11th October 2024
Meet Destiny Williams – Fresh Cuts PD
As part of the acclaimed Fresh Cuts Strand for Black History Month 2024, Destiny Williams makes their directorial debut for ITV, with their profile series Dogs of Grime. Please tell us a little bit about yourself? Growing up performing really opened my eyes to the lack of opportunities for people from diverse backgrounds. That inspired me to pivot and really focus on bringing the stories to screen that often get left behind. I have been on all sides of the camera, as a YouTuber, public speaker, presenter, CastingProducer, writer and I just love all of it. I now run a platform called OLAM Productions (Of Lipstick and Melanin) which spotlights Black and Brown creatives over 25 years old and produces content which centres Black British experience. I’m also a freelance welfare officer in queer venues and that brings me immense joy. My side quest next year is to learn to ride a motorbike, so watch this space! Did you always want to work in TV? How did you land your first role? This is all I have ever wanted to do. I wish I had a fancy story, but I graduated during the first lockdown with a Mandarin and Politics degree (after living in China for a year) and saw an ad on Instagram for a 6-week online Content Production course. The programme sent us a job vacancy at a Production Company for a development researcher role, which I applied for and three years later here we are! Why did you apply for Fresh Cuts this year? I’ve been working primarily in casting recently (which I love), but I’ve missed getting those creative juices flowing, so this year I set myself a goal to Produce and Direct a project. I have wanted to be a filmmaker for as long as I can remember and finding funding opportunities for your own ideas can be difficult as it's hard to know where to go. I never expected I would have been fortunate enough to actually achieve it. I am so extremely grateful for the Fresh Cuts opportunity. What is your series about? My series is all about the relationship between rappers and their dogs. Each episode an artist and their pup sit down for a fun interview where they delve into their thoughts on Grime and UK Rap culture before doing a silly challenge with their dog. What has been your biggest challenge producing this series? Being in charge of a team was definitely a big adjustment. Stepping up from an AP to Producer and being the person people direct their questions to was a new experience. On a personal level, my own puppy Lillie-Savage passed away unexpectedly on the job I was on before Dogs of Grime, so naturally making this show made me miss her a lot but I got to work with the cutest dogs ever, so that really helped. What was your favourite part about making it? Directing the shoot is definitely up there because it’s all I’ve ever wanted to do, and sitting behind the monitor on set and shooting the show for the first time is a feeling I will never forget. I would also say, I really enjoyed the pre-production process. There were many moving parts like coming up with interview questions, casting, choosing the challenges. Having the ability to just get really creative and make such a fun show has been an amazing experience. What would your advice be for someone stepping up into a PD role? Self- doubt is a very real and natural thing, so my advice would be to trust your instincts. I would also remind people that it is okay to ask for help. When you step up it's easy to feel like you have to know everything but that’s not true. We have been so lucky this year to have such amazing people leading our series - shout out to Natalie Rose, Fabian Bohan-Taghian and Sarah Bishop-Fenn for being so brilliant! So, I would say ask questions, be bold and just go for it! And lastly, what are your favourite TV shows of all time and what are you watching at the moment? I am a serial re-watcher. Charmed and Prison Break are my ultimate comfort shows of all time, despite one being about a trio of sister witches fighting demons and the other being set in a crazy prison environment. There are so many great shows out now, but I have recently finished watching Ludwig and I am in awe, David Mitchell is a genius! You can watch Dog of Grime on ITVX and the ITV YouTube channel from the 10th October.
