You Can’t Direct Dementia
Hi, Mike here,
As a director, I’ve always gone into projects with a clear vision. My role has typically been to guide the story, making sure every shot, every angle, every word serves that vision. Filmmaking is a craft that’s often about control—about directing outcomes. But my recent project with Dementia UK challenged this foundation in ways I hadn’t anticipated. This project, focusing on the raw realities of dementia, taught me that sometimes, the most powerful stories don’t follow a plan. You can’t direct dementia; instead, you have to be open to the story it wants to tell.
From the very beginning, I knew that we needed to approach these films with sensitivity and honour the dignity of the stories being told. But I underestimated what that would entail. When one of our contributors felt uncomfortable with an initial recce, we had to forgo our usual approach to planning. Without the luxury of mapping out locations, angles, or setups, we walked into unknown territory. This wasn’t just a logistical change to one contributor's story; it forced me to abandon my usual preconceptions and reminded me to stay fully present, adapting in real-time to what every contributor was ready to share.
Each person’s story of dementia is unique. It’s a deeply personal journey, and no two experiences are alike. For this project creating something “real and raw” meant being willing to accept what comes, as it comes.
During my research, I read an account from a woman who described dementia as “squeezing the life out of your loved one.” Her honesty underscored something that I needed to face in my work: there’s no room for softening the reality of this illness. To convey the pain, anger, and helplessness that families endure, we needed to show the truth. In three of the four stories, the focus naturally shifted to caregivers, revealing the complex, often heartbreaking transformations in relationships that dementia brings. By focusing on these family members—the ones watching and supporting—we were able to show the full emotional toll of dementia in an honest and vulnerable way.
Just as I thought I’d grasped what this project was about, I met Gail Gregory, our final contributor. Gail lives with early-onset dementia, and her approach to her diagnosis completely upended my perspective once again. Diagnosed at 54 and given seven years to live, she is now in her fifth year and has chosen to embrace this stage of her life with positivity and gratitude. She told me, “I see my dementia as a gift... It's given me things I would have never even thought of doing.”
Gail’s story showed that while dementia is often framed as a narrative of loss, it can also be a story about embracing life and creating joy, even in the face of an inevitable outcome. We needed to broaden our understanding of dementia, to challenge the stereotypes that cast it solely in terms of despair. With Gail, we made a film that was as much about living as it was about illness, about strength in the face of change. Her resilience showed us that part of honouring these stories means not only acknowledging the painful realities of dementia but also leaving room for hope, empowerment, and choice.
Ultimately, I measure the success of this project by the reactions of the families who shared their lives with us. A quick look at my socials will tell you that ‘selfies’ aren’t really my bag, but I was genuinely moved when each contributor asked for a group photo after filming. That small gesture spoke volumes about the environment we created together—a space built on trust and mutual respect.
In making these films,the real challenge isn’t just in capturing the footage or crafting the story; it’s in listening, in adapting, and in giving each person the agency to decide how they want their story to be told. Sometimes that means letting them say “no,” being clear about what we’re asking, and, above all, being willing to put the camera down when it’s needed.
These are the projects that unsettle you in the best way. They’re the ones that make you nervous during filming and hesitant to hit “publish” on the final edit. But they’re also the projects that make you a better storyteller. They remind you that sometimes, the most important stories can’t be directed—they can only be witnessed.
If you haven’t already you can watch Gail’s and Mahersh’s films here
The Best of the Best of Corporate films (according to us)
As you’ll have no doubt been made aware by our elite social media team - we got to attend the Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards a couple of weeks back, where we were awarded the prestigious White Dolphin. Somewhat embarrassingly, because of a busy few days ahead of the event we hadn’t actually had a chance to watch many of the films nominated alongside our own, something we’ve been busy remedying back at Nowadays HQ.
And since we’ve been so impressed with the overall standard of work (and let’s be honest, that’s not always the case in the corporate film world), we thought we’d pull out a few highlights we thought deserve an additional round of virtual applause.
Twisted Paradise | Stereoscreen GmbH for Schaeffler Technologies AG
Anyone who has tried surfing for an hour knows how knackering paddling out and getting on a board can be, even in the piddliest of piddly waves. That’s what makes this epic film about big wave surfer Sebastian Steudtner so bloody impressive. This is how you do branded content right - make fascinating or impressive subject matter the hero and don’t overtly impose the product or slather on heavy handed messaging.
