Task 1D - Images

I loved this task!!! I love nothing more than looking through old photos and reliving all those wonderful memories.
https://www.flickr.com/photos/136289978@N04/

I have also added a link to my third year Musical Theatre piece  -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNWBjT6_APo

All credits go to Richard Peakman for fantastic Choreography and Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts.


You really need to consider, "what is that particular image saying about me?" Images and audio visual clips are incredibly powerful especially in this day and age, the digital age. They can help you to obtain an audition  or lead to a performing job or just help to create a professional impression e.g. by using a show reel, a headshot or a portfolio of dance shots. 

Both Justin Bieber and 5 Seconds of Summer were discovered on YouTube when their uploaded covers went viral. Both are now huge artists within the music industry but without the use of audio visual websites like YouTube, they may never have become household names. 

Social media is now used in every industry and can be used to, spread important messages, to promote products and even to assist in identifying and catching criminals. 

I recently took part in an E-safety training course at my work. We discussed the dangers of checking in at places or uploading an image with your location settings  switched on. Many sites including Facebook and Instagram can allow you to post a photo alongside the location. This can be helpful to others who may decide to visit that site or attraction themselves in the future. However there is a potential downside as it allows strangers to become aware of  your whereabouts and could open yourself up to potential danger and, in the event of posting abroad, a burglary at home. 

It's interesting to see how much the performing industry has changed in such a short period of time. I am currently involved in an amateur production of 'Singing in the Rain' and the bulk of our promotion work is being conducted through Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Only a few years ago the promotion would have relied upon the sending out of flyers, putting up posters or placing an advert in the local paper.

In 2013, a law was passed in the UK meaning that any images appearing on Facebook, Instagram and Flickr without any Megadata (a unique form of identification) will be considered to be 'Orphan works' . As a result, the ownership of this image is then lost to you and it can be reproduced and potentially sold without having to pay you any money. So it seems to me that, you should try and ensure that you have something added to enable you to keep the digital ownership of the photo or music clip. 

Task 1C - YouTube Clip

This task was a lot harder than I anticipated!

Being a performer ,I should be used to working in front of a camera. However, when you are performing on stage or on camera you aren't you, you're acting as someone else and reading lines that have been printed in script.
So, to sit in front of a camera and talk about yourself and your feelings is quite difficult.

https://youtu.be/w3RKaAL6n0c

However, here is my first ever vlog...Enjoy :)

Task 1B - Professional communication technologies

This task scared me the first time I read the brief, what is Web 2.0? I hoped that it wasn’t something highly technical because I’m not great with technology.

My first point source of information was Google; Google always has the answer. However, if I’m completely honest, it only served to confuse me further. It said:

Web 2.0

ˌwɛb tuː pɔɪnt ˈəʊ/

noun

          The second stage of development of the Internet, characterized especially by the change from static web pages to dynamic or user-generated content and the growth of social media.

I can’t say that definition enlightened me much further so I turned to trusty YouTube; I usually resort to YouTube to learn how to do new things and it has helped in the past in such diverse areas as make-up to knitting to baking tutorials.  After scrolling through numerous videos and listening to a lot of technical mumbo jumbo, I stumbled upon this video made by a group of teenagers;

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxID2GQWaqI

It is a great, low tech, insight to what web 2.0 actually is and it has a wonderful stick man animation.

In short, web 2.0 is a term defining changes to how people use the web now, comparing to how they used it back then!!

For our generation who have grown up with the internet it has become a vital part of our daily lives with an ever growing list of applications for communication, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Pinterest, YouTube; it’s a brilliant creation to keep us all connected?

This made me think about the age old argument, are these technological advances a good or bad thing?

I personally am a fan of Web 2.0, I believe that it is a positive asset in today’s society but shouldn’t be overused or relied upon as a sole source of information. I think it has helped broaden our minds and stay in contact with people however, I also feel that it can create a lot of unnecessary drama.

