Transition Unit - Friday Auditioning Session
Interviewing For A Suitable Presenter
Me and Alex arranged 4 additional auditions for today, this will be the first time we've had more than 2 candidates that we're considering for a role therefore making a decision will no doubt be a challenge. The interviews were as follows:
Tharek Ali - 13:00
Tharek was our first scheduled audition this afternoon, having prepared a list of questions before-hand, I was able to have them up on my second monitor while simultaneously participating in the Skype call. Tharek initially came across perhaps a bit nervous, however he seemed to quickly settle in and went on to discuss some interesting points. He noted that he's has his personal information, including his address and phone number leaked in the past. Having personal experience with issues of data privacy we believe, to be an asset to the piece, acting as a motivation for Tharek's involvement in the project. He also expressed that he would be available for at least 2 days during our planned shoot week which is a positive.
Louis Rayneau - 14:00
Following Tharek, Louis was our second audition of the afternoon. Both me and Alex found ourselves thoroughly impressed with not only his interest in the topic, but also sheer breadth of experience. Upon being asked about his experience in presenting and acting, he proceeded to reel through a number of very credible theatre performances, including lead roles in the west end as well as touring Italy and South Africa with a theatre-group. Not only that but he's also worked with Cartoon Network on 'Ben 10' and ITV, in which he played a schoolboy in an episode of 'Endeavour'. He also interestingly made a point of mentioning how he's had interviewers pull up his instagram page in front of him, in order to essentially evaluate how much clout he had, based on something as menial as noting other popular 'influencers' that follow him. We got on well and that bodes well for the future of this project.
Jasmine Newsome-Smith - 14:30
Jasmine was our third audition of the day. I think we both came out of this audition with the belief that while being talented in many areas, she may not be the right fit for this role in particular. She did demonstrate some basic knowledge when it comes to the topic of data protection/privacy, however we felt that she lacked the passion or motivation to address the issue in a way that we want for our piece, particular within the PTC segments. She did mention that she had extensive experience in radio shows, talking with people in a charismatic way, engaging with them, however she did mention that she felt like more of an actress rather than a presenter. I'm certainly open to working with her in the future, however I think as of right now, she's not the person we're looking for.
Niv Patel - 16:00
Niv was the last person we auditioned today, and to our surprise, he was actually rather intriguing. This was the longest audition we've had for this project, clocking in at approximately 24 minutes, we ended up having an interesting and intellectual discussion around the issues of data protection & privacy. The interest in the project from him at-least seemed clear to us and helped us ascertain how well he'd fit the role we're looking for. He remarked on the fact that he has been covering the webcam on his laptop with a piece of tape for the last several months, something that many privacy-minded people are doing nowadays, in an attempt to prevent unsolicited access to your webcam. This showed that he had the kind of mindset that we want in our presenter. Furthermore, he also expressed interest in further researching the topic in the coming weeks in order to prepare for the role. We appreciate the willingness to dedicate himself to the project in that way. He also discussed sensitive topics regarding his background being born in Israel, terror threats and the way the media cover and influence it.
Audition Videos
We believed that it would be beneficial to record the Skype interviews for our own personal reference and to refer back to on our online research journals. Below you can find each of the interviews in chronological order:
Concluding Thoughts
As of right now both me and Alex are deliberating between both Louis and Niv. We found both candidates offered unique perspectives into the data protection/privacy issue. Now it's simply a case of deciding which person we want to go with. As we mentioned to each of our candidates during their auditions, we plan to make a decision over the next 24 hours so that we can begin providing necessary support, as well as plan shooting week and when to get the kit out from the studios. I think that depending on which of these two we pick, there are going to be tonal differences in the way the entire piece comes across to the audience. With Louis being the more lighthearted, 'friendly' (for lack of a better term) approach, whereas Niv could bring a much more serious, inquisitive nature to the piece. Updates to follow.
Tharek Ali - 13:00
Louis Rayneau - 14:00
Jasmine Newsome-Smith - 14:30
Niv Patel - 16:00
Niv was the last person we auditioned today, and to our surprise, he was actually rather intriguing. This was the longest audition we've had for this project, clocking in at approximately 24 minutes, we ended up having an interesting and intellectual discussion around the issues of data protection & privacy. The interest in the project from him at-least seemed clear to us and helped us ascertain how well he'd fit the role we're looking for. He remarked on the fact that he has been covering the webcam on his laptop with a piece of tape for the last several months, something that many privacy-minded people are doing nowadays, in an attempt to prevent unsolicited access to your webcam. This showed that he had the kind of mindset that we want in our presenter. Furthermore, he also expressed interest in further researching the topic in the coming weeks in order to prepare for the role. We appreciate the willingness to dedicate himself to the project in that way. He also discussed sensitive topics regarding his background being born in Israel, terror threats and the way the media cover and influence it.Audition Videos
We believed that it would be beneficial to record the Skype interviews for our own personal reference and to refer back to on our online research journals. Below you can find each of the interviews in chronological order:
Concluding Thoughts
As of right now both me and Alex are deliberating between both Louis and Niv. We found both candidates offered unique perspectives into the data protection/privacy issue. Now it's simply a case of deciding which person we want to go with. As we mentioned to each of our candidates during their auditions, we plan to make a decision over the next 24 hours so that we can begin providing necessary support, as well as plan shooting week and when to get the kit out from the studios. I think that depending on which of these two we pick, there are going to be tonal differences in the way the entire piece comes across to the audience. With Louis being the more lighthearted, 'friendly' (for lack of a better term) approach, whereas Niv could bring a much more serious, inquisitive nature to the piece. Updates to follow.
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