Our industry has just experienced its worst quarter ever. With almost 64% of panel members registering a decrease in marketing spend and two-thirds forecasting a pessimistic financial outlook, July’s IPA Bellwether Report has given us the hard data to prove what we have previously surmised.
Agencies need to respond fast or risk being side-lined. Three areas where I think we can make an immediate impact are: measurability, speaking the CFO’s language and the contribution we can make to our clients’ bottom line.
Clients are faced with a bewildering range and volume of different agencies and Covid-19 has given brands a good excuse to prune – as Ramon Laguarta, PepsiCo’s CEO, also says: “Sometimes a crisis helps [a company] to be more selective and to be more impactful, to generate internal momentum against simplification and focus against fewer and bigger. That’s what we’re trying to do.”
There’s also a growing threat to agencies of clients bringing elements in-house – both as a potential cost-saving exercise and as a response to ‘always on’ marketing communications. As Laguarta acknowledges: “[through in-housing] we can actually get the same or more value for less money, which is obviously a terrific outcome for the company.”
However, brands disrupted by Covid-19 need transformative ideas more than ever. Agencies are in a unique position. DDB founder Bill Bernbach sums it up well, gendered pronouns aside; “We think we will never know as much about a product as a client. After all, he sleeps and breathes his product…By the same token, we firmly believe that he can’t know as much about advertising. Because we live and breathe that all day long.”
Historically, our industry has not been brilliant at drawing a line between what we do and things the brand’s CFO would recognise and value. We now need to get better at developing this dialogue. In tough times this is harder, but even more important.
As agency people, we need to ask ourselves if we really understand the goals and objectives of the finance people amongst our clients. Have we got under the skin of their targets? These will be different to those of the CMO.
We need to establish what our common ground is and communicate our value in their language. Marketing done well can make a significant difference to a business’ bottom line. You only need to look to companies like Coca Cola to see how the intangible value of its brand value underpins the net worth of the company.
How much of the marketing jargon that we use in our industry day-to-day resonates with the CFO, and, in turn, how much financial shorthand do we understand? If having direct access to them is proving difficult, let’s look to our own resources. Are we making good use of our own finance people, for instance? They have all been schooled in same language – use proxies where it’s helpful to do so.
Equipping everyone with a basic grounding in the business side of the industry we’re involved in is important – a course like the IPA’s Commercial Certificate can really help with the fundamentals.
Demonstrating measurement and effectiveness is nothing new. However, given that client budgets won’t be getting back to pre-Covid levels any time soon, marketing departments and their agencies will be under more pressure than usual to deliver tangible results. That means even greater scrutiny for every pound spent.
We are up for that challenge at Armadillo. Our focus has always been on cost-effectiveness – it’s baked into our DNA . We are lean and results-driven and have consistently delivered good value for clients which has led to long-term relationships with clients such as McDonald’s and Disney. Despite working with a major client in the severely-impacted eating out sector, we’ve seen them double down on CRM activity. For example, while other channels have been cut hard, our budgets have grown. That’s mainly thanks to proving strong ROIs on a continuous basis pre-crisis.
We believe the goal should be to have an end-to-end relationship with customer – tracking all the way through from first point of interaction through to purchase, to help influence the decision-buying journey.
Now is the time for agencies to create clearly defined market positions in line with commercials. We need to fulfil our role of trusted advisors, drawing on and demonstrating specialist expertise, experience and performance. We need to stay focused and be even more open to collaboration.
Whilst this is not a time to be naive, we must also try to balance our pragmatism with optimism. The world is not coming to an end just yet. Take our worst hit client in the travel sector. We prioritised pivoting to meet a dramatically different set of challenges – by thinking like stakeholders in their recovery rather than hard-done by suppliers, we’ve seen projects start to flow again far sooner than we might have expected.
Agencies must keep scanning the horizon for opportunities and be prepared to move the business in new directions to stay in the game. We’ve long positioned ourselves as nimble and responsive – those that can now display those attributes will prove invaluable.
This has not been an easy time, but we need to avoid giving in to nostalgic defeatism. A crisis like this could kill agencies off, but equally, if we could get more on the front foot, learn from past successes and fuse those learnings with the good things we’re doing now, this could also be the start of our renaissance.
