Task 3a

Networks can be used for a variety of different things, both for self-advancement and for support and collaboration. Facebook being my main network is used, as I mentioned before, mostly for recruiting and finding jobs but it also has other uses. In the promotional groups people ask for help with tax, opinions on different employers and general discussions about the industry and people in it. I think it is great that people normally competing against each other for jobs can also be so helpful and generous to other people. Some people are in the groups just for their own gain which is also fine, promotions is a competitive industry and it is not always beneficial to help others. I think that when it does no harm to you however you should always be generous, especially in this industry. You never know when the person you just helped will need an extra member of staff.

My ideal network would be made up of friends and professionals. I know some people do not like to mix their social and professional lives but I enjoy work so much more when I carry it out with my friends. I have hired quite a few of my friends to my company and find the promotions always go better when we work together as we know each other and have a good time, which in turn makes the people we are talking to enjoy themselves. To make the network useful there would have to be people at a higher level than me involved but I would still want it to be informal. I think Facebook groups are the perfect way to do this. You can select the members and make it private so you know discussions are private. I am going to start my own group, first of all starting with people I work with directly, but hopefully expanding to people in similar fields so we can swap advice and tips.

I need to research more into my industry so that I know where to find these people and how to attract them to my network. I don't know where I want to go next with my career so need to include people from similar but different career paths so that both I and my current colleagues can see in what direction our lives could move. I think there are a lot of people in the same position as me with no current specific career plan so helping each other and finding others to help us is something I would really like to do. 

Task 2a and b

Writing a journal is not something new to me. As a part of my 3 year diploma we had to write personal journals every day. When doing it one of the problems I had was making it personal, I could easily report everything I learned for the day but I never put in my own opinions. As I got further into the three years I made a big effort to include more of 'myself' in my entries.

Mostly I used description but as I improved I added more and more reflection. It helped me to work out why I struggled with something in dance or how I came to conclusions about my character in drama.

I also used the technique of writing from another person’s point of view but in this case the view of a character I was playing. I now see that if I carry these ideas over into writing my journal for BAAP I can use it professionally. If I get a role in anything I will write my journal from my character’s point of view and see how it differs from mine. I know it will be a useful characterisation tool.

Task 1d reflection

Posting pictures on the internet is something there are many discussions about. I personally love being able to  share all my holiday and party pics. It means everyone else in them has an easy way to see them and access them. I also like that I can see other peoples albums and keep up with their lives through pictures. I have friends who have been out of the country for years and I still feel like I know exactly what is happeing in their lives through their facebook pics.
On the other hand we had some serious issues with facebook whilst I was at school. A girl a few years below me sent compromising pictures of herself to a person she thought she trusted and 2 weeks later they were on facebook for everyone to see. They were removed quickly but not before almost all the girls friends had seen them. Obviously at a school rumours spread like wildfire and the girl eventually left due to embarassment. This is quite a drastic case but some pictures changed her education her friends and probably many other things as well.
When using the web for images and even sharing images at all you need to consider exactly how they represent you and how other people will view them. If you do this then you can easily and freely share everything you want to.

Task 1d

I have decided to set up a Flickr account to upload my photos to.
I have put up some photos of when I was in The Wiz, some of them I previously edited on a variety of photo apps and some on Flickr.

Here is the link:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/108572012@N04/

Task 1c

I really don't like doing things like making videos of myself. I feel really selfconcious about it but anyway here is my short video on starting out on BAAP

http://youtu.be/9Lj9-m7dFZI

Task 1b Blogging

I have been thinking about why I find blogging so difficult and Facebook so easy. Although Facebook is a complete representation of me picture and profile wise it does not contain many of my opinions. To me blogging felt like I was forcing my opinion on others. Why would my opinion matter to anyone else or have any right to influence them. What I have come to realise after studying reader 1 is that it is not just shouting out an opinion but sharing and combining thoughts. I find it interesting to read others’ opinions so maybe they might find mine interesting as well. I also believe that doing something unfamiliar is always hard for the first time but the more you do it the easier it gets and the more connections to your normal you can make.
Writing blogs is like writing a status only more detailed and generally on a more specific subject. Now that I have connected the two I can see that what I am currently finding alien and difficult will get easier.

Task 1b

I never realised I was already using Web 2.0. in everyday life. I get a lot of work and ideas for work from Facebook and rely on it to provide my income. Without Facebook I would not have the job at Cellar Trends that I have now!

Now that I have read Reader 1 I see how much more productive I can be using Web 2.0. I can promote myself not only as an Actor but also as a promotional worker and many other things. I have also started adding and following people in the same line of work as me so I can get ideas and inspiration from them! This has already gained me one skill I would never have considered before; Stilt Walking. Without the push I got from a recent contact on Facebook I would never have even tried it let alone realise I was good at it!

