“I love helping to tell important stories. I believe that TV Productions offer a way into everyday homes across the nation to educate, entertain, and comfort, enabling the possibility to bring about change.” – Paul Robert Kenney – 2023 Today we would like you to meet Paul Robert Kenney who is one of the first young Film and TV Industry professionals to become a part of the Screen Manchester Connected Skills programme.
Along with #ScreenAllianceNorth and @BFI with the support of #NationalLotteryFunding we are delighted, at Screen Manchester, to be opening doors to future high end production in The North staffed by the best talent on offer.Paul’s is a story of focus and dedication which is already leading to industry placements that can and will help him get to where he wants to be in his future career. His letter of application immediately spoke to our team of a desire to work hard coupled with an understanding of how the TV industry works. Paul has clearly done his homework and is keen to focus on a particular area of the industry: production management. He is also a realist and knows that the journey towards his ambition depends on gaining a more intimate and hands-on experience of the world of production.So – how did it happen for Paul? With a background in theatre production, Paul arrived with an already very useful portfolio of skills in his back pocket. Theatre, although a different genre, involves, at times stressful, day to day dealings with teams of dedicated creative professionals, from on stage to behind the scenes. He had previously worked as an acting coach and recognised that working within a Production Office environment would be a fantastic learning opportunity to kickstart his career in programme making.
Like many others before him a degree in Film and TV didn’t guarantee the much needed conduit to the next stage of the journey: real work ‘on set and on location’. Again our team was impressed by his drive to make things happen and move ahead. Paul’s drive and proven track record of turning his hand to any relevant opportunity that presented itself led to him becoming a trainee with Screen Manchester and Screen Alliance North.
Already, as you will gather from his short video diary, Paul has secured a placement with CBBC hit series, Odd Squad. This is just the start!
We will keep you up to date with Paul’s story and introduce you to more of our trainees in the coming weeks and months!