This article was written by Chris Thurling for the IPA on 17 August 2020.
Pre-Covid, creative teams benefitted from being in close proximity. This is mainly because one of the driving forces of creativity is (ironically) its infectiousness.
Being part of a creative idea gaining traction – being able to see, hear, and feel its potential – is why most of us do this.
Now, with the panic of lockdown beginning to fade, and the possibility of remote working remaining part of daily life for a while yet, we’ve been evaluating the ways we’ve adapted over the last few months.
While our technology enabled us to switch locations immediately, our creative habits needed a little aligning to ensure a smooth transition.
Seeing people’s expressions and body language is vital when briefing, sharing, reviewing and presenting ideas.
Being able to notice the difference between silence when they are excited and scribbling ideas, and silence from them drawing a blank, ensures you can keep things moving.
Creativity needs energy and nurturing, and audio alone is not enough.
Creating a way to bounce ideas around as a team when our four walls became two-dimensional was an initial challenge, whether they were conceptual ideas, executional solutions or UX planning.
We found using collaborative programmes, especially Google Chat, Google Meet and Google Docs, meant we could share work straight away.
Sharing screens and documents in small groups for live ideation, or sharing screen grabs or photos of sketches in larger project chat groups, ensured the momentum was never lost.
None of these programmes recreate the beauty of walls covered in layout sheets bursting with ideas; but programmes such as Miro allow us to get nearer to the satisfaction of problem solving with Post-it Notes.
It’s easy to become task-orientated when you can’t physically see your team and without strong intentions individuals can become siloed.
But it’s vital that ideas are seen and challenged by others. A fresh perspective will ensure ideas are robust and refined.
We have staggered project team video ‘scrums’ each morning which serve to not only align us to our goals, but also alert us to opportunities to collaborate outside our initial tasks.
When you’re physically surrounded by creatives the unplanned check-ins that occur when you catch a glimpse of a colleague’s screen, or overhear an exciting idea, are often the times when projects gain momentum.
To attempt to create these naturally and informally without the pressure of a booked ‘meeting’, the team is encouraged to frequently share roughs, and experiments either one-to-one, or in small groups, via screen shares in video chats or screen grabs or sketches in chat groups.
When things get exciting and we want to share wider, the seconds it takes to drop a Google Meet link into individual chats is far quicker than running around a studio looking for other team-mates.
All this constant sharing means that the team has also had to allow for calm times in order to focus and produce the work.
We’ve had to become better at prioritising our time; knowing when to ask for time to focus and how ensure others are getting it.
We’ve found that early afternoon is when we can carve out concentration time; and for this isolated working can be a blessing.
The last few months have affected our work lives more than any impactful event I have experienced during my career; whether worldwide, like the 2008 recession, or the more localised and terrible 2005 London bombings.
Everyone is navigating their ‘new normal’ in different ways, at home and at work. This makes finding the right time to check-in and support each other a bit of a challenge.
But I think our communication and transparency has been forced to improve; bringing us closer, and making us far more efficient as a team.
This article was written by Art Director, Hannah Waters, and first appeared on Mediashotz on 15 July 2020.
Do Something Digital is delighted to announce a partnership with Canadian audio guide tech company Spoken Adventures, in a bid to bring interactive audio to the European market for brands and consumers.
At the crossroads between a podcast, audio guide, and adventure game, Spoken Adventure’s technology offers a new way to experience storytelling by playing a role in the story through voice-based interactions. It can be deployed as a location based experience, just like a traditional audio guide, but runs on guests’ mobile devices, and it’s interactive, enabling users to ask and answer questions about what they see in an exhibit or read in print material. The application is geolocalized, and audio content can be triggered according to a users’ interactions or location.
Primarily developed for entertainment, Spoken adventures is also a game engine and can be used to create gaming experiences such as adventure games, treasure hunts or escape rooms. It can also be played from home using print material including books, posters, leaflets, postcards and inserts via audio capsules that are triggered by naming legends written within images.
Ex-coworkers, Paul Stancheris (Do Something Digital), and Eric Marradi (Spoken Adventures) originally worked together on projects at Triotech, a Montreal-based developer of interactive and immersive family attractions including Merlin Entertainment’s/LEGOLAND’s Ninjago interactive dark ride. They continue to be Triotech alumni members, and are both passionate about interactive media, and the children’s media & entertainment industry.
Paul Stancheris said; “we are excited to reunite for this new venture, and I believe combining our knowledge and experience of creating and delivering projects for publishers, broadcasters, and family attractions will provide a unique route to market, new revenue opportunities for brands, and an enhanced customer experience.”
Eric Marradi said; “Simulated dialogue is a great way to drastically increase learning and retention, and it’s great to be partnering with a trusted partner in Europe to help us educate businesses about the opportunities we can offer.”
Do Something Digital is the exclusive representative across Europe, and is currently seeking brand partners looking to enhance new or existing attractions, products and marketing initiatives.
https://dosomethingdigital.com/interactive-audio-guides
At OggaDoon, we love diving into brands and finding out their stories. Some of the most well known apps, search engines, websites and gadgets have really interesting stories behind their names. We decided to delve in and find out more…
In the 1990s the wireless communication field was being developed. Multiple corporations were competing which led to non-compatible standards of technology. Jim Kardach, an Intel engineer, was working on wireless technologies. He had been reading a book that featured King Harald Bluetooth, the Viking King of Denmark who reigned from 872-930 and united parts of Denmark and Norway. Kardach viewed the king as a symbol of unification between competing parties.
The competing wireless innovators united to form the Bluetooth Special Interest Group, which developed today’s Bluetooth standard. Bluetooth was intended to be a placeholder, but the name took off and still remains.
The term WiFi was developed when the wireless industry was seeking a name to refer to technology that adhered to standards known as IEEE 802.11. WiFi Alliance hired Interbrand, a branding agency, to come up with ideas and one of the 10 names proposed was WiFi.
A longer term for WiFi is Wireless Fidelity. This name was given because some members of WiFi Alliance didn’t want a name without a meaning behind it. Therefore, the tagline ‘The Standard for Wireless Fidelity’ was created alongside the name.
Googolplex is the name for 10 to the power of googol. Googol is the name used by mathematicians to reference 10 to the power of 100. Larry Page, co-founder and CEO of Google and Sergey Brin, co-founder of Google, liked the name googol because it reflected the vastness of the web.
In 1998, one of Page and Brin’s Stanford classmates, Sean Anderson, wrote names down on a whiteboard, trying to decide on the right one. ‘Googolplex’ was proposed, and the ‘Googol’ part was misspelled as Google, the brand name we know today.
Unlike most other Voice over IP (VoIP) services, Skype is a hybrid peer-to-peer client server system that was founded in 2003. The co-founders, Niklas Zenström and Janus Friis wanted this to be reflected in the name so the first iteration was ‘Sky Peer-to-Peer’ since the connection utilised peer-to-peer technology that worked without wires. This then developed into ‘Skyper’ to make it more catchy. However, skyper.com was already registered so they called their creation Skype.
Despite the fact that the name changed from ‘Sky Peer-to-Peer’ to Skype, Zenström and Friis still kept a nod to the sky element of the original name in previous logos designs that depicted a cloud engulfing the word Skype.
Founder Jeff Bezos originally planned to call his company “Cadabra”, an abbreviation of “abracadabra”. However, when his lawyer misheard this as “cadaver” he decided to think of a new name.
When Amazon was founded in 1994 Seattle, it was advantageous to have a brand name that began with an ‘A’ so it was at the start of the phonebook. This led Bezos to look through the dictionary to find a suitable name starting with ‘A’. He eventually settled on Amazon because it referred to the biggest river in the world. 26 years later and Amazon is one of the biggest businesses in the world.
Nintendo’s roots go back to 1889 when the company produced playing cards. These handmade playing cards were called ‘hanafuda’, or Japanese flower cards. In Japanese, Nintendo roughly translates as ‘leave luck to heaven’ or ‘in heaven’s hands’. However, there has been some debate over whether the translation could be even more literal than this. Another interpretation of the word Nintendo could mean ‘the temple of free hanafuda’, or ‘the company that is allowed to make (or sell) hanafuda’.
Nearly 100 years later, the company went into the toy industry and eventually the video game market.