This also leads me on to how important two way communication can be. I have never thought about normal “read only” websites and social networking websites in different ways. Now I see that Web 1.0. is vastly inferior to web 2.0. I think there is still space for the web to be “read only”. It is like a book -you wouldn't expect to be able to respond to the author straight after reading it and there is plenty of information and ideas that do not need response and therefore can be left alone. The pros of Web 2.0. is that you don’t have to be completely certain of what you are saying. If I write something in one of my blogs that is questionable or even completely wrong I hope that one of my class mates would correct me or give their opinion on the subject. This makes me feel safe that when I do form a strong opinion on something it is based on a well rounded group of writings opinions and facts.
The cons of Web 2.0. are that it is an open book, anyone can write in it and this can easily be abused! A good example of this is Wikipedia. Many children get set homework and jump straight on to Wikipedia to do it not realising that it can be edited by anyone and what they are using could be complete nonsense. I do feel that the web makes it too easy for wrong information to be passed around, especially for the younger generation many of whom would not think to check in a published book if their information from the web is correct. Despite some negatives web 2.0. has become an integrated part of life and will continue to do so as time moves on. 

My C.V.

I have always just used more of an overview of work I have done than a c.v. for jobs other than acting. My Acting c.v. is always up to date and well presented but from seeing the work other people have put into their every day c.v.'s I have realised I need to do the same. I will be spending some time on it in the next few weeks. My friend is a recruitment consultent and she has agreed to help me perfect it as she looks through hundreds each day and knows exactly what people want to see!

C.V.

SINGER.ACTOR.DANCER

Email: olivia.warner@rocketmail.com

Mobile: (0044) 7834412525

Website: _{http://www.wacarts.co.uk/diploma-graduates-2013/olivia-warner.html}

Nationality: British

Height: 5’5”

Eyes: Green/ Blue

Hair: Brown

Body Type: Slim

D/O/B: 26/05/1991

Playing Age: 16-25

Accents/Dialects: RP, Liverpool, General American, Southern American.

Singing Range: Soprano/ Belter

Singing Styles: Musical Theatre, Classical, Pop, Rock, Jazz.

Dance Styles: Ballet, Contemporary, Jazz, Horton,

Afro-Eclectic.

EDUCATION

3 Year Trinity Accredited Professional Diploma in Musical Theatre, Wac Arts

Kent and Surrey Academy of Performing Arts: Diploma – Musical Theatre

ATCL Performance Diploma – Musical Theatre Distinction

Associated Board – Grade 8 singing

LAMDA – Grade 8 Drama

Associated Board – Grade 3 Piano

THEATRE CREDITS

Character                                           Title                                                   Director

Crystal                                                   Little Shop of Horrors                          Vik Sivalingam

Lydia                                                      The Five Wives of Maurice Pinder       Martina Laird

Addapearle/ Ensemble                         The Wiz                                                 Matthew Xia

Maggie                                                 Cat on a Hot Tin Roof                         Indra Ove’

Avarice – Opal                                     Deadly                                               Steve Medlin

Jane                                                      Hotel S.A.L.A.G.I.A                             Adam Rhys- Davies   

Solo Vocalist                                         The Battersea Barge                             Rhona McGregor/James Beal (MD)

MASTER CLASSES

Musical Theatre/ Acting Through Song: Dan DeCruz, Rhona McGregor, Oliver Tompsett, Stuart Burke – microphone technique

Acting for Camera: Steve Medlin/BBC, Zoe-Anne Philips and Glen McCready

Drama: Che Walker (Royal Court/ Globe) – Meisner Technique, Cameron Jack – We Will Rock You

Dance: Etien Antuche Almeida – Cuban Dance, Alessandra Suetin – African Dance

Other Skills: Horse Riding, Choral Work, Tennis, UK Driving Licence 

Lightbulb!

This evening 3 of us had a skype conversation with Adesola and it really helped me understand more about the course. I started trying to work my way through tasks without understanding why I was doing them. From talking to Adesola I have realised that doing each task will lead me to further my own learning around my professional practice and blogging about that learning can be used as 'evidence' in my final essay at the end of module one. The example given was maybe realising that c.v.'s need to be separated so acting would be separate from promotional, if you wrote a blog about that realisation you could then reference that blog in the essay and therefore only have to take up a few sentences of the small word allowance in the essay explaining it.

I really hope that makes sense to anyone else who is confused? I still am not sure where my learning is headed but i now have a better idea of how to find out :-)

Blogging

Hi!
This is my first blog ever and I'm not really sure what I should be writing about.
After attending the induction for the BAPP course at Middlesex Uni I realised that blogging was an important of the course and have since been thinking about what to write about. I still don't know but I thought I should get started anyway.
I am about to go through my handbooks again and try to understand more of what is expected of me as part of this course!

Thats all for now,

Olivia x