History of Tech | Plastic Pictures for HSBC
Absolutely bustling with personality with hardly a human in sight. Have we seen this sort of highly stylised, Wes Anderson inspired nostalgia-thon, two or three hundred times already? Sure. But when it’s done this well, with such well curated art direction, witty visual storytelling and deft sound design, it still makes for a very entertaining three and a bit minutes of corporate film. No surprise it took home Gold in the inspiringly titled Informational Films and Explanatory Videos category.
Shaping the Future of Teaching Together | Seed Audio-Visual Communication AG for University of Zurich
This picked up Silver for Best Internal Communication and though understated compared to a lot of the mega productions, we think this is a really effective film. What’s impressive is that what begins as a slightly underwhelming visual device - person + chair + white-out studio - manages to keep evolving and finding new ways to get key points across in entertaining fashion.
Don't be sad | STUIQ AG for Swiss Youth Hostels
Somehow, even though you know very early on where this advert is going, it doesn’t stop being an enjoyable watch. Partly this is down to some great casting, but there’s a lot of filmmaking craft at play too. The key here is simplicity - find that one thing you want to say, stick to your guns and don’t get distracted, and have fun with it.
Floating Hospital | Orca & Aura Films
This film competed with us (and won Silver) in the Fundraising & Non-Profit category and it’s an absolute stunner - one of our favourites from the show. From the first few seconds to the last, the atmosphere created by the cinematography is so beautifully balanced - contrasting almost surreal levels of isolation with moments of palpable human connection.
That’s probably more than enough for you to be getting on with. But believe us, this is very much the tip of the iceberg. If you do want to go browsing through all of the other brilliant film entries, you can do that on the Cannes Corporate Media & TV website.
Massive Win In Cannes For Nowadays
Our Managing Director Thom has just got back from an eventful trip to Cannes where we were awarded the Grand Prix, the coveted White Dolphin for best film at Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards 2024, for Waiting List, a Nowadays Original written and directed by Phoebe Brooks.
Well, what a trip that turned out to be!
Touching down in an extremely wet and moody Nice a few days ago, we had no idea quite how big an evening we were in for. We’d flown down for the Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards, otherwise known as The Dolphins, named after the staggeringly weighty, impressively shiny trophies that they hand out to the great and the good of the corporate film and TV making world.
Over the past decade or so we’ve been up for Dolphins several times, and we’ve been lucky enough to win quite a few - for Best Branded Content and Best Corporate Image films among others - but this year was a bit of a special one.
This year our film Waiting List was nominated and awarded gold in the Best Fundraising/Non-Profit category, an amazing achievement in and of itself (check out some of the brilliant films we were up against - stunning films about important subjects, like floating hospitals in Indonesia and isolation in the deaf communities of China).
But it turns out that wasn’t the end of the story. Just as the ceremony was drawing to a close, as the fatigue from clapping so much incredible work was beginning to settle in, we were equal parts stunned and delighted to be called to the stage once more.
Out of nearly 800 entries into the awards this year, Waiting List had been selected for the Grand Prix, the White Dolphin, which according to the blurb - “honors the most outstanding production in the categories of “Corporate Media” and “Documentaries”.”
It was quite a moment.
And then we had to give a little speech and I’m going to try to replicate a little of what we said there, here (and my memory is definitely a little hazy so bear with me) is the gist of it:
We love this film, and not just because it is a brilliant bit of filmmaking in its own right.
It’s an important film for us because it shows what can be achieved when you trust your teams, the filmmakers you sit amongst every day, to tell the stories they really want to tell. This film simply wouldn’t have happened without the talent and perseverance of Phoebe Brooks, who not only wrote and directed it, but who really took the time to sell us on the idea in the first place.
Making passion projects is no walk in the park, there were plenty of challenges, arguments, pushes and pulls throughout the process, and the team had to give up a massive amount of their free time, sweating every detail along the way. But Phoebe did such a phenomenal job of convincing us all that this story needed to be told, of making everyone feel personally invested, there was never much question that we would make it happen one way or another.
So when your teams show you that they’re really ready to go to bat to make a film happen, you should try to meet that passion with trust and backing where you can.
I think it was something like that. Probably not quite so coherent, probably with a good deal of umming, erring and stuttering in there. But that was what was swirling around in my head at least.
