Lights, camera, action!
The Zone spoke to aspiring television producers at the media department of the College of the Arts.
Tunohole Mungoba
Millions of people around the world watch television every day. It is a multi-billion dollar industry that educates, entertain and inform. The Zone checked in with the final-year television production students at the College of the Arts (Cota) to find out more about their hopes for the future of television production in Namibia.
Speaking to the television production final year students at the Cota, it was evident that the institution has a number of determined students that want to leave their mark in the industry.
Although Whitney Ndongo admits she did not fully understand what the course entailed before she started her studies, she ended up loving it. “I thought it was going to be more about being in front of the camera instead of behind it, but during the orientation and foundation course, I told myself I could actually become a great producer,” she said. Ndongo also said that being a producer will allow her to be well versed in the field of presenting and hosting a show as she would know what exactly what is going on behind the scenes as well.
According to her the course does not limit her as her creativity is always challenged. “There is so much you can do with this course. You can create masterpieces that can be viewed by our Namibian viewers and beyond,” she shared.
She explains that the class would like to get into the industry, secure employment and generate enough capital to start their own production companies. “Feature films, documentaries, movies and television magazines is what I would like to do in my future company. I want to create a company that is able to employ other specialists in this field like directors, script writers, camera technicians and editing producers,” she said.
Cecilia Adeigbo, previously community radio presenter and also a final year television production student, says specialising in script writing. Her experience as a radio presenter have contributed towards better understanding the script writing process and feels that her practical experience and academic knowledge through the course compliments one another. “I thought to myself that getting a qualification in this field could elevate my career and equip me with more skills,”’ she said.
According to Adeigbo Namibian productions are not always relatable to the Namibian culture and audience and she plans to change that. “We have a number of local shows on our television screens, but we need to focus on telling our stories. We have the potential to do our own thing instead of showcasing work from other countries,” she explains.
Aspiring writers have also found a home in this course as some students are specialising in script writing for television shows, series and movies.
Jason Kooper, who tells The Zone that he has always been a writer. According to him studying television production after school was a decision that came naturally to him. “I started writing a bit of poetry in high school so a friend of suggested I study this course.
The art of storytelling
Student Vernna Muronga says that telling stories has always been her passion. “I like telling stories through different mediums like photography and music. So being able to bring my stories to life through television production is a dream come true,” Muronga said.
“When to Cota, I also realised that I do not only get to tell the story, but I get to write it myself as well so it’s like the best of both worlds.” She says that the course is very demanding and she will not be able to manage a part time job to gain experience in the industry.
She plans on starting up a mentorship programme for disadvantaged children who do not have access to media equipment. “I have seen young children use juice boxes and pretend they are shooting a film. This is because they have seen it somewhere and they are actually interested in learning. I want to educate and teach them ways how they can break into the industry for those who do not have the opportunity to receive and education,” she explains.
Hilma Sheehama, aspires to be a director one day and says she enjoys “seeing her vision come together in collaboration with other people.” According to her, “seeing everything come together while being in control is such a great feeling. Directing is not really a big industry in Namibia so I want to create a market for myself.”
“You have to make sure that production is good and make sure that your actors are always available. Sometimes locations are cancelled at short notice. Other challenges include the lack of resources which limits their writing. There are times you would want to write this elaborate story, but you tell yourself to calm down as you know it be will a challenge when it comes to pulling it off which forces us to write around our budget,” she explains.
Why should you study television production?
Irene Hans, staff member at the television production course, says the three-year diploma covers different formats that allows each and every student to find their feet. “The course is very practical; you learn by doing. You physically have to be in class,” she explained.
The course covers a variety of subjects like camera work, lighting, scriptwriting, directing and video editing which the students all will do in their first year and specialise in their second year. “They can choose to go into the pre-planning phase which is scriptwriting and directing or the technical phase which is camera work, lighting and video editing,” she said.
She tells The Zone that over the years students have been mostly interested in the technical side of the course and many of them struggle with writing. “They want to steer as far away from writing, but they have slowly started to realise and appreciate the writing component as well. The script is the basis of the film,” she explains.
The requirement of the course is a C in English with 17 points. The students also go through an English test for shortlisting purposes before being admited in the course.
Hans advises her current and potential television production students to work hard and encourages them to leave their mark in the industry. “We are moulding them to survive in this cutthroat industry. We must always expect everything on a silver platter and let us always try to go the extra mile,” she said.
10 interesting facts about television
· 21 November is World Television Day
· The word “television” was invented in 1900 by Russian scientist Constantin Perskyi.
· Most people dream in colour, but those that grew up watching black and white television often dream in black and white.
· British show Top Gear is the most watched television show with an estimated 350 million weekly viewers in 170 countries
· The biggest pioneers of early television were Paul Nipkow, Boris Rosing, Vladimir Zworkin, John Baird, Philo Farnsworth, Charles Francis Jenkins and William Bell.
· The average person over the age of four in this country watches 3hr 36min of TV a day.
· First American television station started working in 1928, and BBC transmission began in 1930.
· Television became widely popular after the end of World War II. Over 1 million American homes had television in 1948.
· 25% of TVs sold in 2016 had a 50 inch screen.
