TV Presenting – Case Studies

We interviewed four of the students to see how they’ve found the workshops.

Jet is from Birmingham and has been filmed while signing, but no actual presenting experience.

Matt is from Oxford and has experience of reporting for Vee TV.

Avril is from Glasgow and has presenting experience for the public sector, some In-vision experience and is a BSL monitor.

Donna is originally from west Bromwich but now lives in London. She has experience of working on See hear and translating corporate videos.

Q - Did the workshop live up to your expectations?

JET

"The workshop actually opened my eyes to how difficult [presenting] is. You don’t just need full BSL, you have to adapt your signing as well. I didn’t expect the memory test either. The things I have been through in the past few days have really had an impact on me."

MATT

"I knew what I wanted from this, but having a second opinion and a different view made me think “Oh yes – I’ve not really thought about that”. The contributions and working together as a team - that’s been fantastic. That’s how we all improved, by helping each other because if we didn’t, then we wouldn’t be able to advance."

Q - What job do you want to get out of this?

AVRIL

"I’m going to go back to Scotland! I want to have more confidence in applying for different jobs, like reporting. Perhaps some DVD and video work and get experience working for a company like ac2.com."

MATT

"My aim is to improve my skills in presenting – as I normally like entertainment [programmes] I’d like to try work in a news report style or in a formal setting. I thought before that I could do everything but now I’ve realised my weak areas as well as my strengths. I know that I can adapt and change and polish my skills up."

Q - Were you nervous?

DONNA

"Definitely! My heart was pounding and my signing was getting quite stiff, but after a while I got over that, calmed down and was more myself."

JET

"No – I was excited and enthusiastic about learning. The camera made me nervous – my hands wouldn’t stop shaking! When I watched people, they didn’t seem nervous, but on the inside, I was bricking it! I just realised the risk – it is quite scary."

Q - What did you enjoy the most?

AVRIL

"The group were very supportive – no “Me, me, me!” They were very positive and encouraging, that’s really nice. The atmosphere is great. The feedback was good – I could see how I could adapt and improve."

DONNA

"That’s really hard because a lot of things have happened over the past few days. I enjoyed seeing myself on video with the feedback. For example, with the interviewing I thought “Wow, that’s me, that’s who I am” – I really enjoyed that experience. Having the feedback from the group was very interesting."

Q - What did you find the most difficult?

MATT

"The studio was quite difficult. I felt quite claustrophobic and I felt like I was on In-vision. I love the outside atmosphere, but [in the studio] I was quite tightly fitted in. My character is quite loud and I had to be restricted to one frame. I felt like my hands were being tied up, so I found that quite difficult to adapt to and that had a huge impact on how I felt."

JET

"Engaging with the camera and trying not to look away, and the memory task – trying to remember not to think of that as being an important trying to do, but think about being relaxed etc."

Q - What skills do you think you’ve gained?

JET

"I’ve definitely learnt I’ve got to have good preparation and I’ve learnt that I need to be more confident in myself. I have had to think about what the presenting is about, think about introducing myself, how to report and having a good start and ending. I’ve learnt things like that."

MATT

"The skills I have already have increased - they’ve advanced. The studio work is something I need to improve on and I am definitely going to do workshops again, if I can, as all skills can be improved on and everyday is a learning situation. You learn new things everyday."

Q - What advice can you give to others in the Deaf community?

DONNA

"Go for it! Challenge yourself. TV, In-vision, drama – whatever you want to do in terms of the media. Contact Zebra Uno as these workshops have been amazing. The two Deaf ladies coordinating it are so experienced. This workshop has been encouraging and it empowers Deaf people as well. I would just say encourage yourself, go for it. I’ve been through it, so now why don’t you?"

MATT

"I would definitely say “Why not - go for it!” if that’s something you want to do, nothing’s stopping you. If they think they could do it, then do it. I would say the workshops really give you an open eye, you realise the other areas and avenues you can go in, you could do acting or something similar. If you really want something, unless you act on it, then you’ll never know."