Saskia Shines as Apprentice

MEDIA apprentice, Saskia Diecidue is ‘out shining’ the competition at production company Shine North by being named as Apprentice of the Month by Vision and Media.

Vision and Media has developed this unique apprenticeship scheme, allowing people who would not normally get the opportunity, to gain experience in the TV industry.

Nineteen year old Saskia from Prestwich, Manchester, started her current placement just under a month ago and she is already confident that this is the career she wants to pursue, “After leaving St Monica’s school in Prestwich I wanted to go to college, but didn’t know what to study,” says Saskia,”I ended up enrolling on, but not completing, five different courses and just couldn’t figure out what it was I wanted to do.”

Saskia then became pregnant and after having her baby was worried that she would miss out on college all together, when she was told about Vision and Media’s Media Apprenticeship Scheme. “It was ideal for me as I was interested in media and drama and had tried these courses at college, but it was the production side of things that really fascinated me,” comments Saskia.

“When we launched the scheme last summer, it was the first time a production apprenticeship programme had been created specifically for the media industry, so we were unsure how it would be received,” explains David Longworth, Apprentice Training Manager for Northwest Vision and Media. “Saskia is a great example of how the scheme works and how it’s managed to channel her talents and passion for the industry.”

Since starting with Shine North Saskia has been working on productions of Battle of the Brains, an exciting new game show and Banged Up, the new controversial drama that ‘jails’ 10 juveniles in an old prison in an attempt to steer them back onto the right path.

The placement with Shine North has enabled Saskia to experience different aspects of TV production from dealing with music rights to assisting in the wardrobe department. As the company deals with all aspects of their productions in-house she has also been able to follow the process of making a programme from the very beginning right through to post production. “I’ve become interested in parts of the production I never thought would interest me, such as the wardrobe department. The amount of work that goes into the clothing is fascinating. I love the hands on experience I’m getting and feel that it’s more worth while than anything I could have done at college,” comments Saskia. “Every day is exciting and I learn something new. I’m now 100 percent certain this is the industry I want to work in.”