Abstract
This paper introduces findings from a two-year longitudinal study tracking 91 new entrants in the UK film and TV industry, to detail their working conditions and personal challenges as they attempted to establish themselves. The study showed that unpaid work is, concerningly, very much part of the landscape, with 80% of participants carrying it out at some point. It drops off quickly in favour of unpaid work, but is viewed retrospectively as exploitative; the study found no correlation between individual levels of unpaid work and successful career progression. Key challenges included geographic location, and lack of contacts, as new entrants rode a rollercoaster ride between optimism and frustration. Soft skills proved more beneficial than industry-specific craft skills, in a Bourdieusian ‘hysteresis’ where cultural capital from prior education had to be exchanged for social capital in the professional field. Many lacked confidence and were concerned about being disadvantaged by their identity; although there is some evidence that diverse applicants felt positively advantaged, an unexpected finding that this paper explores in particular depth.
| Original language | English |
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| Publication status | Published - 5 Sept 2024 |
| Event | Media Communications & Cultural Studies Association Annual Conference 2024: Transcending the Permacrisis - Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, United Kingdom Duration: 4 Sept 2024 → 6 Sept 2024 https://www.meccsa.org.uk/events/conference/ |
Conference
| Conference | Media Communications & Cultural Studies Association Annual Conference 2024 |
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| Abbreviated title | MeCCSA 2024 |
| Country/Territory | United Kingdom |
| City | Manchester |
| Period | 4/09/24 → 6/09/24 |
| Other | Although a crisis is commonly understood to be a temporary state and an exception to ‘normality’, we have entered the state of permacrisis: a continuation of challenges. Living in the permacrisis has consequences for individuals and society at large. The absence of any notion of normality, a lack of certainty about the future, and high levels of anxiety might lead to a notion of political and societal instability that has not been experienced for a long time. Stability and predictability are absent in the face of a poly-crisis: many interconnected crises that affect all aspects of human life. This conference seeks to address the issues related to a permanent state of crisis but it also, and perhaps more importantly, aims to discuss possible solutions. |
| Internet address |
Keywords
- careers
- film
- television
- workers
- media
- freelance
- diversity
- inequality