read more1st October 2024
Meet Moses Ssebandeke – Fresh Cuts PD
As part of the acclaimed Fresh Cuts Strand for Black History Month 2024, Moses Ssebandeke makes his directorial debut for ITV, with his profile series Alter Egos. Please tell us a little bit about yourself? I started my filmmaking journey in 2007 at 15, and my self-written, self-directed comedy sketches have garnered over 100 million views online. After graduating from the National Film and Television School, I've been involved in various comedy projects, short films, and TV dramas. Most of these have screened on the BBC. My work has been recognised with awards and screenings at prestigious festivals for example BFI short film of the month. In recent years, I've focused on feature films, writing and directing "Drapetomania" and "Double Booked." I'm also a co-founder of the Lionstooth film collective, where we produce innovative shorts and content. Did you always want to work in TV? How did you land your first role? For as long as I can remember! One of my first roles was back in 2015 directing an interactive documentary starring Stormzy for a platform called “BBC taster”. The technology we used on the documentary went on to be used by Netflix for their first interactive film Bandersnatch which is part of the Black Mirror Series. Why did you apply for Fresh Cuts this year? I had an idea that centred on my friend called Paloma Aka Ronnie Knocks. Where we made a short doc about her wrestling journey. I had pitched the idea at various different places for 2 years and nearly gave up, but thought fresh cuts would be the perfect place for it, and by some miracle I got on the scheme. What is your series about? My series is called Alter Egos, where we follow ordinary individuals who have extraordinary alter egos! What has been your biggest challenge producing this series? I would say the casting process. I did come on the production with one contributor already (Paloma) but finding two more in a short space of time proved hard, but I had a great team that was able to help me find the perfect contributors! What was your favourite part about making it? I would say going around the country with the team filming the contributors. I was able to meet different people and get immersed into worlds that I wouldn’t have known existed. What would your advice be for someone stepping up into a PD role? I would say the word “EARLY” is your best friend. Everything from Getting in “early” and working on your edit “early” You might think you have all the time in the world, but that isn’t usually the case. So if there is anything you can do right away, do not wait and do it! And lastly, what are your favourite TV shows of all time and what are you watching at the moment? I would say probably, The Simpsons or The Boondocks. I can’t get my head around how they are able to pack so much story and jokes in what is basically 22 minutes. I’m really liking “Made in Korea” at the moment, I’m not a huge K-pop fan, but I’m invested! You can watch Alter Egos on ITVX from the 1st October.
read more1st October 2024
Meet Sammy Ofori-Attah – Fresh Cuts PD
Sammy Ofori-Attah makes his directorial debut for ITV, with his profile series Black Magic With Trixy as part of the newly formed Fresh Cuts strand for Black History Month 2024. Please tell us a little bit about yourself? I’m a Ghanaian-British director from Yorkshire and am now based in London. Did you always want to work in TV? How did you land your first role? Yes! Ever since I was little, I’ve been interested in storytelling but in particular, through the screen. My favourite films and TV shows let me discover new things and different aspects of society but in an entertaining way. After completing some work experience with BBC Studios Drama and Comedy departments, I asked BBC Music if they had any roles going at Glastonbury. There was a runner role, which I interviewed for and I’ve been grateful for ever since, as it fulfilled a dream of working at Glastonbury. Why did you apply for Fresh Cuts this year? I had just graduated from the Directing and Producing TV Entertainment MA at NFTS, so I was looking for related roles in unscripted TV, so Fresh Cuts looked perfect! And having seen previous episodes, I had an idea of how good the shows we make could be. What is your series about? "Black Magic with Trixy" explores the contributions of London's Black community to the city's history and heritage through the eyes of magician Trixy, who will perform culturally relevant magic tricks at significant locations during Black History Month. What has been your biggest challenge producing this series? Time. I think every PD says they want more time at every stage of production but prepping six episodes, securing locations and contributors, whilst working on the format, was a lot for a relatively inexperienced PD as myself. But I was well supported and had a brilliant team to work with. What was your favourite part about making it? Following the above, it was the team. I learned so much from my Series Producer (Fabian Bohan-Taghian) and Exec. Producer (Natalie Rose) at all stages of production and a lot from the post-production team. I spent most of my time though with my crew of AP, Jake Whittle and researcher, Charlie Cane, who were a pleasure to work with and learn from, so hope to collaborate with them in future. What would your advice be for someone stepping up into a PD role? Stay healthy throughout your production - the usual things: eat well, sleep well, exercise, look after your mental health etc. Because you’ll be at your best when these things are at theirs. And lastly, what are your favourite TV shows of all time and what are you watching at the moment? So many - I could write an essay! Actually, I once wrote an essay on Love Island. So that and Married At First Sight are two. You could learn everything you need to know about modern relationship and dating dynamics after watching a series of each! I grew up on shows like Brasseye, Spooks, Top of the Pops, TFI Friday and Extras. Then some niche stuff like the BBC’s docudrama, ‘Smallpox 2002’ and related series, ‘If…’. They were so experimental and frighteningly real. My absolute favourite though would be The Wire. To map out a five series arc from the beginning and actually execute it through to the end is incredible. And I’m currently watching Slow Horses, Kin and Olivia Attwood’s Bad Boyfriends, which is filling a hole left by the brilliant Tool Academy all those years ago!
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