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1.
Leaving basecamp - webcast from Nepal - April 2006
About me
Award-winning Documentary Director/Producer and Cameraman. Trained at the National Film and Television School, I have been working freelance for the last 12 years and am based in London.
I specialise in strong characters, observational documentary, the drama of real-life stories and emotional impact. In the last few years, I have worked on adventure programmes in the Amazon and Himalayas - environmental issues and human rights in Indonesia, Iraq & South America - and current affairs in Africa. I am particularly interested in finding new ways to bring together the appeal of a good character story with the substance of more issues-led programmes. I usually shoot myself, bringing a strong visual sense to my work, and am experienced in a wide range of camera formats from Hi Def to DV.
When not working on major projects I freelance as a cameraman and teach documentary workshops.
Credits and Employment History
Personal website: www.simonatkins.com
Documentary, Current Affairs, Factual. Characters, Global Issues, Emotional Impact.
UNSUNG HEROES
3 x 1minute, 2006
Jacaranda for Barclays Bank. Stylish corporate pieces following extraordinary staff in South Africa, Kenya and Ghana. Director and Camera
BRITISH ARMY EVEREST EXPEDITION - NEPAL
Daily Webcasts filmed, edited and uploaded during April 2006
PCI Fitch for the British Army and Bravo. 30 short videos were filmed and edited on location about eight novice teenage climbers in the Himalayas. Director/Camera/Editor
EXCELLENT ADVENTURE - MINNIE DRIVER
1hr, 2005
Princess Productions for SKY One. Adventure and travel series with celebrities. Minnie Driver swims with humpback whales in the Kingdom of Tonga. Director/Camera.
LIVING WITH REFUGEES
1 hr, 2005
Insight News TV. CH4/Discovery Times/CBC/CNNI co-production. Award winning presenter Sorious Samura spends 30 days living with Sudanese refugees on the border with Chad. Director/Producer.
So different to see real people up close, struggling with what we take for granted. I held back so many tears...it was truly a moving story. typical viewer feedback
ONE LIFE
40 mins, 2004
BBC1, Mentorn. "Dying to Live" - Gritty Ob Doc on family living with cancer. Camera
"An intensely moving and positive film about a family coping with dreadful misfortune." - The Times
GOING TO EXTREMES
1 hr, 2004
Channel Four, Ideal World Productions. Observational character doc crossing the Atlantic Ocean on small boat. Camera-director
DEATH ON THE AMAZON
1 hr, Digi/DVCam, 2003
National Geographic & CH5. Big Wave Productions, Producer Sarah Cunliffe - Brazil and Venezuela. A powerful character story of adventure and human endeavour. Renowned yachtsman Sir Peter Blake leads his team up the Amazon on a crusade to save the environment, culminating with his tragic death at the hands of pirates. Directed
and filmed over 10 weeks.
"Truly Compulsive Viewing" - Daily Mail Pick of the Day - "A powerful memorial to an exceptional man" - The Times
IS ANYONE LISTENING? 20 mins, DV, 2001
Cicada Films for 'Save The Children'. Producer Frances Berrigan - Northern Iraq - Kurdistan. Charity campaign prog. Director/Camera
THE REAL MACAW
1 hr, DigiBeta/16mm, 2001
Granada Wild for Channel 4, Exec. Producer Peter Moore - Peru and Brazil.
Innovative programme-making creatively combining a quirky biography with environmental issues and blue-chip natural history. Director and Cameraman.
TWISTER TOURS 1 hr, DVCam, 2001
National Geographic Channel - Actuality documentary with the tourists who chase
tornados in Midwest USA. Fast-paced action filming. Location Director and Cameraman
TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH - Revenge Of The Lost Tribe
1 hr, DVCam, 2000
Cicada Films for Channel 4. Producer Frances Berrigan - Ecuador. Observational adventure documentary with strong characters and narrative - a student expedition is attacked by an Amazon tribe. Co-Director and Cameraman
Sharply observed and hugely amusing - John Dugdale, The Sunday Times
BUYING BEAUTY
30 mins, Digi-Betacam, 1999
Cafe Productions for Discovery and Geo/Arte - Ethiopian model agency looking for talent in remote villages - Cinematography
INVESTIGATING ASIA 20 mins, DV, 1999
Double Exposure for BBC Education - Indonesia/Borneo. Filmed undercover in the weeks before Suharto's fall from power - an environmental investigation with emotional human stories. Director and Cameraman
SEVEN GO MAD IN PERU 1 hr, 16mm/Hi-8, 1996
Middlemarch Films for Channel 4 and Discovery Channel. Producer Belinda Allen. Actuality documentary. Ten weeks in very tough conditions. Seven young Brits try to survive in the Amazon jungle - Cameraman,
Peru - Director/Cameraman, UK
A gift of a film which charts the total breakdown of meaningful interaction between the seven intrepids Time Out
OSAKA STORY
75 mins, 16mm, 1995
Fine Cut BBC2, SBS (Australia), S3 (Germany) - Japan and Korea. Feature observational doc. A real life and intimate family drama requiring much tact and sensitivity - Associate Director and Cinematographer
Winner of five major documentary Film Awards
Engrossing compelling fascinating - its concerns and appeal are universal Geoff Andrew, Time Out
PARKS OR PEOPLE?
40 mins, 16mm, 1992
Forest Films for SBS, BBC2 and TVE. Environmental programme independently produced. Five months in Cameroon. Producer/Director/Editor and Cameraman
BBC/WWF Golden Panda Newcomer Award, Wildscreen 1992
Affiliations
Memberships:
BECTU
GTC
Industry Qualifications Working in Hostile Regions and First Aid for Media Workers - CH4/AKE 2 courses
National Film and Television School 1994
MA - postgraduate professional training over four years.
Documentary Director/Producer with Camera & Lighting training in film, Digi-Beta, and DV
Industry Awards
Golden Hugo, Chicago International Film Festival 1995 (Osaka Story).
BBC/WWF Golden Panda Newcomer Award At Wildscreen 1992. (Parks or People?)
BBC Mick Burke Award for new film-makers 1988 (Sangay)
Education Selwyn College, Cambridge University 1986
MA degree - Natural Sciences - Class 2:1 Hons.
4 x "A" - levels at A Grade
Technical Equipment
Lightweight HDV and DVCAM kits - with dedicated mikes and protective cases.
Sound kits - radio mikes, directional & boom mikes & mixer.
Portable lights, tripods and various batteries/power options including solar panels.
Laptop-based editing.
OPERATING IN EXTREME CONDITIONS - Specialist skills in using filming equipment in adverse environments. Field laptop editing and satellite uplinks for webcast and broadcast. Technical skills - solar panels & generators.
Other Skills/Additional Information
Fit and immunised for world travel. I have considerable experience working in remote and difficult environments (jungle, mountains, deserts, oceans) war zones and working with isolated tribal peoples.
LECTURING/TUTORING - I have taught workshops in Directing and Camerawork in the UK and abroad with a focus on DV directing & multi-skilling in small crews. Courses and workshops at SOAS, Ravensbourne College, VET and private.
MOUNTAINEERING - Accomplished Rock and Ice Climber and Alpine Mountaineer - 20 years experience over six continents.
4WD Driving and Maintenance
Referees
Please ask me for full contact details.
Languages (C=conversational, F=fluent)
Spanish: C
Permits Australia EU New Zealand
Licences
Basic Driving (PLG) PADI Diving licence
Would you consider staff positions as well as short-term contract work?
yes
