Written by Alumni & Friends
From making music on his old MIDI keyboard to now working behind the scenes on some of Australia’s most exciting films, Curtin Film & TV graduate Gavin Repton is pursuing his childhood passions one film at a time.
For the past seven years, Gavin has paved an impressive career in the film & TV industry as a freelance Location Sound Recordist and Drone Pilot, working on projects for BBC One, Discovery Channel, Channels 7 and 9, SBS Australia and the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC).
Recently, Gavin finished working on fellow Curtin graduate Zak Hilditch’s feature film, ‘We Bury The Dead‘, and has just wrapped up filming with Australian Director, Bruce Beresford on his upcoming film, ‘Overture‘.
Gavin shares how he managed to break into the Australian film & TV industry.
What has been the biggest standout moment of your career so far?
The biggest standout moment of my career so far was recording location audio on my first big feature film, which was ‘H is for Happiness’. It was a six week shoot in Albany, WA and I learnt a lot from that experience!
How did your time studying at Curtin prepare you for your current career?
I chose Curtin because its film and TV course had a great reputation. Having access to audio studios, editing suites and high-quality educators made all the difference.
The friends I made at university are the reason why I’m still in the industry. Making and maintaining those personal and professional connections is a huge skill to learn for someone wanting to have a successful freelance career.
What is your biggest advice for those trying to break into the Australia film and TV industry?
1. 𝑆𝑡𝑎𝑟𝑡 𝑛𝑒𝑡𝑤𝑜𝑟𝑘𝑖𝑛𝑔 𝑤𝑖𝑡ℎ 𝑝𝑒𝑜𝑝𝑙𝑒 𝑖𝑛 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑖𝑛𝑑𝑢𝑠𝑡𝑟𝑦 𝑏𝑒𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑔𝑟𝑎𝑑𝑢𝑎𝑡𝑒.
Reach out to industry professionals who do what you want to do and ask if you can get them a coffee and have a chat. Jobs will not come to you if you don’t put yourself out there!
2. 𝐷𝑜𝑛’𝑡 𝑏𝑒 𝑎𝑓𝑟𝑎𝑖𝑑 𝑡𝑜 𝑝𝑢𝑡 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟𝑠𝑒𝑙𝑓 𝑜𝑢𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒𝑟𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑠𝑎𝑦 𝑦𝑒𝑠 𝑡𝑜 𝑜𝑝𝑝𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑢𝑛𝑖𝑡𝑖𝑒𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑎𝑡 𝑎𝑟𝑖𝑠𝑒.
In film you can learn a lot and meet people by working in departments you might not want to work in long term, so put yourself out there!
3. 𝐹𝑖𝑛𝑑 𝑦𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑛𝑖𝑐ℎ𝑒 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑔𝑒𝑡 𝑔𝑜𝑜𝑑 𝑎𝑡 𝑖𝑡.
Invest time and energy into the area you want to be in rather than trying to master everything at once.
Watch Gavin’s exciting week in his life working behind the scenes on upcoming Australian film, Overture here: https://shorturl.at/MrkOR
Written by Alumni & Friends
