It’s always invigorating to meet fresh, undiscovered talent and be there at the start of their TV journey. But it’s fairly mind-blowing to meet 24 people like that – and all in the same room on the same day.
That’s what it felt like on the BBCs first ever BAME Expert Voices Day in London.
24 experts in everything from food law to gay rights to plasma science came together for a full-on training day in ‘being on TV’. It was part of a BBC and industry-wide push to get better representation on-air. I was their presenter coach and they each had a session on delivering a piece to camera. For some of them, it was the first time they’d ever ‘talked’ to a camera.
And I was really impressed with how good they were for beginners. I honestly think some of them were better than people I’ve coached who’ve been in the business for years. It just reminds you that there’s a wealth of fresh talent out there that could easily replace a few tired, old faces.
Throughout the day, I kept thinking – OK, well she’s got to be on telly. And he should be too. And what about her? I could have filled the TV schedules. The challenge though, is not just training them but finding them the right programmes and nurturing them along the way. As well as managing their expectations and being honest about how tough, unforgiving and often fickle the TV industry is.
My job on the day was to give them a few tricks of the trade for performing in front of the camera. To send them away feeling confident; feeling like they could be in on-air without having a panic attack. And to say yes, next time a producer asks them for an interview. But actually I think what happened was a bit more fundamental.
I reckon people inside the world of TV – and perhaps particularly within the BBC – forget how daunting and exclusive it can feel on the ‘outside’. How unapproachable and ‘not for me’ it appears. How it can seem as though everyone else is on some big TV secret.
I got a real feeling that some of those experts walked away at the end of the day feeling like they’d been ‘let in’ to this secret world and that despite their TV inexperience, they belonged there. No, actually, more than that. They were NEEDED by the TV world. And to realise that you are valued & needed – and on top of all that, you’re actually pretty damn good on camera, that’s pretty feel-good stuff. That’s a buzz. For them. As well as for me.
Here’s one of the experts, Emma Dabiri on camera.
