Recently in industry development Category
Dr Callan noted that as the workplace and industry needs are changing so are our training organizations and a new set of capabilities are required from organizations, their managers and leaders.
Change in the workplace is being driven by globalisation, increasing competition, information technology, communication, the demographics of an aging workforce and increasing connectivity. While in the VET world change is being driven by both the agendas of state and federal governments, needs for rapid skill uptake and pressure for effective Recognized Prior Learning (RPL) processes.
Dr Callan highlighted that nationally in Australia only 4% of qualifications are issued through RPL processes, for a fundamental part of our vocational training structure - this is an incredibly low number. At FTI we would predict that the level of RPL in the screen sector is even lower - and the action learning we have been undertaking through the 'Reframing the Future'; project this year certainly backs that up.
The training professional today also has increasing demands that require them to deliver to a diverse range of customers, requiring Training Organizations to develop strategies that allow them to provide services in full time and part-time delivery, through flexible options, provide services during the day, at night and on weekends and often this change is coming too fast for the staff within these organizations.
Dr Callan highlights that many successful organisations now have a 'Shamrock' structure - three leaves incorporating a central core of staff, independent casual contractors and a mix of temporary hires for specific projects. An incredibly flexible workforce.
To be success a training organisation needs to have an effective balance of operating environment, strategy, workplace culture and effective leadership.
As Dr Callan noted "It's no longer 'know how' that is essential, rather the 'know why' and 'know whom' is more important and developing the essential internal and external networks of communication between the training world and the wider industry.
Dr Callan proposed that an effective VET Manager would need the following skills;
The ability to develop people's skills and abilities
The Ability to manage people's performance
The ability to manage an organisations financial performance
The ability to undertake strategic management
The ability to implement and manage change
When it came to change management it didn't matter which model of change management you followed or which school of thought you subscribed to or how many stages were in your change management model. Whatever works is what is required. Every situation is going to be different and a wide variety of approaches to change management will be needed. So it didn't matter if you specialized in collaborative or coercive change - whichever is appropriate for the situation is probably the best one to go with.
The clear thing is that VET Managers should be planning for chaos and uncertainty. The unexpected and unpredictable will be the norm.
It is essential for training organisations to remember to effectively develop their own staff, while facing the growing challenge of addressing the skills shortages of the outside world.
There are common barriers to effective development in this area as well. We are too busy, their financial barriers, Human Resources in training organisations are often described as outdated, organisations lack strategic planning, effective induction processes, retention of existing staff and fail to undertake succession planning and face a growing casualization of their staff and the ever aging VET workforce.
Read more about Dr Callan's research here.
To illustrate her point Carol payed a video that highlighted how technological uptake is getting faster and faster, the film showed the amount of time it took different pieces of technology to gain 50 million users. Beginning with the telephone, which took 74 years from it's release to finding it's 50 millionth customer. For radio the uptake was a much shorter 38 years, computers took only 18 years and television was just 13 years. The internet took just 4 years to reach 50 million people and the most recent technological uptake is the I-Pod, which has taken just 1 year to find 50 million users.
Australia's current level of training is 24th on the list OECD countries, well below the average and there is no denying that in today's booming economy their is a significant skills shortage.
This morning in his keynote presentation Jim Davidson, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Education, Science and Training highlighted that if Australia maintains it's current level of vocational training success - within around 15 years we will be 200,000 workers short of industry requirements - a massive short fall. To meet the requirements of our growing economy and workforce the number of successful graduates each and every year must increase by 1.2%.
Side by side these two statement present a challenging scenario. A huge undertaking to train many many more workers, with a growing level of success - in a n environment that is rapidly changing and developing. In fact the pace of change is becoming so fast that often training programs now require to be rewritten while they are in progress to keep up with industry developments.
Effective Trainers don't just have to be industry experts and learning experts, they also need to be rapid change experts, learning new techniques, new technology and new ways of working almost instantaneously. Forever chasing a moving target.
Carol Webb noted that organizations can no longer be working to static 5 year plans - because no-one is able to accurate predict where we will be in 5 years and what the priorities will be. Effective workers and organizations need to be in a state of constant flux, continually changing, developing strategy and responses and the run, and making rapid but effective implementations.
This is certainly a theme that we have also seen this year through our participation in 'Reframing the Future' a national program that aims to assist vocational education professionals with the essential skills required to operate effectively. The training team from FTI has been focusing on change management and strategic planning abilities and the theme of constant change, and constant adaptation has shone through.
The terms 'education evolution' has been used to mock the calls for an 'education revolution'. A clever play on words - certainly we need to maintain the things that work in our national training system and not throw the baby out with the bathwater but the evolution we need though is a fast paced one featuring rapid adaptation and a desperate need to jettison the outdated points of view, redundant skills, or bureaucratic requirements which no longer serve a useful purpose.
