Looking back over 2024
2024 saw a rise in antisemitism globally because of the ongoing conflict in Gaza. I was therefore honoured when asked to capture a testimonial with Holocaust Survivor Manfred Goldberg, courtesy of the Interlaw Diversity Forum
2024 has in many ways been as turbulent as 2023, and in some ways more so. There are still a lot of creative freelancers struggling to find jobs - in July BECTU reported that 52% of the UK film and TV workforce were out of work. Fortunately, the corporate world has proven to be a bit more stable, although not without its surprises. For me, an unusually busy winter led into (an even more unusual) quiet June and a rollercoaster of an autumn! Every time I attempt to find some sort of pattern in the work the industry throws me a curveball! This serves as a reminded that there are inherent risks with freelancing, and as I’ve mentioned in a previous post, this lifestyle is not for everyone. Scrolling through LinkedIn I have daily reminders that a lot of people in other professions, both creative and non-creative, are struggling to find any work at all. It appears that many people have been forced into freelancing; a far scarier proposition than taking a calculated risk - ideally with lots of thought and preparation - to hopefully achieve a more rewarding career, greater work life balance, an increase in income or any combination of these things.
So, what could have made this year so turbulent?
The first budget from a Labour government in 14 years? Unlikely the sole cause, but I can imagine it has made business owners nervous about investing when national insurance increases will be making their staff more expensive. On the flip side, this makes the case for hiring freelancers stronger because they don’t have that commitment!
AI posing too large a threat? Possibly, although from my experience AI is so far proving to make mundane tasks easier or provide a starting point for creatives to do what they know best, rather than replacing us completely. Whilst nervous about it in a wider sense, I’m a firm believer that us creatives must use it to our advantage otherwise we will get left behind. There are a few ways I use it in my workflow (I’ll be covering this in a future post); however, the use of AI voices and image generation is understandably concerning.
Of course, there are many other risks and challenges that could be affecting the freelance market. Inflation, the geopolitical situation giving companies the jitters, climate breakdown etc. It’s all just a little bit depressing and I’m sure a lot of us will be in constant fight or flight mode!
However, despite all the endless doom scrolling I’ve managed to make it to the end of another year! Still here plugging away, just trying to make the best moving image content possible for all my clients, no matter which sector they operate in or where their audience watch the content. And luckily, there is quite a lot to celebrate…
Here are some of my favourite projects from the past 12 months:
Filming interviews for Twisters - The Real Story
Tornadoes, horror & punk rock, with New Wave Pictures
…but not all at once!
The year started off with a whirl as I was fortunate enough to capture interviews for Twisters - The Real Story, a 1 hour documentary coinciding with the release of the sequel to the 1996 action flick. Directed by Robin Bextor, the programme combined never before seen footage and interviews, which took place in a London studio and at the University of Reading’s Meteorology lab. I learnt a lot about the thrilling world of storm chasing - apparently the driving is the most dangerous part of it!
You can watch the full documentary now on Amazon Prime.
Twisters - The Real Story, Directed by Robin Bextor. Available on Amazon Prime
At the University of Reading’s Meteorology lab
As the year went on I also helped New Wave Pictures capture interviews for other programmes on equally interesting subject matter, from interviewing Chris Packham for a piece on The Stranglers to learning about how the terrifying 1922 version of Nosferatu was made, to coincide with the release of the new Robert Eggers film. Exciting and informative times!
Some behind the scenes pics below:
Also available on Prime: Nosferatu - The Real Story. Directed by Robin Bextor and Produced by New Wave Pictures.
Celebrating 90 years in business, with Russell Finex
The promo
Regular client Russell Finex celebrated their 90th anniversary this year and after having previously made several case study videos for them, they asked me to refresh their main promotional video. Combining 90% new footage with 10% archive and incorporating some graphic assets, the aim was to look for creative ways to improve on an already very good promo. I decided to use 2 cameras to meet this brief, opting for the Panasonic GH6 on a gimbal with an ultrawide lens to capture their impressive West London facilities and the EVA-1 for mids and close ups of machinery and people. A series of short testimonials were also captured on the shop floor with staff who genuinely loved working there and their authenticity was captured on camera.
After filming various manufacturing processes and staff over a 2-day period, Russell Finex were absolutely delighted with their new promo. That’s what we like - happy clients!
Some screengrabs below:
Punchy promos for the finest London theatre, with Kostis Nikolas
Catching up with the cast from The Years, performed at the Almeida
One of the joys of being a freelancer is becoming exposed to sectors that you might not have ever considered working in while getting to work with other talented creatives. 2024 was a fantastic example of this as long-time collaborator Kostis Nikolas brought me into help him shoot exciting, energetic promos for some of the most highly respected London theatres. Taking a sneak peek into rehearsals for various shows at the Almeida, Donmar Warehouse and Stratford East, we captured fly on the wall footage of actors in rehearsals, using 2 Sony cameras (an A7Siii on wides & mids and an FX6 on close ups) for both rehearsal b-roll and interviews. Schedules would often be tight as the cast and crew worked towards their deadlines, so we needed to work quickly whilst disrupting rehearsals as little as possible.
He would then edit them into punchy 90-second promos that gained some good traction online. One such show ‘The Years’ at the Almeida, sold out almost as soon as the promo went live!
You can check out some of these brilliant promos below:
Roots and Look Back in Anger for the Almeida Theatre, starring Morfydd Clark & Billy Howle.
The Cherry Orchard for the Donmar Warehouse, starring Adeel Akhtar & Nina Hoss.
The Last Time You Saw Me, directed by Richard Mundy, starring Chelsea Edge (Death in Paradise) and produced by Entity Film Co.
A finished film, with Entity Film Co.
And last but certainly by no means least, and more than 4 years since we started pre-production, I am pleased to announce that our indie feature film The Last Time You Saw Me has been finished. Ready to seek representation with a view to selling in 2025, it has been a long journey for the filmmakers. Finally, our pandemic project will get an opportunity to find an audience!
I don’t currently have any clips that I’m allowed to share but stay tuned for updates in 2025. Find out more at IMDB. But for now, here are some screengrabs from the film. I can’t wait to be able to share this project with you!
And outside work…
Life as a freelancing father (one year on - can you believe it?!) continues to be wonderful, although it has generated its own set of challenges. Most notably, dealing with the dreaded nursery phone calls; other parents will surely relate! Not great when working to deadlines. However, the flexibility that working from home offers (for the editing at least) makes this easier to a degree, as well as having a very supportive family. What’s most important at the end of the day is that our beautiful little girl is happy, healthy, and thriving!
Now for some strange reason, I’m getting to do this less and less these days…but the diving journey still continues! This year I took my PADI Underwater Navigator course, working towards my Advanced Open Water (the longer, but more instructor supervision route) and although the British weather kept raining on my parade, I managed to get on a great boat dive down to 14 metres whilst on holiday in Spain. Better visibility than the UK at least!
So, that’s it for another year. Whilst there are many exciting things to look forward to in 2025, all that’s left to say now is: