K.J. Yossman Australian indie WFTN Entertainment – the company behind hit blue-light shows including “Bondi Vet” and “Paramedics” – is hoping to lure unscripted creatives Down Under in a new hiring drive, Variety can reveal.
WFTN says it has already identified 20 roles it needs to fill – including editors, producers, showrunners, post producers, field producers and production managers – and is prepared to spend up to seven figures to snap up a host of U.K.
creatives. That sum will go towards flights, accommodation and work permits as well as salaries. The indie says that due to growing demand – it reports an uptick in commissions – plus the post-COVID production boom Australia is currently experiencing means it is becoming increasingly hard to fill those roles domestically – which is why Steve Oemcke, WTFN Group’s co-founder and CCO, is now casting his eyes across to the U.K.
Among the shows WTFN is currently working on are a fourth season of “Space Invaders” and a still-to-be-announced crime and factual series for commercial broadcasters. “In common with most production companies, we have a healthy core team and then staff up with the required freelance talent for the duration of series in production,” Oemcke tells Variety. “However, the perfect storm of a buoyant domestic market, general skills shortages and our own increase in commissions, has left us with significant talent gaps.
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