My name is William France, and I’m an efficient, autistic and enthusiastic individual with an interest in filmmaking, photography and specifically cinematography. Currently I'm a Camera Trainee, and my long term goal is to become a competent, professional and respectable camera operator, specialising in gear headed operating. ​
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To help with my development in the cinema world I have completed CPD courses and e-learning modules, from Screenskills (viewable from my screenskills profile) as well as from The Mark Milsome Foundation and ALBERT. Additionally I've attended live events such as the BSC Expo to network, and recently started a part-time position as a Camera Trainee at OneStopFilms, to learn about cinema technologies.
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In efforts to network and gather contacts, I have joined the Sara Putt Associates trainee scheme for 24/25. Which is allowing me to access circles I hadn't been able to before, and work on my networking skills, negotiation skills and approach.
Instagram: @willfrance_camera
Facebook: William J. France
LinkedIn: William France- Camera Trainee
2016-2019
Canterbury Christ Church University
Undergraduate: Film, Radio and Television Studies (BA) Hons (1st)
Responsible for educating me on how to make Film, Radio and Television content in a professional manor. Coursework was mainly based in practical assessment, giving me experience in Filmmaking, Live Television, recorded Television and Radio show production.
Through module choices, I have done specific work in Filmmaking relating to Cinematography, Screenwriting and work in Live television.
Canterbury, Kent, United Kingdom
2019-2022
Canterbury Christ Church University
Postgraduate Research MA for the school of Media, Art and Design:
"How has the Development of Digital Methods,
Technical Hardware and Scientific Knowledge Changed The Industry and Culture of Screen Media?"
Canterbury, Kent, United Kingdom
After finishing my undergraduate degree, I went straight into a postgraduate research MA for the following academic year. I initially studied various popular film-related activities in Britain, such as British Film Journalism, British Film Industry and British Film Distribution, and their links to British Film Culture. However, my research focus changed to examining the impact of contemporary technology and other developments on these three sectors.
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In doing so, I firstly learnt about how technology has influenced industrial and cultural attitudes towards the British print and digital Film journalism space, through survey and case study research. Secondly I gained knowledge on how technology is being used in Film and content production by differently experienced industry creatives, through interviewing, and took a keen interest in the rise of virtual production in this space. Finally, I studied how technology has come to influenced Film Festivals and Film distribution, through grounded research projects at various Film Festivals in the UK. All of which has helped to expand my knowledge of the various digital tools that have the potential to impact British screen media in the future and present.
2016-2017
Volunteer Film Reviewer
CSR-FM
Canterbury, Kent, United Kingdom
Produced, recorded and presented Film reviews for ‘CSRfm’s Breakfast show with Ross and Alex’ on a weekly basis. Overall, it helped my understanding of Sound editing, show scripting and critical film analysis. In doing so, I was given the opportunity to network with other students to help further improve my understanding of the creative process.
2018-2020
Student Ambassador for Open Days
Canterbury Christ Church University
Canterbury, Kent, United Kingdom
For multiple open days during my undergraduate years, I was
responsible for showcasing the equipment used on my University course while being informative about the equipment in an engaging manor for potential applicants.
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This therefore encouraged me to be communicative in my experience of the course as well as my general experience of the university, helping me to be more engaging and educational for applicants. More so, I gained additional experience with camera gear such as the Canon C100 and Blackmagic URSA mini pro.
2020
Festival Volunteer for the 2020 BFI Future Film Festival
British Film Institute
BFI Southbank, London, United Kingdom
I volunteered for the whole duration of the BFI Future Film Festival, which ran from 19 February-23 February 2020, as part of my MA research. For the festival, I helped to guide attendees to events once they checked in for their sessions, and also supervised events by checking audience tickets and handing out surveys. Finally I also took care of the talent who were speaking at the festival. Moreover I also helped to set up event rooms in between sessions, while every night the festival crew like myself would help in the running of our nightly casual networking sessions.
The aim of the festival was to welcome younger filmmakers with ‘an exciting and rich programme of events, masterclasses, workshops and screenings by offering a range of perspectives across the industry’ (from the festival programme). In this environment, I had to adapt to new situations while also making sure that I had good communication with guests, other crew members and festival management; helping me to develop my communication skills and problem solving skills as well as my overall understanding of the workings of the film and creative industries.
2020
Assistant Festival Director
Canterbury University Film Festival
Canterbury, Kent, United Kingdom
For my MA research also, I volunteered to be an Assistant Festival Director for the 2020 edition of the Canterbury University Film Festival, a festival which celebrates the film productions of students from Canterbury Christ Church University, University of Kent and University of the College of Arts. I have helped the 2020 edition of the festival by helping to select the films for our programme, by helping to coordinate our festival events outside of screenings, before Covid 19 lockdown. Throughout I helped to create content to share on social media, which included designing the posters for films selected to a consistent style and doing photography of the venues we planned to use for festival events to help promote the festival online.
As the 2020 edition went digital due to the lockdown measures, I helped to market and moderate the YouTube premiere we had instead, which involved managing the live chat for the premiere and promoting our awards ceremony that we had scheduled afterwards. All in all, it was a very enjoyable experience that provided valuable insight into Film Festival organisation and marketing and helped me to develop organisation skills, communication skills and problem solving skills while also allowing me to develop creative skills to help where the project was going at the time.
November 2022
ALBERT Sustainable Production Training
ALBERT
Free e-learning module from ALBERT about Sustainable practices, the impact of a production's carbon footprint and how productions have taken steps to reduce it; which included looking at case studies associated with films such as 1917 and TV shows such as Grand Designs
December 2024
Film and TV Online Safety Passport Course
The Mark Milsome Foundation