Ali Yassine
What films/projects/programmes are you working on?
I'm planning a drama-doc on Lawrence of Arabia for S4/C and I recently made a three- part documentary series on a football team of asylum seekers in Wales - Away from Home for BBC Wales. I have also directed episodes of EastEnders and Pobol y Cwm.
How did you enter the industry?
I was a member of a reggae band, Level Vibes, in the 1980s, and helped do some ethnic minority programmes for both BBC Wales and HTV after meeting broadcasters while playing music and working as a publicity officer on the Grassroots (City Centre Youth project) in Cardiff. I came from the city docks area from a family of Egyptian/Somali roots so I had experience of a wide diversity of cultures and wanted to work in television. I began to make community videos for a Chapter Arts Centre Video Workshop in Cardiff, and, as a Muslim from Cardiff, I'd met all kinds of people by then and wanted to find my own voice. I took a Welsh language course at the University of Wales in Cardiff to help cement a Welsh identity, and that helped me win a place on a two-year Cyfle training course. I trained as a Second Assistant Director and the course enabled me to gain work experience with eight companies and to travel all over Wales.
How would you advise people to begin their careers in the industry?
I'd say watch everything - films/ documentaries/ animation - any field which you may want to enter, and be prepared to find out how programmes are put together. Don't be afraid to learn from people younger than yourself. You should also be prepared to network and build new relations. The industry is an emotional roller-coaster, especially for freelancers, and you have to sustain yourself.
What skills or attributes do you need?
You need to be really thick-skinned as you take some hard knocks and rejections. You need stamina, determination and motivation.
What was your biggest career break?
Getting the chance to direct a block of EastEnders programmes. I've done quite a lot of presenting and acting for S4C over the years and I applied three times, unsuccessfully, for multi-camera training for Pobol Y Cwm. I like doing everything; it's as much a hobby as a career for me and I just wanted to develop.
In one year I did as much diverse directing work as I could as an independent and sent work to the BBC in London, and gained a training place at BBC Elstree working on multi-cameras (as a trainee studio director) before the EastEnders opportunity came along. That was tremendous experience. You might do 250 scenes in 10 days, 50 scenes a programme, much more than at Pobol Y Cwm, and you can be using as many as seven cameras in the studio, quite a challenge. I also benefited from taking a three-year drama course at the University of Glamorgan, graduating in 2000.
What formal qualifications do you need for the industry?
I'd recommend Cyfle courses. I think industry-led courses are more valuable today than college Media courses. Employers want people who have had proper training and work experience.
