Jeppe Sørensen, Labour Market Consultant.
Student at European Film College 2004-2005.
What did you do after EFC?
So, after attending EFC I worked in television for a couple of years. Basically being a runner on live television shows and sometimes working for free on people's film school application projects. It was hard work, low pay and a lot of fun. Some of my best anecdotes are from that time.
At some point I decided that I wanted to go to university to study. It wasn't a choice of wanting to leave film and television, but more a choice of wanting to study political science. Reflecting back on it I think that it was also a look at what a life with film and television would be like. I could see people who just knew that this was for them. That singular drive. A life of visions and conflicts, no regular paychecks and even less regular meals. And I loved the romance of that, but maybe not the reality of it. Of course there are many different careers and lives in film and television, but I could see that some of my fellow students were just gonna make it or go blind trying (quite literally). I didn't want to halfarse it, but didn't have the fire to go all in. So instead I went all in on a degree in political science from the university of Copenhagen, got a job working at the parliament and am now a labour market consultant for the unions in Denmark.
What did the EFC experience mean to you?
It was the first time I was really away from my birth home for a prolonged periode, treated - and having expectations put upon me - as an adult. That would make everyone grow, it certainly did for me. The fact that the programme is so long, and that it is centralised around learning a craft (which I think filmmaking is) is very important. You're not just moseying around. It's hard work. It teaches all the basic craftsmanship of making a film. But it also - sometimes painfully - spells out how much teamwork, focus, hard work and compromise goes into it. Socially it quickly became a small new world for me. I did a lot of weird stuff and I think I am better for it.
Is EFC a part of your life today?
Apart from the great memories and some friends that I don't see enough of, I think that it is very hard to dissect the person I am today into which pieces were influenced by my time at EFC. I do think I learned a lot about the importance of being part of a group and how much you rely on other people, when you want to make something come to life. I feel an immense - and completely undeserved - pride, whenever I spot a former fellow classmate in the end credits of something. Like I had something to do with that. That happens quite often. I love that.
In what way is film a part of your life today, if any?
Apart from former classmate-spotting I think it's pretty much as most other people. I mean Mark Le Fanu*) made sure I saw the classics; I'll always be grateful for that. Sometimes I'll notice an obvious red herring or a MacGuffin and think of Jim. It is somehow just really embedded knowledge in me, that I don't think I use, but means that I - maybe - go from just watching a film, to understanding and appreciating it on some other level.
*) Former film history teacher at European Film College