When the co-founders of Apple, Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak, were deciding a name for the company in 1976 California, Jobs was a fruitarian. Jobs often visited organic farms to collect fruits and, when he and Wozniak were trying to decide on a name for the company, he had just returned from a visit to a communal apple farm. This led him to propose the name ‘Apple Computer’ as he believed it sounded “fun, spirited and not intimidating”. Another reason for choosing the name Apple was because, similarly to Amazon, it meant it would be at the beginning of the phonebook. In 1980 Jobs said his company is called Apple “partially because Apple is ahead of Atari in the phone book and I used to work at Atari.”
eBay started as ‘AuctionWeb’ in 1995. AuctionWeb was a website dedicated to bringing together buyers and sellers in an open and honest marketplace (so not much has changed there).
AuctionWeb grew in popularity and led to founder Pierre Omidyar’s internet service provider informing him that he would need to upgrade to a business account due to the high volume of traffic to his website. When this happened, Omidyar decided to spin it off into its own entity called ‘Echo Bay’ after his consulting firm, Echo Bay Technology Group. The domain name echobay.com was already taken, so Omidyar shortened it to eBay.
We bet some of those surprised you. For more tech chat (and a bit of digital marketing and PR thrown in for good measure), follow us Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn.
“I come from a creative and entrepreneurial family originally from St Thomas, Jamaica. My granduncle founded the Voice newspaper, my grandfather is a Reggae artist and my Mother is CEO of her own fashion company, so I like to think that influenced me to pursue my own dreams and carve my own path in life.
“Like most boys growing up in the 90s I was a big fan of anime. Shows like Dragon Ball Z, Pokémon and Naruto were regular scheduled programming at my home in Fishponds. It was my desire to recreate these shows in my spare time, through pencil and paper, that led me into art.
“Drawing wasn’t my strong point so it was hard to excel in art class, probably in part to me only being interested in drawing characters from my favourite tv show at the time! I was also into video games but, oddly, because I thought they were such a cool medium. I think I grew up in a time where video games were just beginning to be acknowledged as an artform, much like film and tv, and not just something that turns kids into ‘mindless zombies.’ I loved how video games placed you in the mind of the protagonist and allowed you to put yourself in situations you could only dream of before.
“Fast forward and this underlying love of psychology, art and computer screens coupled with a strong sense of ambition is what led me to where I am today – seeking to explore a career in UI/UX & Tech.
“Growing up I knew very little about the creative industries in Bristol. I think that’s what pushed me to study in Cambridge (Lord Ashcroft International Business School), but it was being away from Bristol and coming back that really opened my eyes to how vast and booming the city is which is why I moved straight back. So when I found out about the BMAA and that it was essentially a nosedive into the industry, I knew I had to apply.
“The biggest challenge I faced in my career was definitely making my first ever film, especially when it’s for a nationwide platform like the BBC and will be watched by thousands of people. The opportunity came about through the BBC New Creatives scheme. Managing a whole crew and cast of around 20 people whilst writing and directing a film is about 100 times harder than it sounds! But it was fun and the end result was well worth it.
“Now that I’ve won the BMAA and am travelling to Texas next week it’s hard to pin down what I’m most excited about. The food, talks, art exhibitions, film screenings, the robots… Or the world renowned ‘Southern Hospitality’? Honestly, I’m not too sure. But what I am sure of, is that I am excited. Funnily enough, I’m not really nervous about anything. My perspective is just ‘enjoy it’, take what comes with Texas and the internships as enjoyable experiences which I no doubt will learn and gain a lot from.”
Upon his return from SXSW, Okori and the BMAA runners up will have the opportunity to take part in a series of paid internships at local agencies. For more information about supporting the BMAA and offering a paid internship for Okori and the runners up, click here.
Bristol Media would like to thank our 2020 headline sponsor, ADLIB, for supporting the BMAA. Thanks also to Babbasa and the growing list of agencies who have committed to making a difference: Armadillo CRM, Tallt Ventures, McCann Bristol, Mr B & Friends, Oakwood, Immediate Media, Epoch Design, Halo, Torchbox and Diva.
The Centre for Creative and Cultural Industries, Bristol+Bath Creative R+D, creative writing incubator Paper Nations, and Oxford-based cutting-edge AI company To Play For, are offering up to ten fully-funded places to writers under-represented in the publishing and gaming industries in the South West who will use AI to revolutionise how we interact with characters in stories from games to movies and apps, in mobile, VR online and more. Up to three of the writers may go on to paid, five-week placements with To Play For.