There are a many positives and negatives surrounding Web 2.0.  Here is an article discussing a few of the points; 

http://www.acs.com/web-2-0-%E2%80%93-positive-vs-negative-effects/

I come from a large family and have cousins scattered all over the world, New York, Australia and Canada. When I was younger you had to wait for a postcard or letter to find out how they were or what was happening in their lives and by the time you received the news it was already out of date! Now, with social media sites like Facebook, I can look on their timelines, see pictures, comment on their posts or instant message them and have a full blown conversation at the touch of a button.  Facebook is great for those reasons, it allows you to maintain a connection with friends you make on holiday or family that live far away. It can have its downside however. Facebook used to be a medium in which you could express yourself or somewhere to upload your silly holiday snaps but nowadays you must be conscious of what you are posting and who exactly can see it? I had a clause in my contract that stated I wouldn’t post anything about my job or company on any social media site. As I work in education and want to be a teacher, it is important for me to come across as professionally as possible. I have been through my privacy settings and made adjustments to my name to ensure that students current or previous cannot find me.

It is important to remember that employers and companies are not trying to control your life. No one is going to stop you going out and having fun but at the end of the day  they are just trying to protect their reputation and do not want their company, school, business to be reflected in a bad light. All they would ask is that you think of any implications before posting a potentially embarrassing photo onto the web.

Having a CV has always been important and how you present yourself at interviews or auditions is crucial; however your online presence is becoming increasingly more important. Employers will check your social media account to see if you are the kind of employee they want to represent their company. Once information is on social media or the internet is it very hard for it to be taken down. Many professionals maintain two separate accounts. One for their personal life and the other for work.

Another downside to Web 2.0, perhaps one of the biggest and most common is "trolling". Trolling is when a person deliberately posts outrageous or off-topic messages in group chat rooms with the intent to upset and provoke an emotional response at their own amusement. Trolling is completely anonymous and in extreme examples it can have fatal consequences. 

Is the art of conversation a dying form? I often sit on a train and watch groups of friends all glued to their phones rather than talking to one another. Are they actually communicating amongst themselves via social media? Sometimes I too am a culprit of this absurdity. I will check my phone when out to dinner with my friends or in the cinema. If I have left my phone at home or run out of data it feels like I have lost a limb… I use my phone to find out information instantly or show my friends a video on Facebook or YouTube. I do believe we need to make more of an effort to interact in person rather than being so focused on the cyber world.

I wake up in the morning and I check Facebook and Instagram; I personally check them at least 10 times a day, sometimes I’ll scroll through then check it again to see if any new stories have appeared. The cyber world has such a strong hold over us and it is scary how much information we can find out about an individual at the click of a mouse.

Albert Einstein once said, “I fear the day that technology will surpass our human interaction. The world will have a generation of idiots.”

Is Web 2.0 hypnotising us?  Opinions? 

 

Task 1A - Professional Profile

CVs are vital when it comes to applying for a new job. They are essentially your potential employer’s first impression of you and, we all know, you don’t get a second chance at a first impression. You may have the most incredible inter-personal skills but unless you are called for an interview you will not get the chance to show them off. Your CV helps you get your foot in the door and secure that all important interview; I have seen my previous employer discard CVs for poor grammar, spelling mistakes, looking cluttered or even because they are too long.

 I have two CVs; one that I submit for performing jobs and the other for what I would call ‘regular’ jobs. Regular jobs are what performers do in-between professional work – bar work, retail etc – a job is a job and beggars can’t be choosers, it helps to pay the bills.

My ‘regular’ CV incorporates my personal qualities, skills and achievements as well as the previous experience which would make me an ideal candidate for that job. On the other hand, my performing CV includes the genres of dance I trained in, my vocal range and performance experience that I gained whilst training.

Like many people I have had to amend my CV countless times; to keep it up to date as a result of learning a new skill or to make it more specific for a certain role, for example, changing my headshot for a pantomime audition.

Putting together a successful CV is difficult but ultimately it’s about taking all your skills and tailoring them to the job you’re applying for. These are some of the questions that come into my mind when re drafting my CV:

There is no set or correct way to write a CV and I feel your CV will never be perfect as it is constantly changing, you learn new skills and you need to remove non relevant entries to ensure that you don’t lose the reader’s attention.

Having looked at other CVs, I have noticed how each one reflects the individual and how different they all are. I liked the way in which Laura Gregory used a pop of colour on her dance CV to make it slightly more unusual and highlight key areas. I never considered using colour but have now added it into my own performing CV.

I also realised that my previous CV was cluttered and very busy looking and, after reading blogs and articles, I realised the importance of a clear and concise CV.  Having now rearranged my CV, I feel that it is easier to read and highlights the key points.

My regular CV: 

My performing CV: