEL PALIN!
As expected, Michael is an absolute delight. I envy his grandchildren who must get to hear the best bedtime stories ever. Forget hungry caterpillars or bears flying off to the moon, Michael Palin really has had some spectacular adventures. We are all a bit nervous about meeting him, but he puts us to ease very quickly and we spend over an hour listening intently to him and asking questions. It is clear that the passion and drive needed to have achieved such a fantastic career, is still very much alive, and we are all very interested to hear about current projects Michael is working on, particularly his latest and most treasured, being a granddad. My dad is a big Michael Palin fan, but then, who isn't? I really enjoyed giving him nuggets of extra information that Michael told us today.
So, on to the films: One of the two films we watched today was extremely different to anything I have seen in documentary, in fact, it had some people asking if it really can be classed as a documentary at all...Either way, I loved its quirkiness and originality.
The second film we watched wowed every one of us. To say we left excited would be an understatement. I genuinely worry for the rest of the films to come, because the one we saw today was fantastic. I imagine it's that first child dilemma. Your first baby sleeps through the night, feeds perfectly, is just so adorable, so amazing you think, why bother have another? I joke, cannot wait for tomorrow.
I seem to spend a large proportion of my days here weeping. Some of these documentaries make you cackle out loud, some make you really angry, but all of them are thought provoking, and some really do get under your skin. This is why I love documentary. It has the power to provoke a real, intense and petrifying reaction. You can't shake your head and say 'it's just a movie, that doesn't happen', because it is happening.
Sometimes I find myself sobbing because I am so overwhelmed by the insight I am being given into such a different life, sometimes I sob because I am forced to revaluate things that are very much part of who I am. I think I found my winner today...
I would like to begin with an extremely important part of my day here at channel 4-THE FOOD. Whoever the chef is here, I would like to kidnap them and lock them in my kitchen where I can await delicious morsels each and every day. Pork belly with bean shoots and mange tout drizzled with a glossy, sticky, ruby red sauce, freshly baked muffins, BARABQUE THURSDAYS!!!! I mean, can you imagine?!!!
Okay, back to the real reason we are here. Today we met Joe Bullman, director of The Seven Sins of England. We discuss difficult topics such as race, class and discrimination, themes that run through many of the documentaries we have watched this week.
I have to say, that meeting Joe was probably the most enjoyably informative talk I have had in quite a while. One thing about Joe is he is very honest. Sometimes, his frankness is surprising. He isn't slushy and sentimental about his documentaries, he is willing to expose the weaknesses of his subject and also the difficult decisions you will have to make when creating a film. Joe is also very fair, and clearly in touch with a fundamental principle, that sometimes there are opinions that the majority will find hard to hear, but that doesn't make them any less valid.
We watched three films today, each extremely different but I enjoyed them all. Two of the films focus on subjects incredibly relevant to our society today in particularly striking ways; I would be very interested to see how audiences would react to them.
Last day! The week has gone incredibly fast. No films today, just lots of heated discussion. We all seem to have our favourites, and so the short listing was far less easy than expected, goodness knows what will happen when we have to pick ONE winner!
This experience has been as fabulous as expected. I have laughed, sobbed (a lot), eaten (a lot), drank my own body weight in tea and coffee, and found myself continually challenged. I knew I loved documentaries, but it seems this week has taught me that documentaries hold a power I feel is difficult to match. You are watching real people, real pain, perseverance, hope and beauty. For the few minutes or hours you are watching a film, you are given access to a world that may be completely different to yours. People expose themselves to you, like peering inside a clock and watching the dark metal bolts and bars forcing the hands around. The lives, thoughts, words and faces of the people you see in these films stay in your mind long after the credits have rolled off the darkened screen.
See you in Sheffield.
Tarnia x
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