From talking to Alexa, to using virtual reality and tech in immersive theatre, to the way we interact with characters in games, to innovations in TV narrative such as Black Mirror’s Bandersnatch, a revolution in creating stories and characters is underway.
This revolution is driven by AI (Artificial Intelligence). Innovation in machine learning will see stories told where the audience becomes part of the story and can interact with characters who have their own voices, emotions and memories, and who make their own decisions.
The opportunities are limitless, but the worlds of writing/storytelling and tech are still quite. separate and writers in the South-West for the most part have yet to explore everything AI has to offer.
Bambo Soyinka, Paper Nations’ Executive Development Producer: “We are collaborating on these workshops to bring interactive writers and the AI storytelling experts together. Like particles colliding, we believe new and amazing things will happen. We want people with experience in theatre, comics or gaming; writers who work in performing and telling stories in a range of ways, who can breathe new life into their characters and stories with AI.
“We don’t expect them to be tech-magicians, only to have basic computer skills and a keen interest in how we can use AI.
“We’re also acutely aware of the lack of diversity in the world of digital storytelling. Creating opportunities for writers of all backgrounds is at the heart of our mission, so we’re particularly keen to hear from people from under-represented backgrounds in the South-West.”
The workshop will provide a masterclass on the Charisma.ai platform, giving hands-on experience to the writers of how to adapt existing stories as well as create new ones.
To Play For Creative Director Guy Gadney: “What’s really unique with the platform is how we can use AI to create characters that adapt, learn and act based on events the audience or player controls; characters with their own voices, memories and personalities.”
The workshop is a new and exciting opportunity for writers in the region, a chance to work in the cutting-edge, rapidly evolving world of digital writing driven by AI.
The application process is now open on http://papernations.org/writing-for-all/call-for-action/ai-story-lab/. Applications close at midday on Thursday 12th March.
A new growth programme for South West-based technology start-up founders is set to launch in March.
Loop works by giving participants structured access to practical, helpful advice from local experts across a range of business services. These include investor relations, product development, human resources, marketing and PR.
The programme, for which participants are only charged a nominal fee to cover its costs, consists of nine monthly sessions. Each one focuses on a specific area of business, and is led by the specialist(s) in that field from Loop’s panel of experts. All of these individuals have been carefully selected due to their experience not only in their sector, but also in working with technology-based start-ups and scale-ups.
Loop is a collaboration between two Bristol-based organisations: accountancy specialists Affecton, and creative marketing agency Workbrands.
They realised that many founders find the task of setting up and running a small business quite challenging. Particularly when it ends up distracting from their true passion, which tends to be the product or service they’ve created.
Loop aims to change that by arming its participants with practical knowledge and advice, provided directly from trusted experts and structured to enable maximum benefit.
Workbrands founder and director Nick Farrar said: “We’re thrilled to announce that Loop is open for applications. During our seventeen years in Bristol, we’ve witnessed at first-hand the phenomenal growth of the famous South West tech cluster, and supporting its continued development is something we’ve spoken about for a while. So it’s great to launch a programme like Loop which offers so much value to founders.”
Roy Millman, owner and director of Affecton, added: “Start-up founders interested in participating in the inaugural Loop programme are invited to attend the official launch of Loop at the Engine Shed in Bristol on Tuesday 25th February.”
Interested parties can also visit loopbristol.co.uk to find out more information and register their interest in the programme.
A new user research and user experience (UX) lab has opened at Bristol’s Harbourside arts centre, the Arnolfini. It has been purpose-built for conducting and observing qualitative research and usability testing by UX and service design specialists Mace & Menter.
The lab consists of an interview room and a large observation room linked with high-quality audio and video streaming. Omnidirectional Shure studio microphones and speakers as well as 4k cameras, 65” screens help make up the comfortable and relaxed, researcher-designed environment.
Using a lab to observe how people use a digital product or service means companies can base decisions around future strategy and development on evidence rather than guesswork so the product has a higher chance of succeeding.
The space is available for use to Bristol’s growing technology sector. Mace & Menter will also use the space to run its own research – carrying out face-to-face depth interviews and usability tests – exploring a problem or a design concept with the people they are designing for.
