Kate Teal-Spicer is a Newcastle-based filmmaker and artist who worked as an intern with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) Religion & Ethics program Compass as part of the 2024 Createability Internship program.
The Createability Internship Program is an initiative delivered through Create NSW, Screen NSW and Sound NSW, in partnership with Accessible Arts that provides pathways to professional development for creative practitioners with disability or who are d/Deaf.
Kate shared her thoughts with Screen NSW about her time working as a program researcher at Compass.
Tell us about your experience at ABC in the Compass team. What did your role as research intern involve?
It has been amazing. Everyone at Compass has been welcoming and helpful in giving me an insight into the industry, the program and its structure, as well as the opportunity to experience working for the ABC. My role involved researching different stories, including homelessness, yoga and a new religion, all fascinating! I have also been on location to do research and filming, as well as seeing people working in the editing suites and sound recording the narration. Compass is a fantastic program so I’m excited to get to see the rest of the season with my behind-the-scenes knowledge of the stories coming up and how they were made.
What skills were you able to develop during your internship and what other practical insights did you learn?
It’s been great getting to develop my research and investigation skills on different episodes. As well as building on my industry network getting to meet so many brilliant creative people and hear about all the shows in development. It has also been great just to watch other people in their roles – getting to see how other people operate the camera, what settings they prefer for the best look, lighting, sound, producing and how they structure and edit a story, how they utilise the research to build and support the narrative. It has been brilliant to gain this insight.
Did the experience at Compass match your expectations? What surprised you most?
Working on Compass exceeded my expectations. It was the first time I had gone into an environment where I did not need to try to hide my disability or explain or justify why I could still do the work. I didn’t have an appreciation until now of what an accepting and supportive work environment is like. On one evening I was invited along with other Compass employees to Maddie’s (Madeleine Stewart’s) comedy show, Are You Pulling My Leg? It had a line-up of disabled comedians who put on a hilarious inclusive show that had live captions and sign language interpreters which was brilliant. Compass has shown me how easy it is to be inclusive and made working with them easy.
Has the experience given you any ideas about your future plans?
I already enjoyed doing research and now I know that shows like Compass are so accepting of people with disabilities I feel more confident that working in the industry is a real possibility. I met with Kaz (Karen Stingemore) who did the internship last year at Compass. She told me about her experiences since her time on the internship which was inspiring!
Do you think you’ve made an impact on your host, or that future employees with disabilities may benefit?
I think it is valuable for Compass employees to work with people who have varied disabilities and who all have the same goal of making great television. I found that everyone was open and happy to respond to any adjustments that helped me do the work. I hope ABC continues to participate in this internship for other creatives with disability to continue to get the incredible experience I have enjoyed.
Why do you think programs like Createability are important?
I think it is vital to have programs like Createability – having the opportunity to come down to Sydney to the ABC to get real hands-on experience about how a program is made has deepened my knowledge and understanding. I’m sincerely grateful that I was given the opportunity. I have gained confidence, experience, insight, consolidated skills, and expanded my horizons, as a result of the opportunity afforded me by Createability and Compass. Thank you Createability, the ABC and Compass!
Kate Teal-Spicer bio
Kate Teal-Spicer is an Australian artist, writer and filmmaker based in Newcastle, NSW. Kate studied a Bachelor of Arts TV and Film Set Design at the University of South Wales in the UK, graduating with first-class honours. In the UK, she worked on various TV and film productions including BBC's Doctor Who, the Welsh soap opera Pobol Y Cwm, and an independent feature film in London, to name a few. Since coming home to Newcastle in June 2020, Kate has worked on various art, music and film projects including a solo exhibition Primary Escapes, as the production designer on Luca Brasi's Party Scene music video, and as the art director on feature film Beat. She is currently working on her PhD in Cultural Studies at the University of Newcastle, creating a documentary about female healthcare challenges.
Image credit: ABC Compass celebrates another great Createability internship (L-R) Amber Ma, Tracey Spring, Kate Teal-Spicer, Julia O’Shea. Image supplied.
