“This has been the biggest year of my life…“

Over the last year we’ve got to know Media Production student James and we think he’s a shining example of a young person that has a thirst for knowledge and real life experiences to prepare him for a rewarding career in the media industry! We spoke to him to find out about his early love for media and games and about his experience on his course at Dv8, plus his new exciting internship position. Over to you James…

When I was 13 years old I began to post gaming content on various YouTube channels. After a year of consistently uploading, I decided to create a brand for myself so that I could build a portfolio featuring both content I produced and also to showcase my competitive gaming skills. The channel and brand I created for myself was “Yekerz” which was a nickname of mine that caught on in secondary school derived from my already uncommon surname.

Over the next couple of years I branched out into creating ‘in real life’ videos where I’d film my day to day life, holiday adventures and also reviewing my recent tech purchases. Following on from this I decided to focus on live streaming where I encountered a whole range of technical difficulties that I slowly and surely overcame. My persistence paid off and I’m now comfortable and confident using a range of streaming equipment and software.

During my time at school I learnt how to analyse the messages media products try to send to their consumers. This new understanding allowed me to produce my own promotional video for a local outdoor kids club. As part of this project I was also commissioned to design a website which I built from code up!

I think my creative mind has always been my main strength. Not just when it comes to making content for YouTube, but also in poetry, storytelling, song writing and graphic design. This year I joined the Level 3 Media Production course at Dv8 Sussex and it gave me the chance to expand my creativity in new mediums. I’ve been able to plan, produce and edit a teaser trailer for my conceptual short film called Trioka. I then took this further and wrote a full script for Trioka which I then directed, shot and edited the opening sequence and a dramatic fight scene for. To conclude my first year at Dv8 I designed a poster, DVD cover and POS for my production Third Ave.

The experience I’ve gained from organising the whole short film project, from pre-production to post, has given me the confidence and ambition to tackle bigger projects with real artists in the industry. Through a guest talk at Dv8 I have gained an internship at QM Records, a Brighton based record label and events company, and I’m absolutely loving working with them. I have a passion for music and so putting visuals to audio is really enjoyable. I have now worked with numerous musicians and bands from Brighton and the local area who all have a strong social media presence which means the content I’m creating for them is really getting seen! The work I’ve been able to get involved with off the back of this internship has been phenomenal; photoshoots, event posters, live session videos, photography at live gigs and videos, and now I’m moving into creating music videos. See one of my live rehearsal videos for Moxxy here!

I can honestly say that this year has been the biggest year of my life. Joining Dv8 enabled me to grow my skills, expose me to opportunities and give me the confidence to take them and develop independently. If I had to give a piece of advice to new Media students or anyone thinking about a career in the creative industries it would be to take advantage of every opportunity that comes your way, get involved in everything and build a professional portfolio early on.

Big thanks to James for taking part in our student stories blog. We hope his journey inspires others to think creatively, aspire to achieve great things! If you’re interested in Media and Film Production, check out our Level 2 & 3 course for young people here.