What do I need on my resume to land a job in new content formats?

We’re in a big shift in the entertainment industry right now. With traditional film and TV shrinking and consolidating, the creator economy is growing, and companies are experimenting with a lot of new formats. There are jobs for creatives and production professionals! But they don’t look quite the same as the jobs you’ve held in the past, so if you’re applying for roles in emerging media, your resume will need to communicate you’re absolutely capable of succeeding in these new types of roles.

There’s no one-size-fits-all trick that will get you hired in emerging media formats – that’s too dependent on the open role, the type of media, and your history. But there are some key things to include on your resume if you can do so truthfully. 

Working on low-budget projects. A lot of new content formats use smaller budgets and fewer resources than your typical film or TV show. If you can demonstrate that you’ve successfully worked on projects that had a smaller scope (and maybe you held more than one job function on those projects), you’ll be able to convince hiring managers that you can produce great results in their workflows.

Innovation. Audience tastes and habits are changing rapidly, and companies are responding in real time to test new types of content that will resonate. Plus, there are so many new technologies, both AI and not, that are impacting production. If you can highlight times you’ve created a new workflow, launched a new type of content, expanded a format in an interesting way, or led a totally new initiative, hiring managers will see you’re forward-thinking and adaptive in a way that lends itself to their new format. 

Understanding audiences. Audiences are increasingly agnostic, and they will gravitate toward the content that speaks to them. But there’s content overload, and everyone is chasing eyeballs, trying to find that way to get a sustainable audience. For some companies, that’s focusing on carving out a niche – and if you’ve worked within a specific niche successfully in film or TV, you can emphasize that when applying for roles in new formats with similar audience targets. Similarly, if you have experience working across genres for multiple demographics or on large-scale projects, you can bring that expertise to a company looking to make a new kind of blockbuster. Bonus points if you can show expertise in audience data, interacting with fans, or building engagement.

Global experience. A lot of new media is produced in collaboration with partners outside the US. If you have experience shooting in other locations, working with international teams, creating for international audiences, localizing content, speaking another language, living in another country, and so on, make sure to highlight that in your resume! Some of this experience can even be outside the realm of your work experience – think about your entire story and what your perspective is.

Versatility. The best way to show you can take on a new format is to show you have experience with that format or you’ve previously adapted to multiple new types of content. This is straightforward and easy if you’ve had a truly versatile career. But it’s also possible to demonstrate if you’ve spent your whole career in film or TV. In that time, did you work on an IP adaptation? Did you source development ideas from different formats or think about ways to repackage your idea to a franchise extension? Did you produce special features or BTS features? Oversee an edit with multiple deliverable specs for different teams’ usage? This can also be a skill you developed outside of work: Maybe you planned events for a community group you volunteer for, or run your own social account for your side hustle, or moonlight as a wedding photographer. Even thinking beyond media formats, can you highlight areas where you’ve had to adapt, work on many deliverables, or wear many hats? That will paint a clear picture for the hiring manager that you can take on this new challenge.

If you’re reading this list and panicking that you don’t have these skills, don’t worry! Try to find a way to build them to help futureproof your career. If you’re currently working, take on projects that will help you check off some of these boxes. If you’re not, try to take on freelance work that expands your skills, or invest time in a course or volunteer work that will give you this experience. 

And if you do have this experience already, make sure it translates onto the page. And keep your head up – you have a lot to be confident about! That’s really important as you navigate a shifting industry.