Anastasia Bilyakova-Belskaya is a leading PR and media specialist for NLO TV. We met a few years ago, when Nastya just came to the channel, and I worked in another women’s publication.
Despite the fact that we have known each other for a long time, we only now had a global conversation on professional topics. But better late than never. So, about the specifics of the work of a PR specialist on television, projects, stress resistance, and much more, read in the interview.
# How did your PR career start?
Probably, from the fact that I strongly opposed this and yelled that I would never be a PR man! This “never” then often did the same with me … To me, a “journalist from birth” (my mother is a journalist, and I knew from childhood that I would do just that), it seemed that PR people were forced, dependent people who have to protect what they don’t like. Convinced of this thesis, however, she gladly accepted the offer of Dasha Tarasova (at that time Dasha worked as a leading public relations specialist for UFO TV) to take her place. Then I had no idea how much I would be “sucked” – I thought to try something new and return to journalism.
But “it didn’t happen like that, as you guessed.” Working as the head of the PR service for UFO TV (I was called that in the media for two years, although I was in our service), I realized that a PR person is generally everything and everything in the world. You manage documents, and written materials, travel to shoots, give assignments to photographers, create strategies, work as a psychologist/vest for actors/directors/producers, communicate with journalists, organize events, and even come up with and accompany PR -feature film campaigns! I sometimes go crazy with such a variety, but what a thrill! To understand that your “and the Swiss, and the reaper, and the player on the pipe” succeeds, is valued and positively transformed in favor of the channel.
We have been with the channel almost all his life. It has already been five years since I go to Borshchagovka (from Pechersk, Karl!), I correct all my friends, acquaintances, and strangers on “TiVi”, and not “TeVe”, and in every possible way support our channel.
# How long do you work on UFO TV?
We have been with the channel almost all his life. It has already been five years since I go to Borshchagovka (from Pechersk, Karl!), I correct all my friends, acquaintances, and strangers on “TiVi”, and not “TeVe”, and in every possible way support our channel. But I came to ULO TV as a site editor, and a little bit of a video editor, and a little bit of a programmer – I know a little about this kitchen too. This is the third year in the channel’s PR, although at times it seems that I have a year in five. Basically, I am a very kind and loyal boss, but there are things that make me feel like a Rottweiler.
# What do you value most in a team?
After about half a year, I finally officially have it! Ksyusha Chernyaeva, our PR manager, my assistant, and generally smart and beautiful, has joined our numerous PR services. I am very glad that now there are two of us – and we can turn the world upside down! And soon we will give a double result. And I’m also learning to delegate – for an idealist-perfectionist, this is a very difficult and very important skill. First of all, I value humanity. Another thing is creativity, efficiency, and attentiveness.
It is important for me that a person wants to do something and does it well. I am not a supporter of work from 9 to 18 – if you can do it on time and with high quality, but you will do it at night and on the islands – this is super. It’s terrible if a “specialist” wipes his pants in the office, endlessly scrolling through the social media feed and not having time to do anything, but he works out “working hours”. Basically, I am a very kind and loyal boss, but there are things that make me feel like a Rottweiler. These are mistakes! “My” people should write correctly.
# Can you remember a case after which nothing is really scary?
Oh yeah! These are my sleepless nights, half-eaten lunches, dinners and breakfasts, frantic “internals” and millions of nerve cells that no longer exist … This is the film “Infogolik”. We worked on it together with the head of the event department and PR manager of the Mamahohotala studio Tonya Pashmina, and together we survived hellish hell and heavenly paradise.
Infoholic was our first com, our first feature film experience. We took the actors to all sorts of broadcasts, recorded interviews with directors (I visited the Lira cinema for the first time!) and producers, accredited the media, painted invitations, “led” all the promotions dedicated to the film, knew by heart all the premieres in all cities and cinemas, could give interviews instead of the main participants in the process (we talked so much with them) and went crazy!
It was super heavy but just as cool! We felt like mega-professionals, became proud, and went on to work. A similar thing happened to me this year – with the PR campaign for the film “Meeting of Classmates”. Tonya didn’t help me anymore, but the experience gained while working on Infogolik allowed me to endure it all (thanks also to my Ksyusha and Nastya from the PR of the MMD Film Company) and burst into tears only once!
# Can you call yourself a stress-resistant person?
Not! I generally cry all the time. I cried every day at work for two years. I exaggerate, of course. In fact, I’m really hyper-emotional, but if something concerns work, I will do it “as it should” by all means. Therefore, yes, I am stress-resistant, but this is not accurate.
# What do you hate at work?
I can’t stand the taste and when the person is transferred to the work. And also when they “lay down” and “cakes”, but you already understood that. And I really don’t like it when they scold me all the time – when they don’t know how to appreciate and say a kind word. I try to celebrate what people do well and be sure to talk about it. Unhealthy criticism and the lack of a “carrot” is generally a killer of motivation. In my life, I felt this cool in my own skin, but, to my great happiness, for five years now I have had the best boss in the universe – this is the director of the UFO TV channel Ivan Bukreev, and he does not like it when I praise him. But I would wish everyone in life to meet such bosses who praise, help and show by example that if you have already taken up something, you should know absolutely everything about this “something”!
# How do you build work with the media?
I often say that I turned out to be a bad PR man because human relationships are much more important to me than numbers and indicators – this is probably wrong. I don’t try to force journalists to put something that doesn’t suit them in the format, for example (I don’t pay for publications in principle, so the only leverage is interesting material), and I don’t call back with questions if they put our press release, and I always give only unique texts. Firstly, because I worked for a long time on the other side, and secondly because in my understanding this is correct. The main principle of my work with the media is that everything should be good for everyone. And the channel, journalists, and the resource, will release high-quality material with good potential for viewing.
# If not PR, then…
Charity. Even now I try to help: ATO soldiers, people with terrible diseases, and animals. From the latter, my classmate Valya Moroz recently called out that homeless cats need to build houses so that they can winter normally. I could not pass by and threw money to the cats for houses. So far, this is a “small” good, but I want more.
If not for PR, then a health hotel for homeless animals! I want to create such a complex where the animals will be treated (if necessary), and then they will be able to live in “hotel” conditions – with food, volunteer caretakers, and warmth. I can’t look at street cats and dogs that have bones sticking out, that are mocked by subhumans, and that freeze in winter. Then everything turns outward for me … I want to be able to help not just a point, but to everyone-everything-everything.
