During the summer break before my final year at uni I spent a long time thinking about what I wanted to create for my MMP. I knew I would be dedicating several months of time, energy and hard work to it so I was certain I wanted to cover a topic I was passionate about.
I decided early on I wanted to make a long form radio documentary as not only is it the media type I most enjoy creating but it is also the one I most enjoy consuming.
During the months of quarantine I digested more podcasts, audiobooks and radio shows than ever before. Radio allowed me to feel connected to the outside world in such a time of huge disconnect.
A topic that continued to take up a lot of space in my personal thoughts and in the public discourse was the lack of financial security everyone felt. Whilst the government's furlough scheme helped many people, many more were losing their jobs and livelihood as the days, weeks and months continued.
But simultaneously as we were all forced to stay inside and keep ourselves occupied many people found time to return to their passions and hobbies. We found ourselves being able to create again; paint, write, make music, design.
And winding these two shifts in the zeitgeist of COVID together I found the topic I wanted to cover for my MMP. I decided I wanted to discuss throughout my documentary the peaks and falls of pursuing your passion without financial security.
Now I had the initial idea for my project I spent time putting in more extensive research around the subject.
I listened to several podcasts discussing the concept of pursuing your passion without financial security including Secrets of the Side Hustle by The Times.
I also undertook further reading discussing both sides of the debate between choosing your passion over money and vice versa.
After doing this research my main concern was what new angle I could bring with my project.
From here I started reading further around the subject and discovered that another big debate was about those people that couldn't choose between money and passion. Research had been done into the lack of people from working class origins succeeding in certain industries.
After learning more about this I decided that this topic would be much better to focus on because I felt it would be easier for me to choose a narrow angle to focus on and I felt it was much more timely as we see this era of austerity becoming even more widely acknowledged.
When choosing my angle I decided if I covered just one industry it would allow me to convey a precise and detailed story. Initially I thought I could discuss the acting industry but I soon realised there was already a wealth of research done about this and so decided it was a too saturated topic.
Finally I settled on the fashion industry. Over lockdown there was much movement within the industry to make it less gate kept for its consumers. As we were unable to work and travel for most of the year, Fashion Weeks had to be put on remotely and shows were live-streamed globally for anyone to watch. Several brands saw their biggest audiences ever, a huge shift from the exclusivity of their invite only shows of the past.
I was eager to see if this shift has been paralleled in the behind the scenes of the industry. If you no longer needed an expensive degree or a Beatle's member for a father to make it as a designer, model or stylist.
Now I had my idea finalised I needed to decide on my chosen platform and target audience.
After researching different digital radios stations I decided that Foundation FM was the perfect place for my documentary.