The premiere of the film was at the Luna Cinema in Leederville and was introduced by the teams mentor Melanie Rodriga who brought a moment of Australian culture to the evening by reciting some adapted Banjo Patterson. Prior to the sceening Director Patrick Herford thanked the crew members who had all worked on a volunteer basis to bring this ambitious film to the screen.
Seen at the event were filmmaker Jimmy the Exploder, Sound Specialist Richard Mahony, Clint Lawrence who was taking a moments rest from his unit duties on the hectic shoot of 'Two Fists, One Heart', local Director Zak Hilditch, Author and outspoken bi-sexuality advocate Alan Kane - twin brother of FTI's Phil Jeng Kane who was in town for the night (my goodness talk about identical twins!), Documentary makers Alison James and bRitt Arthur, Projectionist Nick McRobbie, the Screen Academy's John Rapsey, Editor Heny Inglis, the multi-talented Noah Norton, Liz Sederisd and Liz Kearney, animator Pierce Davision, composer Alex Ringis and hundreds more.
Read the interview with Direcotr Patrick Herford and Producer Jess Woodland.
I asked the students, how many of them had a video camera at home, it was about 80 percent.
I asked how many had a mobile phone with a camera, it was nearly everyone.
I asked who had made a film already, again it was around 80 percent.
I asked who had posted a film to a share site such as YouTube, 60 percent responded in the affirmantive.
When you stop and think about it the average age of the emrging filmmaker is dropping fast. No longer is the up and comming new filmmaker a 25 year old or even a 20 year old, at FTI we see talented 15 year olds trying to get a look in. Now if you think about funding schemes, training opportunities, production initinatives and entery level industry jobs, how many of these doors are available to the youngest of filmmmakers?
As students progress through primary and secondary education now they are regularly exposed to vision editing, using video cameras, and flash animation. Each year the level of expertise held by an average Year 12 student will continue to rise. So should we make all the restrictions on funding programs, courses and the rest be removed? There is a certain logic that says 'Yes'.
However, there is another more obvious challenge. Do 15 year old filmmakers have anything to say? This is debatable, as many 20 year old filmmakers often make a plethora of angst filled films about tortured souls. Maybe the real question is how do you challenge a young filmmaker to think beyond the norm and to present ideas and thoughts in a more creative context.
This is going to be one of the big challenges for screen educators and support agencies in coming years, finding the methodology and tools to work with the youngest of filmmakers and bring out the best in them.
One great opportunities for young filmmakers that is specifically for them and already in existence is the 'Document Your World' competition at the Australian International Documentary Conference. Teams of young filmmakers get a chance to pitch their ideas to ABC's JTV, in front of an audience of experienced filmmakers and a panel of esteemed filmmakers. I got the chance to see this in action at AIDC 2007 and the ideas put forward by the different teams were great. It's brilliant to see that it will be back for AIDC 2008 which is being held right here in Perth.
For more information on this exciting initiative, visit www.aidc.com.au/marketplace/documentyourworld or the Hero Project at www.directingthehero.com
Now there is a similar example from the other end of the spectrum, Radiohead, arguably the biggest band in the world have just finished their new album a few days ago, they don't currently have a record contract. Instead they are offering it for download off a website, How much does it cost? As much as you think it's worth. It's up to you how much you choose to pay.
Radiohead certainly aren't the first musicians to utilise this methodology, last year Imogen Heap released her album through a similar strategy. The important thing here is that a huge band is trying out this methodology - the ultimate test of whether it works or not.
When Director Stephen Soderberg experimented with different release and distribution models with his film 'Bubble' many people were very quick to dismiss it as a failure. 'Bubble' was available online, on DVD and in cinemas on the same day. The problem was that 'Bubble' wasn't a big enough film to really test the model - it's a short art house film with no famous people, in fact it uses all non-actors.
The real test for this model is when a BIG film is released in cinemas and DVD's at the same time. One of those Brad Pitt or Superhero films.
This only works for Radiohead because they have an established fan base, they are one of those bands who have fans who will buy their album and then listen to it. This can work for film too though, brands can be built around actors, characters and some genres.
What films would you buy online? and how much would you be willing to pay? Feel free to add you thoughts in the comments section.
The role of the LMC is to provide feedback on the proposed program, recommned local people who may be able to present and provide expertise on the local region so the conferecne can be as successful as possible.
I went to this conference in Adeliade this year and it was brilliant! I hope the Perth conference can match the impressive standard that was set. To read about some of things at this years conference click on the links below.
The New Toolbox for Cross Platform Production
Three Things Every Cross Platform Production Needs
The Great Debate
The Day of the Figurines
It's going to be about the repeats
The Change that has come and the change that has got to come
Bus Networking
Our first meeting was really interesting and the AIDC team are lining up some great international guests, don't ask me who - I'm sworn to secrecy.
The guiding theme of the conference is going to be 'Storytelling', noting that Western Australia is home to some of the oldest storytelling traditions in the world. Many of the sessions will focus on how ever person in the production process contribute to the creation of the story.
The secondary themes are 'The Revolution will be Digitized' - which will look into different business models and how idepedent factual producers can full exploit their rights revenues. We are now in the second phase of the digital media revolution, it's no longer about predictions and futurists this is the time of the entrepenuer.
The third theme is 'Mash Up' - a term that originates out of 80's hip hop music, what is a mash up in the documentary world?
and finally 'United Nations' a look into the world of co-productions, international markets and the nuts and bolts of putting one together.
There will also be a AIDC Fringe conference right here at FTI on Saturday February 22nd, especially focussing on the early career part of the industry.
So, start saving your pennies for the registration, it is well worth the investment. If there is something you would like to get out of this conference or the Fringe Conference, add your thoughts to the comments section.
If Western Australia specialises
in the niche content areas of low budget feature films, children's drama, indigenous
production and animation, and aims for long tail global markets, how distinctive
do you have to be to actually be in the niche - rather than the suburban
mainstream?
What is a Niche?
Earlier this week I was discussing with a colleague the focus,
the West Australian Screen Industry has, on developing skills and content in
the specific niche areas of children's drama, low budget features, indigenous
production and animation. I think it makes a lot of sense for the local
industry to focus it's development into the areas where we have strong skills
and a track record. It also suits the growing business model of
taking advantage of The
Long Tail and the position of 'taking the local look to a global audience'.
In our discussion we began talking about what it actually means to be in a
'niche'.
The Dictionary defines a niche as; a distinct segment of a market.
Distinct content that is clearly distinguishable and different from all the
other content.
When you think about the music industry it has always had distinctly different
market segments; Rock, Pop, Soul, Gospel, Heavy Metal, Thrash Metal, Death
Metal, Hop Hop, Trip Hop, House, Amyl House, Deep House, Hard House, Progressive
House, Detroit House, Disco House....
Successful acts generally fit neatly into one genre and often fail when they make
radical departures from their established market segment. Remember
when Moby did a rock album 'Animal Rights'?
It's referred to as one of the all time classic failed albums. Or Pseudo Echo's failed third
album when they abandoned being a new romantic pop group and moved into rock
and metal, leaving all their fans behind? Or when 80's boy band
New Kids On The Block started getting into Gangsta
Rap? They all failed.
To be successful, to be marketable, to find an audience, you have to be in a
niche, and generally, you have to stay in it.
So what would the visual equivalent be?
Animation is not a niche. Animation is a broad category. A niche
in animation could be a production process; cut-out animation, motion capture,
puppet animation or stop motion animation. Maybe it could be a genre,
docu-animation, dramatic animation, black comedy themed animation.
Imagine if Perth was known as the world leader in stop motion animation, taking
over from Aardman with our innovative production techniques.
Imagine if when people thought of animation in Western Australia they said,
'Nobody can compete with those WA animators and their unique sense of humour'.
Low Budget Features is not necessarily a niche either, but low budget slapstick
comedies is, low budget political satire is and low budget shock comedy
is.
If you look at the documentary companies based in Perth, they have all found
their successful niche areas. I like to think of them as 'water',
'animals', 'science' and 'chefs'.
So instead of talking about niches, maybe we should use a different language to
drive things forward. Maybe we should begin talking about how
we are distinct and how we can stand out from the crowd. What if we
started asking filmmakers to make things that were radical, challenging, disruptive,
controversial, creative, and outrageous? What if these became our words.
At FTI, in our vocational training programs we make sure we provide a few very
important key messages to students the first day. Things that
we believe are the crucial key points for building a career in film and
television.
- Collaborate, work with other people.
- Get out there are interact with other people, its about the networking.
- The filmmaking process is not just about making the film, it's about exhibiting and screening too.
- ...and most importantly don't make anything that is boring.
It's that last point that is a war cry against the mundane,
the derivative, the suburban and the beige. When I was speaking to
Multimedia Producer Kate Rothschild recently she recounted that her measure was
always the question 'Is it cool?'. Kate's question is the same as
our plea, make something that is distinctive.
So niche's, maybe we should stop skirting about them and dive-in. Anyone
up for a low budget political satire with zombies? - There's got to be a
distinct audience for that content.
