Martin is one of our shadow board members. He has taken on a role as a second assistant director, and been part of an editing team that worked on footage shot by himself and other students. He loves being able to work together with various people. Getting to know and understand the individual, their aspirations is always something really interesting to me. He loves cinema. Whether he is planning to make short films with friends, participating in actual practise on set in an organised group or watching movies and getting to discuss its intricacies, they all hold great value to him.
We spoke to Martin about freedom, creating lasting connections and the possibilities of AI.
Tell us about where you are now, and what you love about your job/ course.
Currently, I have finished my A-levels. During my time in education, I loved the support and freedom given. While it may have been stressful at times, I do believe I have grown as a person from it and value that opportunity. Being in my gap year, I love this newfound freedom as I am able to explore my interests which have been with me ever since the start of college. Having this rare opportunity and the free time to hone my skills is what I really love.
Tell us a bit about your journey to get there.
This took a lot of thinking and consideration. At first, I was unsure if I wanted to do this, but with some research of my own and support from those around me, I felt empowered to take the first steps. Eventually, with enough confidence in myself, I felt strong enough to commit and proceed with the year.
For those readers still considering whether this industry is the right place for them, tell us what you most love about it. What appeals to you about this industry?
Personally to me, what appeals most is the opportunity to create lasting connections with people, whether it’d be those around me, or on the other side of the screen. Alongside that, weirdly I feel excitement when there is a challenge, in moments where small steps are most needed to succeed, I feel utmost satisfaction. Though those are my personal pleasures, for anybody wondering I would urge them to find what exactly makes them tick and delivers a sense of commitment.
Looking forwards, what do you think the future of the industry is going to look like? What changes are you excited to see?
In terms of what changes I expect, I would certainly not be surprised to see AI being a crucial part of this industry. We already see how artificial intelligence is used in so many scenarios for various applications. I do feel there is potential for it in every industry and strongly feel there is a place it could fill here too. Whatever sector that may be from machine learning to anything else. This specific change I would be personally intrigued to see how this would play out and how people could evolve from it. Apart from AI, I would be happy to see how new physical materials/technologies can be used to enhance the industry as a whole too.
If you could say one thing to the wider industry right now, what would it be?
Personally, I would advise that every opportunity is exploited to the utmost. Take every chance to spread and grow further. Be mouldable and shapeless, by letting all experiences guide you into the best version of yourself. And most of all, enjoy every moment along the way.