My time here at Flame Productions began at the beginning of October and ended last Friday, 23 November. Two of my favourite highlights of my internship experience were watching Lyndey's live TV cooking segment at Channel 9 and 'the race that stops the nation,' the Melbourne Cup.
Channel 9
Lyndey was so kind in letting me accompany her to watch her segment on the Channel 9 morning show be filmed; I was also able to gain some live television production experience through observation. Although I am not all familiar with live TV productions, my Channel 9 experience was very valuable for what I hope to pursue in the future. Upon arriving at the network, I was led to Lyndey's workstation, which was a portable unit just outside the studio that they roll inside when her segment is about to be filmed. I had never imagined that this would be the set up for her to work with, but I guess you take what you get. Before Lyndey's segment, she was over in hair & makeup while I watched the Morning Show being broadcast. The set up was smaller than what I would have imagined, with news desk anchors not being in the same studio at all, but the small space did the job. Once Lyndey's segment was about to be filmed, they rolled in the portable kitchen workstation, which was quite small. However, I believe that for the purposes of the segment, 'Tucker For Tenner,' it works for them.
The piece was a bit rushed, something I wasn't expecting, but I suppose as long as the end product comes out fine it works for them. The dish did not seem overly complicated for the amount of time given, so a lot of prep work did not seem needed. Morning show food segments feel rushed no matter what, but it is quite a different experience watching the productions live; you are aware of how much time should actually be allocated for the dish to be properly cooked, but it just isn't possible with the time frames given on the program.
The studio was set up into three separate areas: two interview spots, and another area for segments, like cooking, fitted out with shelves filled with kitchenware. News room segments were recorded elsewhere, I assume in another studio in the building. All of the segments I witnessed were quite entertaining, and everyone was very kind in letting me feel welcome between shooting segments. The studio was not exactly what I expected, but then again, I've never seen live TV recorded before.
Overall, this experience was very helpful. Seeing the different processes in live broadcast segments vs. recorded TV programs is very valuable to understand.
Melbourne Cup
My first Melbourne Cup experience was absolutely divine. The day started off with sweeps on the race. I pulled Precedence, who unfortunately didn't win, but the race was phenomenal (more on this soon). When the time came in the day to have a break and watch the race, we broke out the cheese and wine. As we chatted, I realised how this race not only stops the nation, but brings people together as well. That's not to say that as a company we rarely speak to each other, but rather, sometimes we just need to come together and enjoy each other's company (and a little bit of friendly competition).
After the race, we celebrated an office birthday with a phenomenal cake made by Lyndey’s PA Julia. This Reese's peanut butter cup, chocolate pretzel extravaganza was pure bliss. The cake consisted of chocolate cake and peanut butter layers with crushed pretzels and a hint of coffee.
Melbourne Cup is the first time I've ever attended some sort of gathering for a horse race. You would think that the Kentucky Derby, the Belmont Stakes, and the Preakness (America's Triple Crown horse races) would have some sort of effect on the entire US as the Melbourne Cup does for Australia, but this isn't so. I think this might be because there are many sports Americans feel are more important to watch. It's been a wonderful experience seeing how excited everyone gets about sports here in Australia; every sport seems to have some sort of hold on Australia, whether it's cricket, AFL, or swimming.
It's been a wonderful couple of months here in Sydney, and I can't wait to experience more as I have a few more days left to soak up some beautiful Sydney sunshine!
Thanks Rachel - it was a pleasure to have you at Flame Productions. Lyndey x
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