Nikita Belomestnykh’s Post

International media producer Sofiya Kochmar: “I won’t be able to get to new projects if I don’t take care of my own resource” We spoke with international media producer Sofiya Kochmar about the importance of covering terrible war events, communication with people, empathy, one’s own psychological stability and recovery. Today, many films, stories, and projects covering the bloodshed in Ukraine have entered the Ukrainian and foreign media space. Journalists and producers show the whole world what the terrorist country is doing and how it is horribly destroying the Ukrainian people. One of the most important functions of modern journalism and cinematography is to tell and document everything, not to leave anyone indifferent, and to attract the attention of the world. That’s what journalists do today. Sofiya Kochmar helped create (was a producer of) the film called I Call Him By Name for the London BBC; The Lost Souls of Bucha for the socio-political TV show 60 Minutes on the American CBS TV channel; a documentary about the deportation of children for the French BFM TV; also talked about women’s captivity and the survival of Ukrainians during the blackout. Sofiya became the winner of the Emmy Award for the documentary Lost Souls. You can get recommendations on coverage of war events from Sofia Kochmar by following this link: https://lnkd.in/edc4h4kG

Socially conscious stories can shape the narrative around a specific issue and help inform people through storytelling. Learn how to make socially-minded films → https://hubs.li/Q02vZ5rS0 #filmmaking #indiefilm #BirdMine

I wonder if this is the reason I’ve had messages from so many female assistant producers/producers from across the industry asking for my advice about getting into camera work. Is it because they’re struggling to compete for the next level roles and believe gaining camera skills will help. I’d be interested to know how many female Shooting PD’s are out there? Also this comment was interesting: “There are fewer and fewer opportunities to gain experience because they want to see that [their films] are in a ‘safe pair of hands’. And they are perceived to be ‘safe’ only in the sense that they are familiar.” Same could be said for News camera crews with editors, correspondents and producers using the same small group of senior staff and freelance camera crews over and over again on the higher profile and creatively more rewarding stories. This can leave little or no opportunity for junior staff to gain the valuable storytelling experience that the industry needs for the future.

A few weeks ago, I had the pleasure of speaking with Rebecca Roemer’s Broadcast Journalism class at my high school alma mater, Providence Day School. Her students are working on a project where they make short films, and Rebecca asked me to share some helpful tips. As I was putting my thoughts together, I realized that these ideas could be helpful to filmmakers at any point in their career. In fact, I remind myself of this stuff all the time as we navigate commercial, music video, and film projects at Ways & Means. 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠. A reminder to pay attention and find inspiration in your own life. Your perspective is your most valuable asset. 𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞. Filmmaking is a team sport and it’s important to surround yourself with people you love. Seek collaborators who will lift you up. 𝐖𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐌𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐬. The best way to learn a foreign language is to immerse yourself in it; same with the language of movies. 𝐌𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐭. A list of references, a shot list, a play list, a list of actors, a to-do list, a check list. Lists will help you organize your ideas and share those ideas with everyone else. 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬. If you’re looking for a reason not to make a movie, you’ll find plenty. There will be many roadblocks. Make the best of what you have right now and get started. Maybe the thing you lack becomes a unique feature of your movie. 𝐆𝐞𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐞, 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲. We don’t need a ton of backstory and explanation (especially in a short film). Let the characters and visuals speak for themselves. Trust the audience to understand. 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐨𝐭 𝐜𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐞-𝐮𝐩𝐬. Use varying shot sizes (and inserts) to direct the attention of your audience and create rhythm and tension in the edit. 𝐓𝐞𝐧 𝐌𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐬. Directors might be mad at me for this one, but if you’re making a short film, there's really very little reason to make it longer than 10 minutes. Especially if the goal is to have it screen at a film festival. Keep it short! 𝐈𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐬𝐤. Probably the most valuable lesson I’ve learned as a producer is that if you ask for something, people will often just give it to you. It’s crazy. This applies to money, favors, equipment, locations, vehicles … and the list goes on. Don’t be afraid to ask (nicely). The worst they can say is “no”. 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬. Even the smallest little detail can make or break your movie. If you have a feeling something isn’t going to work, you’re probably right. This goes for creative matters (camera, sound, costumes, casting) and also practical details (schedule, budget). Here's my 1 page Google Slides presentation 🙂

