Hayden Kracke

Can you tell us about your career journey since graduating from Ravensbourne, including any roles you secured while studying?
In my first year of university, I secured a work experience placement at Lifted Entertainment (Part of ITV Studios) on a childhood dream show, Ant and Dec’s Saturday Night Takeaway. This allowed me to get connections and contacts in the industry and actually gave me my first paid role on the show. I then was a runner for 2 years across multiple shows such as Saturday Night Takeaway, The Big Breakfast, In For A Penny, Big Brother and more. I then moved up to Production Secretary on Netflix’s Building The Band and have been working in the role for the past 2 years on shows such as I’m A Celebrity, Squid Games: The Challenge. For the past year I have been working on Love Island, Love Island All Stars and about to move onto I’m A Celebrity…Legends.

What initially attracted you to study BA (Hons) Digital Television Production at Ravensbourne, and how did the university support your development?
It was actually my college lecturer who told me about Ravensbourne. As someone not from London, I didn’t really know which University to choose, and picking one in London definitely opened loads of opportunities for me. Access to a live TV studio and gallery really attracted me to Ravensbourne. The University allowed me to gain experience in the industry during my studies which in turn allowed me to apply the skills I have learnt in real world projects.

What types of projects did you work on during your course, and is there one experience that particularly stands out?
The course is very hands on, and that was so useful. You learn every single genre, from live broadcast to drama. One module that stood out to me was from our studio production unit. For this we were given free rein to conceptualise, plan, shoot and edit in a group. The show was a massive group effort from the whole class and we were able to film pre titles all around London. Then, we had a treasure hunt around the university where we were able to use equipment from Kit Store to stream cameras wirelessly into the gallery. This created a massive pre-recorded show with a live feel to it.

How did Ravensbourne’s industry links and live briefs help you build professional connections and gain real-world experience?
As part of our units, we organised and filmed the live event for the London Sports Awards. This included making VTs and the live event itself and allowed us to work with client briefs and understand how everything works in the outside world. It also helped me understand which career path I wanted to take after my departure from Ravensbourne.

What advice would you give to current students hoping to work in television and live broadcast production?
I would say to just get stuck in. Don’t just set on one role on every project. Try out all the roles and you might find your niche and what path you want to take with your career!