Lauren Corlett

After months of researching potential areas of study, she finally had her lightbulb moment. Film had always been a passion, and growing up in Greystones, she was constantly surrounded by productions and film sets—watching with fascination as crews rolled into town to start filming. As she sifted through countless course descriptions, one finally stood out: the Film and Television Production programme at DkIT.

“I spent a long time scouring different courses to find the right fit,” she says. “When I came across Film and Television Production at DkIT, it felt like a no-brainer.”

Compared to some of the other courses Lauren had explored, DkIT had “a little bit of everything covering several elements of the industry.” This seemed like the ideal pathway to get a taster of a variety of roles within the sphere of film making without having to specialise straight away. The practicalities of the course and state-of-the-art facilities such as the edit suites and TV studio were another draw towards the Institute. Looking back on her chosen course, Lauren says there was “no average day” and with film projects always on the go, she was constantly kept on her toes.

“I used to make short films when I was a kid, on an old family camcorder. I taught myself how to edit and was constantly writing stories and scripts to film next, she reflected “It’s incredible to be going from a self-taught 7-year-old filmmaker using Microsoft Movie Maker to now having access and knowledge using industry standard software over a decade later.”

Her talent in both of these roles became increasingly evident during her time in DkIT. The short film Echo, which Lauren both wrote and directed was named as “Best Drama Short Film” at the Royal Television Society Student Awards. Echo was further recognised during DkIT’s Annual Film Showcase, where it won “The Samson Films Best Short Film Award,” which is presented each year to the best short film made on the year-long Film Project module in 3rd year of the Film and TV Course. Lauren’s Dissertation was also an award winner at DkIT’s annual Undergraduate Research Symposium.

From feeling uncertain about her future to becoming a multi-award-winning filmmaker and director, Lauren has valuable advice for anyone struggling to identify the right career path:

“Accept that trial and error is a part of the game and once you take a step back and analyse what makes you you, it’ll be easier to spot what field is the right fit