Mace & Menter are specialists in service design and user experience for complex services. The team work with organisations, including the Government Cabinet Office, DCMS, Policy Lab, Scope, and V&A, that want to significantly improve the way people experience their services.
Bristol was also named the most important and productive tech cluster in the UK in Technation’s 2018 report with 225 start-ups and 35,924 digital jobs in the city.
Sam Menter, Mace & Menter’s Co-founder and Managing Director, says: “Our work is all about the experience of the people we design for, but also of the people we are working with. Experience is about so much more than what we deliver, it’s also about the journey. When we were designing and building the lab, we thought carefully about both the participant and the observer experience.”
He adds: “User research is fundamental to the way we work. We involve the users of a service in discovery and throughout the design process. Running research in a space where a wider group can observe means you get much more out of the work.
What’s your favourite place in Bristol/this area?
There’s a little curved edge on the corner near the Arnolfini, and if you look across the water towards the giant giraffe cranes at the right time, the sun comes around the M-shed and it is quite stunning. Whether you’re a student hanging out there, dangling your legs over the edge with a cider, or you’re taking the baby for a stroll, that little spot is particularly special.
There are so many wonderful things about Bristol, things that just don’t exist anywhere else. It’s so unique.
What are you most proud of as a business?
There was a real sense of pride when we moved into our new premises. Every single time we’ve done something big, whether it was moving or buying a bit of kit, it’s always been such a morale booster, and we get re-energised. But moving into Temple Studios at the beginning of the year was so different because it was suddenly our space, we had this ownership that we hadn’t had before.
Overall, we’re proud of the fact that every step we’ve taken has led to the creation of something that’s been a benefit for someone, as well as being beautiful and enjoyable to watch. So, any little production whether it’s a small 30 second piece or a TV campaign, we’re massively proud of what we can actually create as a team.
What’s your favourite office gadget?
Everyone else’s favourite is probably the coffee machine or PlayStation, but mine is our old 1930s film projector. It was a prop for a TV ad we created. We were so happy because it actually works! We’ve got Tom and Jerry reels and these amazing documentaries from Africa; it’s absolutely incredible. It weighs a tonne… But I love that thing.
What exciting plans have you got coming up this year?
Historically, we’ve organically grown by one or two people a year, but with the amount of work that’s coming in that’ll be accelerating very soon. We’ve already taken on another animator and we’re currently advertising for a camera operator. By next year we might be a team of 10!
The investments we’ve made in kit this year will mean that we can really throw ourselves at some huge projects. We’ve also been working on our passion projects, one in particular that we’ve been creating looks into masculinity and it’s gone really deep. We’re hoping to push that towards a broadcast commission next year. And this is all under the assumption that we’ll survive the Christmas party in Athens!
Whose work do you admire and why?
Aardman’s work is beyond amazing. I went along to Nick Park’s ‘Cracking Conversations’ event recently, and I just have a huge admiration for someone who can imagine what he can and just create it. I think they are really leading the way in Bristol.
But there are so many incredible companies in the area that are doing new things, like the Ultrahaptics team.
If you had one piece of advice for someone just starting out, what would it be?
The best piece of advice I can give anyone is just keep swimming. You have no idea where any little decision might take you. If I could go back in time and speak to my younger self, I would definitely say chill out, everything will work out the way it’s meant to. There are certain things you have no control over, so why worry about it? Make mistakes and learn from them.
In terms of actually getting work, we get a lot of emails from people wanting work experience with us and that’s absolutely a great thing to do; but on the flip side, there’s no problem in just making your own stuff. You can build a great portfolio of work when you’re not making it for anybody but yourself. It’s good to show off your own individual offering.
What’s the biggest challenge your industry/organisation is facing at the moment?
The constant changing landscape in the world of content is a challenge, people are being told they should be doing certain things, producing content like video and suddenly they’re thinking they should be doing that. Rather than thinking ‘what’s the problem I’m addressing?’ As a production company, we’re navigating through all the noise. And there’s a lot of noise out there that isn’t contextually relevant to anything or anyone. The big challenge for us is cutting through that noise with original, authentic content that tells a story and will make a brand sing.
To check out the full member profile for Jones Millbank or get in touch with the team, click here.
