Background:
- The National Gallery, housed in an iconic building in London's Trafalgar Square, is a world-famous collection of Western European paintings from the 13th to 19th centuries
- Staffed by some of world's finest art academics, the organisation was regularly producing films fronted by these expert curators for both internal and external use - in addition, they were often asked to guest on various TV programmes
- The films were crucial to the Gallery - they were a way to increase awareness of the organisation's work across the social and academic spectrum; and, of course, this awareness was important in terms of ongoing donations and political and public support
- Management felt curators could do better - they were struggling to come alive on-screen and, as busy academics, were simply not able to find the time to script and prepare as much as they would have liked
- Recommended to us, we were challenged to turn this around
Solution:
- A day's coaching held at The National Gallery, Trafalgar Square
- The day was split into two - a group of 3 curators in the morning and 3 in the afternoon
- Content was broad - 100% practical, we covered ad-lib presentations to camera, scripted pieces, "walking and talking" and interview technique both as the interviewer and interviewee
Results:
- Success all round - curators and management were equally delighted with the results
- We showed curators how to deliver more effective presentations with very little preparation so they were more willing to participate in films
- With this new confidence, TV opportunities to promote its work were more readily sought
- And, with increased awareness and stronger films, the Gallery could justify the investment in coaching with a return as financial, academic and public support for its work saw increased renewal
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