INTRODUCING FABULA ASSOCIATES. Top documentary talents form a new creative network. London, New York, Cairo, Abu Dhabi : UK-registered media creative hub Fabula TV is proud to announce the launch of Fabula Associates – a global network of top documentary talents. In what remains a tough climate for commissioning and developing new documentaries, Fabula is launching a new way to incubate great ideas across several genres with the aim of realising them on screen. Fabula Associates are well-placed and experienced individuals who work collaboratively, in a cost-effective and timely manner. We recognise that the industry is changing rapidly, and new structures are needed to respond more effectively to commissioners and networks. There are currently four Fabula Associates based in New York, London, and the Middle East: Dr Dominic Rees Roberts - a specialist factual producer and director and co-founder of Borderpoint Films, a production company developing returnable science and history formats and based in the South East of England. Najat Rizk – an award-winning media executive, a member and a Juror at the International Emmys, a veteran executive producer of factual programming, with an incredible network in the Middle East. Neil Laird – Emmy and BAFTA nominated Executive Producer with a portfolio of history, archeology adventure and science documentaries. Raz Cunningham – Production and Content Development for LEGO, NatGeo, Disney, DoDo Kids, AOL Travel, and PBS. In addition to the Associates, Fabula TV has also formed a consulting partnership with Andrew Lessner (a former Warner Bros/Discovery and Emmy-winning Producer) and LE Co Productions to create and package content. Nigel Hetherington, Fabula & Past Preservers Co-founder: "It's been a tough time for the sector over the last year, but we think the Fabula Associates initiative is a cost-effective way to bring together great industry talents to develop winning ideas." Tony McMahon, Fabula Co-founder: "We listen to what the networks want and work collaboratively with producers and distributors. Our approach is agile and reactive. We can work at speed with no worries about internal bureaucracy or cumbersome decision-making processes." Fabula TV is the sister company of the casting agency, Past Preservers, which gives Fabula Associates access to hundreds of top experts and talents in fields such as archaeology, history, science, true crime, journalism, etc. The result is that Fabula Associates can bring ideas matched with talent to every pitch meeting. To find out more about Fabula Associates – contact us: Tony McMahon: tony.mcmahon@fabula-tv.com Nigel Hetherington: nigel.hetherington@fabula-tv.com

ON THE CRUX – DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKERS TOM ACTON & CHRIS KRIEGER SEEK TO CLOSE THE DIVIDE ON CLIMATE CHANGE DIALOGUE – From its inception “The Crux of the Story” podcast has sought to get to the heart of stories in the field of communications shaping business, politics, society and our daily lives. Few issues are as important or polarizing as climate change and what to do about it. In this episode of The Crux, we meet with two documentary filmmakers who explore why each of us – liberals, conservatives and independents – think the way we do about climate change – and how that needs to change if we are to make progress on the issue itself. Their highly acclaimed documentary, CLOSE THE DIVIDE, is about bridging the divide on climate change and revealing how uniting diverse perspectives might spark innovative solutions to the planet’s most pressing challenge. Tom Acton is an award-winning Canadian filmmaker … whose work tries to help us see and understand how we might address global challenges through the lens of empathy and collaboration. He is the director of CLOSE THE DIVIDE, as well as one of its producers. Chris Krieger is one of the producers of CLOSE THE DIVIDE and is a television and film veteran of over 30 years. He began his career in front of the camera, anchoring and reporting television news in Western Canada. He is a co-founder of the award-winning production firm Deluxe Design Group (DDG), which has produced high-quality content for NBC, ABC, ESPN, and CBC. The Crux of the Story podcast is available on Spotify, iTunes/Apple and SoundCloud. The podcast discusses what is at the heart of communication in all its forms and has had among its guests award-winning journalists, brand experts, photojournalists, documentary filmmakers, authors, market researchers, agency leaders, CMOs and CCOs. The podcast is produced by the Kennedy Greenhouse Studio at the University of South Carolina School of Journalism and Mass Communications. The host is Mike Fernandez, an award-winning communicator and marketer who has served as the chief communications officer for a number of large companies (US West, The Cigna Group, Conagra Brands, State Farm, Cargill and currently with Enbridge) and as the US CEO for two significant agencies (Burson and LLYC) as well as a professor in strategic communications at Boston University. #climateweek #climate #politicalpolarization #communication #NGOs #energytransition #ESG #BillC59 https://lnkd.in/ehfk2Ssv