· The first TV remote control came from Zenith in 1950. It was connected to the TV set by a wire (the wireless remote followed in 1955)
Millions of people around the world watch television every day. It is a multi-billion dollar industry that educates, entertain and inform. The Zone checked in with the final-year television production students at the College of the Arts (Cota) to find out more about their hopes for the future of television production in Namibia.
Speaking to the television production final year students at the Cota, it was evident that the institution has a number of determined students that want to leave their mark in the industry.
Although Whitney Ndongo admits she did not fully understand what the course entailed before she started her studies, she ended up loving it. “I thought it was going to be more about being in front of the camera instead of behind it, but during the orientation and foundation course, I told myself I could actually become a great producer,” she said. Ndongo also said that being a producer will allow her to be well versed in the field of presenting and hosting a show as she would know what exactly what is going on behind the scenes as well.
According to her the course does not limit her as her creativity is always challenged. “There is so much you can do with this course. You can create masterpieces that can be viewed by our Namibian viewers and beyond,” she shared.
She explains that the class would like to get into the industry, secure employment and generate enough capital to start their own production companies. “Feature films, documentaries, movies and television magazines is what I would like to do in my future company. I want to create a company that is able to employ other specialists in this field like directors, script writers, camera technicians and editing producers,” she said.
Cecilia Adeigbo, previously community radio presenter and also a final year television production student, says specialising in script writing. Her experience as a radio presenter have contributed towards better understanding the script writing process and feels that her practical experience and academic knowledge through the course compliments one another. “I thought to myself that getting a qualification in this field could elevate my career and equip me with more skills,”’ she said.
According to Adeigbo Namibian productions are not always relatable to the Namibian culture and audience and she plans to change that. “We have a number of local shows on our television screens, but we need to focus on telling our stories. We have the potential to do our own thing instead of showcasing work from other countries,” she explains.
Aspiring writers have also found a home in this course as some students are specialising in script writing for television shows, series and movies.
Jason Kooper, who tells The Zone that he has always been a writer. According to him studying television production after school was a decision that came naturally to him. “I started writing a bit of poetry in high school so a friend of suggested I study this course.
The art of storytelling
Student Vernna Muronga says that telling stories has always been her passion. “I like telling stories through different mediums like photography and music. So being able to bring my stories to life through television production is a dream come true,” Muronga said.
“When to Cota, I also realised that I do not only get to tell the story, but I get to write it myself as well so it’s like the best of both worlds.” She says that the course is very demanding and she will not be able to manage a part time job to gain experience in the industry.
She plans on starting up a mentorship programme for disadvantaged children who do not have access to media equipment. “I have seen young children use juice boxes and pretend they are shooting a film. This is because they have seen it somewhere and they are actually interested in learning. I want to educate and teach them ways how they can break into the industry for those who do not have the opportunity to receive and education,” she explains.
Hilma Sheehama, aspires to be a director one day and says she enjoys “seeing her vision come together in collaboration with other people.” According to her, “seeing everything come together while being in control is such a great feeling. Directing is not really a big industry in Namibia so I want to create a market for myself.”
“You have to make sure that production is good and make sure that your actors are always available. Sometimes locations are cancelled at short notice. Other challenges include the lack of resources which limits their writing. There are times you would want to write this elaborate story, but you tell yourself to calm down as you know it be will a challenge when it comes to pulling it off which forces us to write around our budget,” she explains.
Why should you study television production?
Irene Hans, staff member at the television production course, says the three-year diploma covers different formats that allows each and every student to find their feet. “The course is very practical; you learn by doing. You physically have to be in class,” she explained.
The course covers a variety of subjects like camera work, lighting, scriptwriting, directing and video editing which the students all will do in their first year and specialise in their second year. “They can choose to go into the pre-planning phase which is scriptwriting and directing or the technical phase which is camera work, lighting and video editing,” she said.
She tells The Zone that over the years students have been mostly interested in the technical side of the course and many of them struggle with writing. “They want to steer as far away from writing, but they have slowly started to realise and appreciate the writing component as well. The script is the basis of the film,” she explains.
The requirement of the course is a C in English with 17 points. The students also go through an English test for shortlisting purposes before being admited in the course.
Hans advises her current and potential television production students to work hard and encourages them to leave their mark in the industry. “We are moulding them to survive in this cutthroat industry. We must always expect everything on a silver platter and let us always try to go the extra mile,” she said.
10 interesting facts about television
· 21 November is World Television Day
· The word “television” was invented in 1900 by Russian scientist Constantin Perskyi.
· Most people dream in colour, but those that grew up watching black and white television often dream in black and white.
· British show Top Gear is the most watched television show with an estimated 350 million weekly viewers in 170 countries
· The biggest pioneers of early television were Paul Nipkow, Boris Rosing, Vladimir Zworkin, John Baird, Philo Farnsworth, Charles Francis Jenkins and William Bell.
· The average person over the age of four in this country watches 3hr 36min of TV a day.
· First American television station started working in 1928, and BBC transmission began in 1930.
· Television became widely popular after the end of World War II. Over 1 million American homes had television in 1948.
· 25% of TVs sold in 2016 had a 50 inch screen.
· The first TV remote control came from Zenith in 1950. It was connected to the TV set by a wire (the wireless remote followed in 1955)
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