ONE of Guyana’s television production personalities is passionate about returning the professionalism and training of persons in Television Video Production.

Kirk Clarke, owner of Clarke’s Production, recently sat down with the Pepperpot Magazine to share his perspective on ensuring that the professionalism of this vital resource is returned.

“Over the years, we have lost professionalism in the industry of media because everybody becomes a cameraman, everybody that holds a camera is a cameraman. So the camera insights of a person become personal…Back in the day, when you held a camera, you were taught that you are the eye of the camera and whatever you see is what the viewer is actually seeing. This provided great interest as it relates to filming,” Clarke disclosed.

Clarke further added that during his training days, certain technicalities of camera training were reserved for well-trained camera persons.
These included rolling of camera cables and the proper care of the camera as a device.

Clarke explained that television production is generically first a vocational training.
It is a skill that needs to be developed, he added

“People need to understand the intricacies of a camera. A lot of people can take pictures, but very few can take a photograph. It therefore means that when someone looks at a picture or photograph their interpretation of that photo is what it really is,” Clarke noted.

The future of television production
Over the years, according to Clarke, television production has evolved, therefore, the perception that it only takes a camera to do a movie is non-existent.

“ We have just trained 30 persons and have achieved remarkable success. All we have been able to do is allowed to use their cell phones as a medium. The use of technology has allowed to use your phones to do a commercial, movie and whatever you want to do. Samsung galaxy has gone into a new era, whereby the Glasses you have on can also be done during production because it can be picked up through Google wireless recording somebody and you can literally transmit this hundreds and thousands of miles away and go back later and edit it,” Clarke explained.

According to Clarke, for the very first time, Guyanese do not have to leave the country to become internationally certified because Clarke’s Production has been given a CARICOM-based certificate.
Another staffer of Clarke’s Production, Timothy Blair, noted in brief remarks that through the eyes of the lens, the story is sold.

“Given that Guyana is an oil-producing nation, everybody is interested in learning more about our country, and this is the perfect opportunity to be able to use the visual elements for us to bring forth the beauty that we have to offer not only in terms of culture, but in terms of our people, flora and fauna and in terms of our resources that we have available to us,” Blair told Pepperpot Magazine.

Clarke expressed that training is vital and critical for the survival of the industry and for it to remain to a professional standard.
“No country, no nation can do without television production because every day we are on Instagram, we are on Facebook, and all the other social media platforms. It is therefore critical to improve on the quality of the product /video/post you are putting out,” Clarke noted during his interview.