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Into Film welcomes National Careers Week (4 - 9 March) with a flourish of new resources and videos to support educators in delivering outstanding careers education. Into Film's Penny Hall and Paul Stapley explain more.
Recent government changes have meant that there is renewed interest on teachers and educators ensuring good quality careers information is threaded throughout the school year. Framed by the GATSBY Career Benchmarks there is a wonderful opportunity to enrich students' understanding of the world of work.
At the same time, the UK film industry is currently experiencing a skills shortage in key industry roles that have been identified in the BFI's Future Films Skills Action Plan. Indeed, the BFI has estimated that there will be 30,000 opportunities in the film sector in the next five years.
Although career opportunities in the screen industry can seem hard to come by, or a domain for people with connections, things are changing.
Careers in digital and new technology such as VFX and pre-visualisation, are offering many opportunities. Students from a diverse range of subjects such as Computing and STEAM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Mathematics) are actively welcomed to these roles. Perhaps more importantly, the industry has recognised that to keep up the momentum it has gained, it needs an influx of young people, with the right skill set, to fulfil these roles. Writing for the BFI's Future Film Skills Action Plan, Barbara Broccoli OBE & Amanda Nevill CBE explain:
It is important that we keep the industry vibrant by encouraging a young and diverse workforce that is representative of the society in which we live. We need to provide their training to remain at the cutting edge of the technological developments that are redefining our sector.
Barbara Broccoli (Film Producer) Amanda Nevill (Chief Executive Officer, BFI)
As well as this shift in recognition in the creative and screen skills industries, there has also been a shift in the focus of careers education. In order to support the experience of students in secondary schools on work experience placements, there is a new emphasis on careers education for younger pupils, at upper primary and lower secondary level.
This follows the international study and recent findings of the Drawing the Future project, which explored how although younger pupils are open to sophisticated ideas about who they want to be when they grow up, they often fall back to job roles based on gender stereotypes. Boys often want to be sportsmen and girls want to be teachers.
It is with this context in mind that we have approached the creation of our latest Into Film careers resources, videos and CPD training (Continued Professional Development).
Supporting teachers in secondary schools who have a legal obligation to provide careers guidance, as well as teachers of primary school children who have become the focus of early intervention and introduction to career pathways, Into Film has developed a range of resources that are subject-specific and adaptable for delivery in different contexts: in subject-specific lessons, in careers lessons or even for form/tutor time.
Aimed for use with students aged 7-14, we have created careers resources linked to Maths, PSHE, English/Literacy, and Art and Design. Each resource has a fully developed learning sequence with pupil-friendly printable worksheets. They are also accompanied by a bespoke video that features a professional from the film industry.
This is an approach to careers education that places the curriculum at its heart, with the skills of young people connecting out to skills that industry professionals use in their work. More importantly, each session is engaging and enormous fun, and includes a short film extract as a creative stimulus for pupils.
Having been well-received by teachers across the UK, we have already begun work on forthcoming workshops with industry professionals, linking to PE, Science and Geography.
The Stunts workshop has encouraged the children to think about how they can use their PE skills in the world of work beyond wishing to be a professional footballer! The professional working with the children was very inspiring and charismatic, someone for the children to look up to.
Abi Beacon, Head Teacher, St Monica’s Primary School, Cardiff.
As well as developing the skills our young people need for the future, these resources and videos help children understand the breadth of careers available to them. With hundreds of roles available, the film and creative screen industries provide a fantastic microcosm for the broader world of work.
It's also not too late to book onto our Careers in Film CPD training.
