Lucas Tong and Donna Taberer

"It’s hard to know where to start when talking about how my fabulous mentor, Donna, has supported me. Donna’s support has been both practical - through our sessions where we set up a proactive, action-based framework for seeking jobs, and emotional - where she offers me an experienced reassuring ear and words of encouragement.

"I know (from experience) that I can call on her when I’ve been navigating a new career milestone - a contractual negotiation, transitioning between overlapping jobs, or needing a second set of eyes and ears on an idea!

"How Grierson facilitated our mentor-mentee relationship was brilliantly structured and appropriately light touch - offering me support and guidance whilst also empowering me to take responsibility for, and get the most out of my mentor-mentee relationship” – Lucas Tong, 2023 Grierson DocLab core cohort

“It's been a great privilege to be paired with Lucas and to be able to be his mentor. He's clearly a huge talent who is going to have a stellar career in this industry. But it has been a difficult year for all freelancers, and it's been important to be on call to guide him as he starts to build up his credits. As with all mentoring, I genuinely feel I learn as much from him. The Grierson Trust has a great support network in place to guide both mentor and mentee.” – Donna Taberer, Lead Training and Development Consultant at Amazon Studios

Mal Sen and Harjeet Chokkar

“I have found having Harjeet as my mentor immensely beneficial so far. He has really helped me focus on the areas I want to get better at as a producer and find ways to practically do so. He has also given me helpful advice on what I should be looking to do in the future as well as engaging in thoughtful conversations about the future of our industry. I always feel energised after speaking to him!” – Mal Sen, 2019 Grierson DocLab core cohort

“I have worked in television over 20 years and know how important and vital it is to have the guidance and support of those more experienced and senior. I have been lucky to have had the mentorship and guidance of some fantastic individuals and leaders and value the support they gave me and the impact they had not just on my career but my overall character and personality. Television can be a lonely and insecure place at times and I wanted to be able to offer pastoral and professional support to the next generation of programme makers, to be able to offer the knowledge and experience I have gained to help them.

“The Grierson trust is gold standard in supporting the next generation of documentary filmmakers and the internal team offer advice and support, as well as a structure on how to implement the mentorship to give the best outcome for both myself and my mentee. I felt I was embarking on a highly efficient and productive programme. Mentorship is vital I feel and seeing my mentee grow and learn is without a doubt the most rewarding part of it. I am excited about how he is going to develop and succeed in this industry.” – Harjeet Chhokar, Unscripted Development Executive at UK Originals, Amazon Studios

Grierson DocLab In Focus: Production Management

Shanice Bolding and Gemma Kemp

“The mentorship was such a fabulous experience, I looked forward to each meeting with Gemma. I gained so much insight and knowledge from the experiences and expertise she shared with me. Gemma also kindly introduced me to her network and provided me with the opportunity to work with her at Full Fat TV, where I was able to acquire new skills whilst enhancing my existing experience and abilities.

“The Grierson Trust supported me to get the most out the mentoring by setting a structured mentoring package, which enabled me to really think about what my goals were and get the most out of this valuable mentorship.” – Shanice Bolding, 2022 Grierson DocLab In Focus: Production Management trainee

“I found the mentoring experience to be a fantastic opportunity to help someone new coming into the industry gain insightful knowledge on how the whole production process works in order to help make great TV content. Shanice was an absolute delight to work with and I have thoroughly enjoyed mentoring her this year. She took notes on everything we discussed and really engaged with me throughout the whole mentoring journey.

“I was delighted to help give her a job working at Full Fat TV, which only further developed her understanding of working within the industry and expanded her skillset. I feel Shanice gained so much from the experience, but even as her mentor, I did too! I would absolutely do this again, it is so important for us all to keep training new entry level students.” – Gemma Kemp, Production Executive at Full Fat TV

Grierson DocLab In Focus: Editing

Iqbal Khokhar and Julian Hart

“Julian and I had six mentoring sessions together. In our allocated slots we discussed various aspects of editing and film making in general. These mentoring sessions were invaluable as it gave me a rare insight and access to an established industry editor that I would not have been able to contact so frequently without the Grierson Trust’s expansive network. The sessions benefited me massively as I could ask the questions I wanted and receive detailed answers and knowledge which gave me the confidence to try new things in my own edits and improve my own skills.

“To track my progress and make sure we stayed focused in our sessions, the Grierson Trust provided a template which helped us both to think of what we wanted out of the mentoring sessions. We discussed films Julian had worked on and equally projects I was working on. Our sessions were varied from understanding the footage we work with all the way to sound design. I have built a good relationship with my mentor, and I know I can contact at any point with a question or support, and they would be happy to provide knowledge based on their experience.” – Iqbal Khokhar, Grierson DocLab In Focus: Editing 2022 trainee

“Yen Yau, The Grierson Trust’s Director of Training Programmes, was extremely helpful in setting out the mentorship process. She gave me a clear framework to how to best help my mentee.

“My mentee chose some excellent subjects to discuss which made for a very enjoyable few hours. It was very rewarding to see that my advice was useful, and that my mentee was clearly deriving some benefit from the process. Since completing the mentoring programme my mentee has contacted me for professional advice. It’s edifying to feel that you can help allay concerns and worries that might be difficult for the mentee to discuss with colleagues. I would happily repeat the process.” – Julian Hart, editor and director