The Story of Digital Voice: Lucy Jolly
Over the fifteen years we’ve been in existence we’ve collected together a rather wonderful group of people who bring their skills and experience to our projects. Our freelance team is one of the aspects that make Digital Voice stand out from the crowd. Whilst some of our team have grown and developed with the company, others were already established in their field, bringing their particular expertise to our suite of programmes. This week we chatted to Lucy Jolly, a film-maker, broadcaster and lecturer about the work she has done with Digital Voice.
Lucy learnt most of her film-making skills during her 21 years working at the BBC, through a combination of on the job experience and the range of training courses they provide.
“I’ve worked mostly on factual programmes and documentaries, including Wainwright, Nurse, Junior Doctors, The Climbers, The Adventure Show and Grumpy Guides, plus some news and current affairs and big events like Children In Need, various elections, the Scottish Referendum, and the late Queen Elizabeth’s Golden and Diamond Jubilees. I also worked on Byker Grove during the early days with a very young Ant & Dec!”
Since leaving the BBC in 2006, Lucy has continued to work as a freelance director/producer winning a variety of awards, including the Royal Television Society, for her work on films and television programmes. As well as this work, she is a lecturer in film at Newcastle University where she is able to share her experience of the film industry with students who would like to enter the field.
We’re very grateful that she still finds time to work with Digital Voice as a director, producer and mentor.
“Julie Nicholson and Olwyn Hocking who set up Digital Voice had worked with me previously so they knew me and had an idea of what I might be able to offer and where I would be a good fit.”
Lucy has indeed been a good fit on a variety of our programmes, could she pick a favourite?
“There have been so many that I’ve really loved! A few favourites are: The Bully Book, working with children at a school in Byker to address bullying issues. Dance Bites, which was a project documenting the work of choreographer Dora Frankel who developed a series of dances based round Olympic Sports in the run-up to the 2012 Olympics. Way That I Am, which was a music video and involved working with some incredibly talented young women who had written and choreographed a song about female identity, and wanted to showcase it in a music video. Brighten the Day, a short film about Gateshead Council’s summer activity programme in 2021.”
And what is it about working for Digital Voice that keeps Lucy coming back for more?
“The inclusivity. Digital Voice works hard to help different people and groups of people find their voice, and it’s very rewarding to be part of that process and to see people developing new skills and being able to tell their stories.”
Thank you Lucy for being part of the team that makes these stories possible.
To find out more about the range of programmes we offer, click here.