The Television Academy has announced its 2018 changes in membership requirements as approved by its Board of Governors.
Among the changes is the expansion of membership to include personal publicists in the Professional Representatives Peer Group, short form writers in the Writers Peer Group and colorists in the Picture Editors Peer Group.
“It’s the Television Academy’s mission to create a membership body that reflects the many diverse professions and endeavors of those working in the television industry,” said Hayma Washington, Television Academy chairman and CEO. “These membership changes are indicative of the ongoing effort to more closely represent our vision of a progressive and inclusive television community.”
New membership eligibility rules changes include:
Professional Representatives Peer Group: Active Status (voting) membership now includes personal publicists who are actively engaged in publicizing individual artists, a substantial portion of whom appear or work in nationally viewed television programming. All applicants must have at least three years experience as a personal publicist, and all requirements must be met within four years preceding their application for membership.
Writers Peer Group: Active Status (voting) membership now includes writers with credits on at least 120 minutes of professional short form programs that have had broad domestic or verifiable international consumer release. The short form programs must have an average content length of 15 minutes or less.
Picture Editors Peer Group: Active Status (voting) membership now includes Associate Producers/Post Supervisors and Colorists with a minimum of four years working on nationally exhibited content, full-time for 24 of the last 36 months.
Additional changes include:
Motion & Title Design Peer Group: Additional positions of employment have been added including Creative Director, Art Director, Animator, Compositor, Editor, Illustrator, Typographer and Creative Producer. Members must have worked a minimum of three years that includes at least three Motion & Title Design credits.
Sound Peer Group: Additional positions of employment have been added including Engineer, Monitor Mixer, Playback Mixer, Production Sound Mixer and Re-Recording Mixer. Members must have worked in these areas for at least three consecutive years or have verifiable credit on at least 25 hours of nationally exhibited programming within the past four years.
Makeup Artists/Hairstylists Peer Group: Active Status (voting) membership now requires work on at least 25 nationally exhibited episodes (previously 25 hours of programming) within a four-year period, plus a minimum of two years’ experience.
Reality Programming Peer Group: Active Status (voting) membership now requires individuals to have completed at least 26 work weeks (previously two calendar years) of reality television programming; or have at least 20 credited episodes in at least two of the previous four years.
Florence Adds Director Parker Schmidt To Its Roster
Boutique production company Florence has added Parker Schmidt to its directorial roster, marking his first signing for representation in the U.S. Schmidt found his way into directing from his background as a competitive downhill skateboarder, where his world travels and brand relationships catalyzed a lifelong passion for film. Now behind the camera, Schmidt’s work embodies high-grade art direction, intentional craftsmanship, and lensed moments that capture the human experience.
Following his career in action sports, Schmidt was accepted to MASE Art School in Berlin, after which he began working as an art director for brands like Leica Camera, Nike, and Corona Beer. Once introduced to commercial filmmaking, his directorial style came to life, shooting ads across Europe, the United States, and the Middle East.
His body of work includes spots for Lexus, Cadillac, Porsche, Hyundai, REI, CHIMI, Aero Airlines, Apple, Free People, Sharenow, World Sports Games and The Wall Street Journal. Schmidt remains committed to pushing his artistic boundaries as a filmmaker, frequently directing creative shorts like Bowl of Life, Ascension, and the experimental short Requiem. He’s won accolades like Best Sport Film at the Santa Monica International Film Awards and Best Skateboard Film at the Mountain & Adventure Film Festival.
Schmidt said of signing with Florence, “I clicked so quickly with [company founder and EP] Jerad Anderson when we met on a project for Lexus earlier this year. The same goes for [managing director/EP] Ned Brown, who immediately showed a profound interest in getting to know me and what I aspire to achieve. The creative alignment of the stars was set in motion to build trust and... Read More