It was so lovely to be present at the show - it was honestly a little overwhelming how many fellow filmmakers, production companies, agencies and even clients, had taken the time to watch the film ahead of time, and who came up to say nice things about it on the night.
And yes, there is definitely an irony that the best-in-show award, at a ceremony celebrating the world’s finest corporate films, was awarded to a project that was self-initiated, self-funded and, in the end, gifted to a charity client. There’s probably a lesson in there somewhere. Probably.
And so, onto a big list of thanks. Thanks to everyone who worked on the film: everyone in-house who gave up their evenings and weekends, especially Phoebe, Jenny Garrett, Charlie Maxwell and Ben Harding. Thanks to the crew - there’s too many to list here but I’m told their unwavering commitment to the cause made the shoot a special place to be. Thanks to Director of Photography Charles Mori, who has made two Nowadays Originals look absolutely outstanding now. Thanks to the brilliant cast who deservedly garner so much praise from audiences who’ve seen it, especially our lead Mary Malone, who’s undoubtedly destined for very great things. Thanks to Karol Cybulski at CHEAT and Matt Valentine for making it look and sound even better in post. And thanks to Cannes Corporate Awards, for celebrating the film and having us along to their wonderful event.
The Importance of Having Pre-Calls
Hi, Mike here, in-house director at Nowadays.
Since the dawn of time (well, 2012), the team at Nowadays have been making films for Scouts – from big impressive (not to mention award-winning) brand positioning pieces, to lovely little animations – so when I was entrusted with leading this years campaign, the first question I asked myself was:
What can I bring to the table?
Over the years, for me to connect with the work and do a great job, I need two things. First and foremost, a clear goal. Scouts are a charity, they continually need volunteers to be able to provide opportunities for children across the UK and right now they are in urgent need of adults for their ‘Explorer’ groups (the 14-18 years old).
Awesome! Clear goal in sight! Next…
To find a way into a project I also look for a hook, a way for me to connect with or understand the story on a personal level. I'm not a Scout, I've never been to Scouts, and to be honest, I’m really time-poor. So for me, I wanted to understand what would compel someone to give up their precious free time to get out there and volunteer. However, discovering this answer while making the film is not an option: in order to control my shoot I need to get to know my contributers…
For those not in the know, a pre-call is an informal chat with your contributor ahead of the shoot, and truth be told, I used to despise these. When I first started out I had an (ill-informed) romantic image of the doc-director dropped from a helicopter straight into a shoot, with nothing but their guile, their wits, and a trusty DoP to succeed.
With experience, I’ve come to understand that, in fact, the pre-call is essential to the success of my projects. It’s a great way to ease someone into the process of filming; where you can be transparent about crew, equipment, and your demands on their time; and encourage your contributors to ask any questions that help demystify things for them.
Most importantly, with just a few searching questions, the pre-call is where you begin to shape your narrative…
When I’m in pre-production, and especially in pre-calls, I like to channel my inner Theodore Donald Kerabatsos (Donny from the Big Lebowski) - “like a child who wanders into the middle of a movie and wants to know... [what’s going on].”
I’ve found this wide-eyed approach extremely helpful when talking to contributors for the first time. Asking the obvious questions and taking people back to the beginning of their journeys is a great way to understand what they can give me during a shoot; are they energetic, excitable, open, reflective? Before you know it, the person you’ve only just met is confiding that, “all through my childhood I struggled with my confidence… Scouts gave me an identity and a place.”
This is the kind of testimony that you can build a film around.
When another contributor later explains that being a Scout leader, “is a privileged position; you’re trying to help kids who might be really struggling in lots of ways, and actually, you can really help.” An idea begins to form that Scouts is a safe space, and maybe this series of films can celebrate that.
The more you can dig away and break down what someone does, the more you begin to understand the visual possibilities of the shoot, the scenes you might want to see. Here are a few examples of the insight as inspiration for the shots…
Anes’ Story: the Neckerchief Game
“Whenever I feel like I'm too busy, all it takes is one smile from an Explorer to make it worth all the sweat”.
When Anes shared this with me, I knew we needed a scene that would encapsulate the bond within his group as naturally as possible; but most importantly, a moment of genuine connection that never fails to make him smile.
Victoria’s Story: the Bonfire
“I'm always surprised how they embrace each other's weirdnesses. They're not afraid to be themselves, and they love being together.”
