At the NFTS our students get hands on experience on a huge range of programmes including documentaries. Seven out of 8 of our 2014 sound recordists have been on location making documentaries this month – the 8th student chose to work on a drama.
At the moment we have students all over the world: in Brazil filming in a refuge for abused girls; in Cambodia following a 70 year old British missionary on her first mission; in Thailand filming in a monastery rehabilitating drug addicts; in California’s Mojave desert filming people who live in an old town built by Hollywood to film westerns; in Finland about a town twinned with a Russian town; in Gibraltar exploring the relationship between man and monkeys and in Los Angeles capturing the women who dreamed of becoming actors. Read 2 of the students' reports from Brazil and Cambodia here.
This really is invaluable experience and changes the students far more than class room lessons and exercises ever could. Real life situations, often in difficult environments, where they have to think on their feet and learn about close working relationships with their director and contributors give them an experience that will be invaluable once they start working as sound recordists.
They learn as much about themselves as the equipment and how to record sound. So far we’ve had reports back from students who’ve had technical issues on location, some who have suffered in the extreme heat and others who’ve been emotionally overwhelmed by the people who’s lives they’ve recorded. Often the benefits of having a sound recordist on location are not about the technicalities but about the human experience; interviewees are often drawn out by the person capturing their voices and the directors benefit from the support of having a sounding board. It’s about team-work.
This is why the on the job documentary training at the NFTS is unparalleled at any other film or television school TV school in the world – a fact acknowledged by the BBC. The BBC Academy is supporting the NFTS’ Production Sound course and providing internships on TV programmes as well as a job contract for one of the graduates each year.
APPLY for this highly sought after course by the deadline of June 5th.
Pictured is current NFTS Production Sound student Juan Montoto Ugarte on his shoot in Brazil for the NFTS documentary film The Pink House.
