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Yeah but presuming some DP,s go off to the big studio in the sky every now and then.. and people like Stuart are now hanging around the pool at their BelAir cribs.. and even low life as myself head for greener pastures.. there must be some openings for the job of AC .. as they take the place of the departed DP,s .. or the OP could start buying Country Life and scope out a rich wife/girlfriend and go that route.. its been done before.. and one would presume a more pleasant road to tread..

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Sure, there are a few. Half a dozen, I would suspect, on a good year.

 

How many proper camera crews are there honestly working in the UK? A few dozen at any one time?

 

We're talking about a few hundred people, total, in the entire country. Even if I'm wrong, even if it's five times these numbers, It's minuscule.

 

On the subject of the microbudget world, this is why I end up being unpopular at union camera branch meetings, because they'll spend ninety minutes discussing overtime payments for those couple of hundred, and no time at all on the plight of the thousands of people doing all this Shooting People stuff.

 

I have repeatedly tried to get some of my acquaintances from that part of the world to go to union meetings. They won't, on the basis that they think it's a waste of time because the union doesn't care about them, and they're right, but if the union started paying any heed at all to that part of the market it might be possible to do something about the situation.

 

P

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I suspect the union won't pay attention unless they do turn up. You have to have a campaign for these things, turning up at one or two meetings won;t do anything. You have to apply sustained pressure to achieve anything and it has to be relentless.

 

If the London divisions won't do anything, approach the regional division as well, they will have the same problems.

Edited by Brian Drysdale
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I've listed some facts about employment prospects. Stuart, you managed to be one of the half-dozen or so people per year who actually enter the film industry proper in the UK. Good for you; you are either incredibly well-connected or incredibly lucky, probably both (and of course there's nothing wrong with being lucky, so long as you don't sell it as anything else.)

 

I've never considered myself to be well-connected. Hard work, dedication and not a little luck has got me wherever I am, not nepotism.

 

I just disagree with your attitude that my experience doesn't count because I'm in a minority, whereas your experience holds true for an entire industry. Everyone knows that it's highly competitive. Everyone knows that the odds are against you. Instead of saying that everyone will fail so there's no point in even trying, how about offering constructive advice?

 

I know you'll say that you are offering constructive advice, but given that many young people are going to try to enter the industry anyway, we should try to equip them for success rather than assure them of failure.

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