Going back to this idea of safe spaces, the lighting of the bonfire became this moment of total liberation, where we could capture Victoria’s Explorers without inhibition. Once in the edit, we knew that letting these visuals speak for themselves would be more powerful and emotive than anything she could say.
Zahir’s Story
“Historically, Scouts was perceived as being a very white, Christian organisation. There weren't many people of colour.”
Hopefully this one speaks for itself. Profiling the groundbreaking work of the Muslim Scout Fellowship during their annual ‘Iftar Under the Stars’ event allowed us to send a powerful message that Scouting is for everyone, regardless of race, gender, or class.
If you haven’t already you can watch all three films here
What Momentum Taught Me About Filmmaking
Hello again - it’s Sandy, director at Nowadays. You might have noticed we’ve dropped our third film for Impetus, and this time it’s really packing a punch as we celebrate the last 21 years of impact they’ve had on millions of young people’s lives.
The theme of this film is ‘momentum’ - the idea that things keep moving forward, whether its young people’s futures, or Impetus’ future endeavours. But what I didn’t realise was how much momentum came into the process of making the film as well. Here’s a few things that working with ‘momentum’ taught me, and how it helped me understand the filmmaking process all over again.
Rolling with the punches
Making this film taught me to be more spontaneous and loose with my directing style. As someone who so dearly wishes to control every aspect of a situation (my mantra is “fail to prepare, prepare to fail”), I have to say, sometimes it’s not possible. For example, we had planned a gym/training montage scene that was meant to be high energy and fast paced. Except when we got to the location, there wasn’t a gym, just a very empty sports hall.
So what do we do? What we all attempted to do at least once during the pandemic - a very manic HIIT workout. Of course doing a workout alone and in front of the camera isn’t the most comfortable thing to do, so I roped myself and production assistant Jacob into getting a workout ourselves.
The result? Movement and momentum that still got across the energy we wanted this film to have + a couple of sweaty crew members.
(By the way, if you need proof I was involved in that workout - you can see for yourself in our BTS film we made alongside 21 Years of Impact below)
Good momentum, bad momentum
Ok, so momentum is what keeps things moving, we know that. But I need to point out that this can be good or bad. Instead of feeling like you’re riding a wave of productivity, there is also another side of momentum; the kind that can frazzle you, uses up all your energy, the kind that makes you forget to eat, and narrows your focus so much that there’s less room to explore and try new things - I call it ‘bad momentum’.
This is where it’s helpful to have someone on set that can look out for when this is happening. If it weren’t for my producer, Charlie, scolding me on day 1 of the shoot, telling me to drink water and grab a bite to eat, I’m sure I’d have forgotten completely. It was a good reminder that it's okay to chill out a bit. Reset. Take a second to step back, and take a look at the whole picture before jumping back in.
Everyone on board
The momentum train is pulling out of the station, but wait a second, your whole cast and crew are left on the platform - this can be a recipe for disaster.
Making sure that everyone else is along for the ride with you is incredibly important. For this film, the dialogue moved through six different characters, so it was vital that they understood the wider context and what role they were playing in it.
The same principle can be applied to the crew as well. Even something as small as checking in with each other throughout the shoot is very beneficial. Whether that’s about script, schedule, breaks, or general mood. Not only does this actually instil me with more confidence, but it sets a more harmonious pace for the process in general, that way no one’s left behind or out of the loop.
Full disclosure, Impetus was my first charity campaign film for Nowadays, and the first time I had the chance to work on something that pushed me out of my comfort zone as a director. I wouldn’t be writing this post if I didn’t think I had something to say about the process, and what it really taught me. Our end line for the film was, “I’m just getting started” - written to reflect the fact that both Impetus and our cast of young people have so much more to come in the future. As always, there’s some truth in the art - I’m also ‘just getting started’.
Time to end the wait
After months of work, we are excited to release the newest Nowadays passion project, Waiting List, into the world.
Written and directed by Phoebe Brooks, Waiting List is a narrative about Jenny, a young trans woman bravely taking the first steps in seeking gender affirming healthcare, only to be swallowed up by the system and the future that she could have had, ripped out from underneath her.
Our film is highlighting the very real problem trans people are facing every day in the U.K. According to a recent BBC report, the average waiting time for an initial consultation for gender affirming medicine is around 3 - 7 years. The reality of this is tens of thousands of people are being denied the opportunity to live their lives authentically and as a result of this, too many trans lives are lost because they’ve been waiting so long for care.
