Welcome!

I’m Ruby, the editor of Signal Shift - a publication run by and made for people under 30 in the media and entertainment industry. We started Signal Shift when we realised that getting your foot in the door seems almost impossible as a young person, and the vicious cycle of ‘not being able to get experience without experience’ seemed bigger and scarier than ever. Signal Shift is a resource for people who want to break through the entry barrier, and to unpack industry knowledge, advice, initiatives and trends in an accessible (and non – condescending) way.

None of us really know what we’re doing yet, but we want to figure it out, and leave the door open behind us.

We’re all very excited to be at IBC this year, and to share everything we learn. It’s my first time attending so I’m not really sure what to expect, but I know it will be an amazing and informative experience – and hopefully a great opportunity to share our message. We’ve had a lot of support, and many people agree with us, but to start changing the larger mindset and making an impact is a different beast.

I think the biggest challenge that young people in the industry face today (and something that I have definitely experienced), is feeling unwelcome and dismissed when trying to get work experience. Working in media and entertainment means you need to be quick on your feet, have a specific set of skills, and a range of experiences and connections to succeed – all things that take time, practice and background (things that young people don’t have yet) – so it’s understandable why companies are hesitant to take us on.

However, the industry is ageing, and it seems it can’t keep up with younger demographics. I often notice that media aimed at my age group feels pandering, insincere, and cringy – like they are catering to a caricature of our age group, rather than actually understanding their market. The reason being that our voices aren’t heard by the people making and formatting content, technology, products for us – even though we know better than anyone what we want!

There seems to be a general pessimism throughout the industry, that ‘it’s hard enough for established professionals to get work, let alone unqualified teenagers’, and I get where this comes from, but what’s often overlooked is young people’s potential, for better ideas, taking on new roles, in a younger industry. We realised that we have to make these changes happen ourselves, rather than waiting for other people to realise how valuable we are.

At Signal Shift, we want to hear from established organisations about how they are supporting young people, how the industry is changing, and how we can find our way into it, but most importantly we want to hear from you! If you have any experiences, advice, knowledge or questions you want to share then this is the place. We are open to any discussions or topics, as long as they’re relevant to under 30’s.

Thanks for supporting Signal Shift, we’re excited to see where this will take us!

Ruby Stoneham

Editor