Since winning Our City 2018, winners Patch De Salis and Michael Doran have been busy creating new content and gaining experience with top production agencies in the local area. We spoke to them to find out more about the inspiration behind their films and what they’ve been up to over the past year.
“I originally saw the ‘Our City’ competition advertised at a networking event. It looked like a great opportunity that I wanted to be involved in, so I started planning what was to become ‘BeBristol’.
“I knew right from the get-go that I wanted to feature my friend Urban Mckenzie (the star cyclist) in the film, since we had worked together before and he would tie my selected scenes of Bristol together nicely.
“My brother Wilfred de Salis offered to compose the music and co-direct the film, so I graciously took up his offer as he is an excellent film composer. We contacted friends, clubs and groups to showcase in the film before we began filming. It was important to me to show varying locations, cultures and people.
“The highlight of my experience has been the exposure, which has led to current work. I have been filming for various clients and musical artists, as well as creating my own films and working towards starting my own limited film company. My most recent film featuring Bristol’s acclaimed rap artist ‘Jay0117’ is about the day in the life of an inner-city Bristolian, reflecting on societal issues, lifestyle and UK culture. (Check it out on YouTube – Jay0117 – A Day In The Life.)
“The companies I met along the way that provided work experience have been a great influence and I hope to gain future collaborations with them.”
“I heard about Our City on Twitter in 2017. I follow Marvin Rees and he tweeted about the opportunity. However, I knew for my idea that I needed to film the city’s summer festivals and by this point I’d missed that opportunity, so I waited until the competition returned the following year.
“I watched a video on YouTube made as part of Detroit’s pitch to Amazon to have their new HQ built there (obscure, I know!). It celebrated the history and culture of Detroit in a way which I believed lots of the tourism videos of Bristol available online were missing. Needless to say, I was massively inspired and felt I could use this as the foundations of the film!
“The montage nature of my film meant filming across the year at a variety of locations and events. It was the first time I created a film whereby I had to collate footage in this way which was a great experience in itself. However, it also taught me how to keep motivation going on a project once you’re over a year into it.
“It was also my first time collaborating with another creative, my incredibly talented friend and fellow Bristolian Joey Mitchell who wrote and performed the words for the voice-over. This was an invaluable experience as it opened my eyes to the potential of working creatively with others as prior to the competition I’d only ever worked by myself.
“Of course, the prize money was also very useful as it enabled me to invest in some new equipment which has further improved my production quality.
“Since winning, I’ve completed my A Levels and began my gap year, I’ve been undertaking several other projects and doing some freelance work. I’ve also completed a week’s work experience at Icon Films – an opportunity that I was fortunately offered thanks to the competition and its partners.”
We’re now welcoming applications for this years’ Our City competition, and the deadline is the 30th November. To help anyone wishing to apply, we asked Patch and Michael if they had any advice for future applicants:
Patch: “If I could give a piece of advice to future applicants, it would be to try and show Bristol in the unique way that you see it rather than accommodating to an audience in an un-natural light.”
Michael: “I would say get shooting! I was fortunate as I had a clear vision however that is often rare. Sometimes you just need to get out there and shoot and an idea will come to you. If like me, you do have a clear vision, then don’t beat yourself up if the end product isn’t quite what you imagined – it rarely is. In my opinion, that’s all part and parcel of being a young creative!
“In addition, don’t be afraid to ask for things (politely of course)! I shot many of Bristol’s events with a media pass that were kindly given to me by the events and their media teams. This also opens up the opportunity to make new contacts who you can potentially work with in the future.”
The brief is to produce a 90 second film or animation that captures your view of Bristol and what makes Our City the most creative, rebellious, diverse and pioneering place to be. Submit your entry by clicking the link below – you’ll need to provide an online link.
The winner receives a £1000 prize and the opportunity to work with local partner companies to build your skills and experience. Competition closes on 29th November 2019, we’ll announce the results of this year’s competition in December.
Be sure to follow the updates onTwitter @FilmOurCity
You can follow Patch’s work on his Instagram @patch_productions and his YouTube Patch Work Productions.
You can follow Michael’s work on his website michaeldoranfilm.net and his YouTube Michael Doran.
Main image photo by Vanilla Bear Films on Unsplash