Jenny, played by Mary Malone, is a real talent - as you will witness in the film, she has a fantastic ability to convey very intense emotions with incredible subtlety, and we were grateful to be able to cast her as our lead. You’ll be seeing a lot more of Mary in the future - we’ve heard through the grapevine she’s been cast in the end-of-year Doctor Who special. We can’t wait to see more from her!
Mary was supported by accomplished actress, Lucy Russell, who played Dr Hardy. Lucy will be a familiar face to some, having recently starred in ITV’s mini series, A Spy Among Friends, and Disney’s Andor. Lucy brought a complex humanity to bear in the form of a medical professional who is outwardly helpful but represents a dehumanising system. A special thank you to Tom Payne for casting.
The whole film was shot over a single weekend. Our team was composed of a collection of industry professionals, as well as work colleagues, friends, and family all invested in bringing this film to life. We jumped around various locations in North and East London - from a doctors office, to a queer club, even to the directors own bedroom (a bit of set direction, and throwing up a temporary wallpaper and it was basically unrecognisable!).
Long time friends of Nowadays - DoP Charles Mori and gaffer Stephen Allwright - worked hard to make every frame rich and beautiful, and their expertise on set was greatly appreciated. Matt Valentine was our maestro - giving us the music and sound mix for the film, Karol at CHEAT finished it off with an beautiful grade, and the whole shoot was meticulously planned and pulled off by producer, Jenny Garrett. A special mention to Dalston Superstore, the thriving east London queer club that has been looking after the LGBTQ+ community since 2008. They gave us their space to use free of charge for this film, which was used during the dance club scenes.
Waiting List was made in collaboration with the charity, Gendered Intelligence - a trans-led UK charity that supports young trans, non-binary, and gender-diverse people, specialising in supporting people under the age of 21. Since 2008, they have worked tirelessly across different sectors, educating, training, and raising awareness to increase understandings of gender diversity and improve the lives of trans people.
Recently, they were one of the charities to take the NHS to court over these extremely long waiting lists that trans people face when seeking gendered affirming healthcare. While the judge has ruled in favour of the NHS, they aren’t giving up and are looking to appeal.
Thank you for watching our film. To help spread awareness, we’d love to encourage you to share and learn more about the issues trans people are facing in the UK.
Creative Resources to Live and Die By
Hi there! It’s Sandy - Director at Nowadays and, more importantly, for the purposes of this blogpost, a firm believer in sharing and talking about literally anything that I love.
I don’t believe in gatekeeping. And why should I? It’s hard enough getting into the creative industries. When I first started, the mountain of obstacles seemed paralysingly intimidating. But it was due to the helping hands, the recommendations and the conversations people were willing to have with me, that eased me into it all. If I could do one thing now, it’s to be that person who’s there to help others too. Now, I think it’s time I gave back in the same way.
Recently, I’ve started seeing a shift - content creators on TikTok, IG Reels and Linkedin are putting forward their knowledge, resources and tools, for anyone and everyone to learn from. At Nowadays, we’ve been doing our little bit by hosting Ask Away Thursdays - an open invitation for those aspiring to work their way through the production industry, to come and ask their burning questions and get our honest opinions!
Seeing all of this inspired me to put together a list of tools and resources that have certainly saved me (and my work). For the more seasoned creatives who’ve been around the block a few hundred times, you may already be familiar with some old favourites like Shotdeck, Filmgrab, Pinterest, Short of the Week and even Deck of Brilliance. These remain a brilliant and an important part of my everyday toolkit, however, here are some additional gems that you may not have clocked!
A masterlist of various filming, animation and editing techniques - Eyecandy includes a breakdown of each technique, and a whole list of gifs for reference too! I’ve definitely used this tool as a way to not only figure out what the hell that one shot is called, but also as a little inspo tool to think of different ways of doing things!
An AI image search engine - simply click on an image you like the look of and travel down a clickthrough rabbit hole to reveal more images of a similar style. Same.energy has come through so many times when I’ve needed to collect moodboard imagery.
A search engine that uses AI collate and presents a list of stills and shots that depict whatever you’re searching for. You get a couple of free searches, or you can subscribe to their Basic plan for 14.90 euros a month. Even with a limited free use, Flim’s been pretty handy in helping me figure out what films and references have the look I’m going for.
