There’s no doubt being a wildlife filmmaker is a grand line of work. If you’re interested – properly, deep down fascinated – by natural history then this may well be the career for you. It’s worth bearing in mind that you also have to be happy to spend hours, days and sometimes months being incredibly uncomfortable, away from friends and family, having trips cancelled at a moment’s notice and being prepared to while away much of your life in airports with tons of kit or wedged in some sort of flying contraption whilst losing the use of your legs!

So if you can wheel three trolleys at once, enjoy being a freelancer – for the most part we’re all freelancers – not washing, being bitten, deprived of sleep and no one really knowing where you are one month to the next, you’re on the right track!

A quick note before we get stuck in – about asking to shadow or to carry my bags – sadly, as budgets seem to be growing ever smaller, I rarely work in the UK, and given the very nature of the work and being a freelancer, it’s unlikely I can help, so please don’t ask.

I’ll always try to respond to emails, however, as I’m often abroad it may take a while, or would be happy to meet for a cuppa if you’re in my neck of the woods (East London) when I’m home.

With that in mind… as with most jobs there are many routes in: studying zoology or conservation, film school, as a runner, logger, edit assistant or researcher at a production company, through a bursary or scholarship, or via more specialised courses. Here in the UK, for example, there are specialist courses such as the MFA in Directing and Producing Science and Natural History at NFTS, UWE’s MA Wildlife Filmmaking, or more general documentary and filmmaking courses. As I have not attended any of these I cannot personally recommend them, but looking back on it I would’ve given my eye teeth for the knowledge one gets from a course like those at NFTS.

I slowly worked my way up and into the industry through much coffee making and basically being willing and able to do the most menial of jobs with a smile at all times.

Things have changed since I started, and there are now internships, apprenticeships, traineeships and mentoring schemes which can be useful ways into the industry. Some are excellent; others I’m less convinced by, particularly when someone with plenty of experience is effectively doing the job for an internship rate. If you’re starting out, though, it’s certainly worth keeping an eye on what’s available.

At the risk of being blindingly obvious I would say that the most important thing is to have a genuine love and interest in nature. I don’t think it matters a damn if you’re a man or a woman – yes, you have to carry kit but more often than not the real physical drain is the lack of exercise and the mental strain is not to be sniffed at either! After that, a large dose of self-sufficiency is mandatory, as well as the ability to work in a team – you’ll be doing plenty of both, sometimes in the same day.

The more you have to show in the way of showreels, photos and experience the better – and there is no excuse now not to be filming and editing your own material. People will understand the lack of access to big zooms and larger cameras, but you do need to show that you can actually make pictures and tell a story. You don’t need to have been on safari, or travelled to some far-flung part of the world, to start filming wildlife. There is plenty of it on your doorstep if you know where to look.

Plus if you do make your own work you’ll learn more about how to tell a story, and story, as we all appreciate, is everything.

It’s also worth watching wildlife films – lots of them. Know who is making them and what the different production companies are doing. They might be on television, YouTube or one of the streamers, but having a broad knowledge of what’s out there is important.

And if you come up with a great idea, or have some amazing footage of your own, be a little careful about who you share it with. If a production company is interested in an idea or sequence you’ve brought them and it makes it into a series or show, make sure you understand the terms and, where appropriate, that it’s clear what your role would be. It might not be as lead cinematographer – unless you’re really good! – but every production company out there is looking for unique stories and there’s huge value in that.

Keep your showreel short – less than three minutes is plenty – and accompany it with a good concise CV. Personally I wouldn’t smother it in music; there is a tendency to mimic blue-chip’s leaning towards the epic and you’d be better off with natural sound at times.

Someone who can wire a plug, Heath Robinson a hide from some gaffer tape and an old towel or get a Land Rover up and running has a better chance than the person who has watched a few YouTube clips or read an entire library of film-making tomes but has never shot a minute of footage. Oh, and an understanding of the ever-changing world of post-production, data management and what’s happening in technology doesn’t go amiss either!

The International Association of Wildlife Filmmakers is a good place to see who’s doing what and where. The Wildlife Camerawomen Community is also well worth knowing about, particularly if you’re a woman starting out in the industry.

Finally, some other cameramen and women who have excellent pages with their advice which are well worth reading:

• Warwick Sloss
• Sara Matasick — FAQ / wildlife filmmaking resources
• Nina Constable – 10 Steps to Become a Wildlife Filmmaker
• John Brown – advice for beginners

Sophie Darlington.