A video maker has proved his graduate champion credentials by securing himself a permanent position at the end of a university internship.
Jordan Dean is the newest member of staff at Crosscut Media after completing two successful six-week internships through the Graduate Champions scheme at De Montfort University Leicester (DMU).
The 26-year-old, who is studying for an International Film Production MA, has been taken on as a part-time video production assistant.
He is looking forward to developing his skills at the video production company based at The Innovation Centre on DMU’s Campus.
Jordan said: “I now have a job that I love thanks to the Graduate Champions scheme.
“I was offered the job on the last day of my internship and I just wasn’t expecting it, but it’s great, I jumped at the opportunity.
“I now have the chance to work in all aspects of video production from camera work and editing to using various software.”
Graduate Champions is a DMU-run internship that helps graduates to gain high-quality industry experience, which enhances their CV and boosts their confidence and employability.
Jordan, who is from Hull, took part in a Graduate Champion internship in the summer of 2017 after completing his Film Studies degree at DMU. He worked on a variety of projects, including live streaming an Arts Council England event at the Curve and shooting a promo video for the Nevill Holt Opera Festival.
He remained at DMU to study for his Master’s, which gave him a second opportunity to take part in the scheme earlier this year.
During his second internship, he worked with well-known comedians as part of the Leicester Comedy Festival. This gave him invaluable experience of working to a brief and leading his own shoots at an internationally recognised festival.
Jordan said: “I was matched with Crosscut both times and I loved it.
“It was my first taste of working with professional clients and it was great. They were both such full-on internships because I learnt so much and got to do a bit of everything.”
Jordan is no stranger to success as he has had his work shown at various film festivals, including festivals in Los Angeles, New York and Antwerp, Belgium. Three of the films he has written and directed have played at 14 international film festivals and won three awards.
As part of his Master’s degree, he has also had the chance to work at Creative Media Skills at Pinewood Studios with the likes of producers Iain Smith and Chris Kenny and director Terry Bamber.
They selected Jordan to direct a 15-minute film, which has been inspired by the Asian extreme genre, with filming scheduled for the end of July.
Jordan has ‘loved film for as a long as he can remember’ having grown up watching Steven Spielberg films and ‘trying to work out how everything was put together.’
He chose to study at DMU as a friend recommended it to him and he liked the variety of the degree course.
Jordan said: “I’d spent four years working in retail and travelling, and I was ready to take the next step to go to university to get a degree.
“My passion was film and I was impressed with DMU; the film programme is held in high regard and the degree offered a great mix of practical and theoretical work.
“I initially wasn’t sure what direction I would go in, but the degree quickly proved that my love was in film production and directing. It’s my future.”
Dan Flanders and Duncan MacLeod, who run Crosscut Media, have added a blog about hiring Jordan to the company website.
Dan said: “Having had the chance to work with Jordan through the Graduate Champion Scheme was invaluable for us. It gave us the opportunity to assess his skills and build up a professional relationship with him.
“We quickly found that he shared our work ethic and after his second placement it was a no-brainer to offer him a part-time opportunity.
“As a business, we're becoming increasingly busy and we need to ensure that we have the right talent on-board to cope with demand. Jordan has proven to be an integral part of the team as we grow and is enabling us to push ourselves professionally and creatively.”
Posted on Tuesday 22 May 2018