A handy tool for image searching and moodboards. This tool collates images from around the web and categorises them based on your selected colour palette. As a previous designer, this tool has been handy for any moodboards and colour schemes I’ve pulled together. Particularly useful for art direction!
Ever wondered where you heard that one line from that one thing? Yarn.co comes through! Simply search a phrase and you’ll get a collection of clips from film and TV that have said that exact line. I’ve so far only used this for fun honestly, but you can see the appeal should you need to check whether your lines are overused or not!
A handy tool for those in advertising - Spectacle sorts ads into different categories. You can filter results based on the style, mood, industry and more! I’ve used Spectacle for more specific advertising and commercial reference searching, the filters definitely help!
I’m hoping any creatively road-blocked people out there can breathe a slight sigh of relief as they stumble upon these resources. There’s loads more out there too - feel free to drop your rec’s as well! And hey, if you’ve got more questions, maybe check out our next Ask Away Thursday that’s coming up in November!
Over and out!
Sandy xoxo
Lights, Camera, Accolades!
Dust off the shelves folks, we’ve got awards coming out our ears!
Well, not really, that would hurt. But we have had a few significant wins for our work recently and we’d love to take a moment to share with you all.
Firstly, our film ‘Hidden Opportunity’ for Impetus was entered into the EVCOM Clarion Awards under two categories, and came away with awards for both. The EVCOM Clarions celebrate true excellence across cause-driven corporate film, live events and experiences, so it's fantastic to be recognised for our work in this field. ‘Hidden Opportunity’ picked up a highly commended in Brand Communications, and a gold in Social Welfare.
We also picked up quite a few trophies at the Telly Awards. This one is a global award competition which honours excellence in video and television across all screens, and we've collected not one, not two…but 7 awards for our films! As well as winning big at EVCOM, ‘Hidden Opportunity’ picked up a silver in Directing and two golds for Social Impact & Cause Marketing at the Tellys.
Our side project, Wigmakers, was recognised with two Silver trophies for Videography and Short Form Documentary. First premiering at our Nowadays relaunch/15th birthday party, Wigmakers is a short form documentary about how two individuals’ experience of loss led to an unexpected change in career direction. It was directed by Jon Beagley, Nowadays Editor-turned-director, and the result.. Well, we are pretty big fans of it! Check it out below.
Last but certainly not least, our film with NSPCC about online safety picked up a silver in Public interest/awareness and a gold in Cause marketing.
In this campaign, we worked with the NSPCC to start conversations about the dangers of abuse to children via online portals, whether that be through gaming, chat rooms, or social media. 1 in 5 children are internet users and NSPCC recognises how extremely important and urgent it is to make those online spaces safe, especially when tech companies are prioritising clicks over child safety.
That’s it from us! As always, a huge shout-out to the crew/talent/team whose hard work made it happen.
If you’d like to see more from us, you can see our latest work here.
The New Director in Town...
Mike Forshaw is the latest director to jump on board the Nowadays Express (choo choo)!
Born and raised in Liverpool, Mike has travelled the world creating short-form content for the likes of DHL, Google, Huawei, and Nokia. He’s probably most proud of the films he directed in this award-winning series for the National Trust. (Maybe less so about the propaganda he made for the Japanese Government - a story for another time…).
Mike’s talents don’t just lie in advertising - he has been selected to take part in Berlinale Talents, Torino Film Lab, and BFI NETWORK x BAFTA Crew, while his short films have screened at festivals around the world including Sundance, London Film Festival, Palm Springs, and Melbourne – check out Vimeo Staff Pick ‘Saturday’ below.
Mike was also recently commissioned by the British Film Institute to write and direct his debut feature film – a modern day romance set in London’s homelessness community – so watch this space.
Although dismayed by the volume of Harry Potter discourse on his first day (shock confession – Mike has never seen Hogwarts's finest... WTactualF??!) he is very happy to be joining the team.
He even went so far as to admit,“I've been looking for the chance to work on commercial projects with more substance. With clients that aren't just trying to sell something but are genuinely trying to make the world a nicer place… While I’ve no idea what a Dobby is, I hope I can add the burgeoning list of award-winning films already under the Nowadays banner.”
Sadly, his working-class mother isn’t so keen – she is still waiting for him to get a “real job”.