Throughout the hectic 2023 schedule, Majiye Uchibeke - who originally discovered me via the AFRICA: Seen & Heard #blog, would ask when was I going to write a post on him. 🧘🏿♀️When the time is right, I write...✍🏿 My internal deadline for publication was 31st December, as I wished to close out the year and leap in 2024 with the 2023 time stamp and project milestone. This was achieved by 10 hours at the desk on NYE and the time-saving and innovative inclusion of Instagram posts rather than an extra 8+ hours of picture editing with copyright citation on all photographic images. Last week I went back and did the exhaustive colour-editing in ASH style and now am content to share the post. Majiye gave a good appraisal, astonished on how I remembered it all. Using your #Instagram posts as a think tank and chronology allows some of your copy to write itself. As I revert to my usual focus and ASH special projects, it is great to know that 2023 laid a strong foundation for Majiye - and his USC student crew's - filmmaking activities this year and next. I will continue to support Majiye as a Producer and look forward to the blog contents blazing a trail for him and enlightening those considering funding future productions. The blog was also designed to inspire investment in the young talent emerging from Africa to lead industrial and economic leaps forward before 2050, the year that the continent will be home to 1/4 of the world's population; a young generation of social changemakers. I Am More Dangerous Dead is a visionary film that has shared awareness of the issues of resource exploitation, big oil operations and the indomitable resilience of the unrepresented #Ogoni people and their fight for #justice around the world. Across film festivals and climate change activities, it is packing a potent punch against #ecocide, for climate justice and supporting global movements. As the British Associate Producer of ‘I Am More Dangerous Dead’, the role engaged many of the skills, duties and responsibilities honed over years of managing projects and programmes in other industries. Managing UK and EU film production has been the ultimate project. I was able to deploy subject matter expertise in Communications, Public Relations and Sustainability and pivot skills including leadership, performance monitoring and outreach strategy to engage media and institutional stakeholders, program climate action collaborations and bespoke screening events and strategise film festival submissions that resulted in selections and award wins. Bespoke activist screening added value to the legal cases and human rights work of #MOSOP and grassroots climate action group Fossil Free London. #filmmakers #filmmaking #blogging #blogger #write #writer #champion #talent #support #creatives #invest #people #develop #industry #hollywood #visionary #climateaction https://lnkd.in/eQ7Vxk9D

Are you struggling to structure a PR pitch for a data or survey-led story you're promoting? I recommend finding a similar story to the one you're pitching to use as a guide. For example, here (https://lnkd.in/dAb6PiGA) is a piece of coverage a member of the team at Verve Search secured. (We were pitching a piece we called On Location, where we analysed 20 years of IMDb data, in order to uncover the most filmed locations on the planet). By looking at this coverage, you can make reasonable assumptions about how the original pitch was structured: Headline (this is your subject line) This is the article headline:  "The top 20 most-filmed movie and TV locations in the world revealed: From New York's Central Park to the UK's South Bank, these are the places you're most likely to see a star".  It's likely that the original subject line was shorter than this, but you can make reasonable guesses about what the original subject line was. 3 key findings These are the stats included in the article: - New York's Central Park has been used as a filming location for movies more than any other place on earth - Venice Beach in California came second followed by Greenwich Village, Astoria and Williamsburg in top five - Only location outside US in top ten was University of British Columbia with South Bank most popular in UK It's likely that these were provided in the pitch email. A sentence or two about each key data point In this example the journalist has included a sentence or two about each of the top filming locations, and has included examples of some of the most iconic films that were shot there. Again, this is detail which was likely provided in the original pitch. Ranking Tables Again, obviously provided in the original pitch email. Methodology  Journalists will often copy and paste your methodology, so it’s a great opportunity to influence how they refer to the company you're promoting, and whether or not they’ll include a link - notice how the methodology has been written in this example - it's clear, concise, and written in the third person:  "The study was carried out by comparison site Go Compare, which analysed data from IMDb's 'filming locations' section. They included both films and TV series shot in these locations but excluded film studios from the data." I'd recommend writing up your own methodology in a similar vein. By now, I'm sure you can guess where I'm going with this! Obviously, publications vary in terms of the style and story structures they tend to employ, and of course you'll need to tailor your PR pitch according to the particular findings of your data analysis or survey piece, but as a general rule, this is the PR pitch structure I recommend for most data-led or survey-led stories: - Headline - 3 key stats or findings - A short paragraph about each key data point - Data tables  - Methodology

The Power of Documentary Films in the Modern Era In today's fast-paced world, where information overload is the norm, documentary films stand out as a beacon of truth, insight, and inspiration. Here's why they're more important than ever: 1️⃣ Informing and Educating: Documentaries have the unique ability to delve deep into complex topics, shedding light on issues that often go unnoticed or misunderstood. From environmental crises to social injustices, these films serve as powerful educational tools, enlightening audiences and sparking important conversations. 2️⃣ Driving Change: Documentaries have the power to ignite social movements and drive meaningful change. By exposing injustices, advocating for marginalized communities, and highlighting pressing issues, these films inspire viewers to take action and become agents of positive change in their communities and beyond. 3️⃣ Preserving History and Culture: Documentaries serve as a vital archive of our collective history and culture. They document significant events, capture diverse perspectives, and preserve stories that might otherwise be forgotten. In an era of rapid globalization and cultural homogenization, documentaries play a crucial role in celebrating and preserving our rich tapestry of human experiences. 4️⃣ Fostering Empathy and Understanding: By immersing viewers in the lives of others, documentaries foster empathy, compassion, and understanding. They offer a window into different cultures, lifestyles, and viewpoints, breaking down barriers and promoting empathy and solidarity across borders and boundaries. At GTD Net Media Production, we believe in the transformative power of documentary filmmaking. Whether it's raising awareness about important issues, inspiring change, or celebrating diverse voices, we're dedicated to creating impactful documentaries that resonate with audiences and make a difference in the world. Join us in celebrating the art and importance of documentary films in the modern era. Let's continue to amplify diverse voices, spark meaningful conversations, and drive positive change through the power of storytelling. #DocumentaryFilms #Storytelling #SocialImpact #ChangeMakers #FilmIndustry

One of the best things about studying for my MA in Journalism and Documentary Practice was the sheer volume of films, both fiction and non-fiction, that I was encouraged to watch. Each day I was exposed to a filmmaker or style of cinema that had, until that point, eluded my attention. I found myself challenged by some films: Jonathan Caouette’s ‘Tarnation’ was a difficult watch. The volume of my film consumption proved to be enlightening. When the degree ended, so too did the time I spent watching films. A New Year’s resolution was in order. A film, everyday, for an entire year. The rules accommodate short films, too, or else this task would be an unrelenting chore. A couple of weeks in, here are a handful of the films I’ve watched (and would recommend): Le Havre 🇫🇷 (Kaurismäki 🇫🇮, 2011) - The highlight of my viewing thus far. Kaurismäki conjures such beautiful scenes. It’s a film of hope, where human compassion transcends borders. If you don’t read any further, please watch this film! The Great Beauty 🇮🇹 (Sorrentino 🇮🇹, 2013) - Musings on the pointlessness of excess, a socialite contemplates the meaning of it all, finding contentment in simple pleasures after decades as ‘King of the High Life’.  Goodbye Lenin 🇩🇪 (Becker 🇩🇪, 2003) - A film I’d wanted to watch for years. It left me contemplating how much the world has changed in my lifetime, and how divisive our society and its politics still are. It’s at times a light-hearted comedy, whilst also being a political satire that retains its significance two decades on from its release. Songs of Earth 🇳🇴 (Olin 🇳🇴, 2023) - A meditative and contemplative documentary; a deeply personal account of family and the love from which that unit is formed. A film I wish I’d seen in the cinema, as the sound design isn’t made for consumption via a living room TV. Heart of Glass 🇩🇪 (Herzog 🇩🇪, 1976) - A Bavarian village descends into madness when the man who holds the secret to blowing highly-sought after ruby glass dies, without sharing his knowledge with his fellow workers. The actors were hypnotised before scenes, leading to some unusual performances. Uncle Yanco 🇺🇲 (Varda 🇫🇷, 1967) - Agnès Varda captures the saturated hues and carefree attitudes of life aboard the houseboats of Sausalito, San Francisco, as she meets her distant French-Greek uncle, ‘Yanco’. Her uncle is a perfect subject, as Varda playfully experiments with composition and props in an evocative short. Would love to get some recommendations to help on my journey!