Welcome, Sandy!
Fresh on the block is our newest director - Sandy Matta!
Sandy joins Nowadays bringing with her quite a varied creative journey. Over the span of 6 years, she worked her way from a book cover designer to an advertising art director and now all the way to a director. But the journey isn’t too bizarre for her, since film is the one thing she’s always been drawn to.
Agency - RD Content
Sandy’s been able to flex her skills by creating some content for clients of all kinds. Whether it was for corporate names like EY or Allen & Overy, fun animated trailers for Angry Birds, or even snagging a D&AD award for a print campaign with Audible (now that’s what we call range) it’s clear to see that there’s not much she won’t try out!
In her spare time, you can find her dabbling in other endeavours like making collages, taking one of her film cameras out for a spin or developing her own projects.
So after all that, we asked her, “what’s next?”, and to that she says: “I’ve always loved character-led, emotional stories, ones that really tap into the human experience, like so many films I love. People think advertising is soulless and deceptive. I beg to disagree, at least some of the time, I think there’s space in adland for real stories to be told, ones that leave a profound, lasting impression. If there’s anything I’d love to do, it's to create a piece of work that has someone sit back, and really think about what they just watched.”
Great answer! Welcome aboard Sandy.
Ask Away Thursday is Back!
A few years ago, we launched Ask Away Thursday, an event at the Nowadays office for anyone at the outset of their production career who wanted to ask us anything. Unfortunately, big and unavoidable global events happened and we had to put it on a small hiatus. But now we are back & running them every three months! Find out below when the next one will be.
So, why are we doing this?
Well there’s a few reasons but the main things are a) we’ve been there b) we could have done with some help and c) we’re getting more and more people asking us how they can make progress in the industry.
15 years ago, when Nowadays was in it’s adolescence, we rattled around London, shooting the odd promo here and there with little to zero idea of how to set up a production company and no idea who we could ask without being a right bother. The people we did get to ask questions are still heroes to us.
Today, with the industry being more popular/crowded than ever, we know the competition for jobs is fierce and the routes to success are less and less straightforward. We’d like to do what we can to help start the filmmakers of the future off on the right foot.
What are we offering?
We want to open our doors for a couple of hours to whoever, to share our experience and opinions. If you’re trying to start out in the industry and you have a question, we’ll try and answer it as honestly and helpfully as we can. If you want us to look at your CV, we will. If you’ve got a showreel to watch, we’ll take a look and let you know what we think. If you’ve got ambitions to start your own company, we’ll tell you not to bother (jokes).
At each Ask Away Thursday we’re going to try and have at least three of us around to talk to. Could be one of our producers, an editor, a director, or one of the founders of the company. And with any luck, there’ll be more than one of you, so you can have a natter amongst yourselves and compare battle scars. There might even be a cold beer or two if you’re lucky.
What we aren’t offering is jobs. And we’re not going to commission you to make your next passion-project. We’re not even offering work experience. We’ve got an intern scheme that we’d love people to sign up for but that’s a separate thing you can apply for here if you’re up for it.
Why should you listen to us?
Great question. One thing's for sure, whatever we say shouldn’t be taken as gospel. We’ve muddled our own way to where we are but we’re not sitting here thinking our way of doing things is for everyone. We can’t tell you the one way forward because chances are there are a few thousand and, clichéd as it sounds, that’s your call to make. In fact, every person in our company has got to where they are via completely different routes - some traditional, some not, some meticulously planned, some entirely haphazard.
We’re not even saying we’re the perfect model of a production company (what is that in this day and age anyway?) but we do get paid to make films for real clients and we do employ people to do it and we’ve got better at doing that every single day since we set out.
When’s the next one?
The next one is going to be on 30th May 2024. It will be at our place and probably go on for a couple of hours between 7pm and 9pm. You can follow the link here to register your interest, tickets will go live on the 16th May 2024!
See you soon!
Team Nowadays
Smiley Charity Film Award Finalists
Exciting news has been travelling around the Nowadays Studio as the rumour trickled in that we are finalists for not one, but two of our films in this years Smiley Charity Film Awards.
The Smiley Charity Film Awards are purely for the the charity sector and their cause-based films. All films are scored by an expert panel of judges on cinematography, script, acting, emotional response and concept. Although we do occasionally throw our hat in the ring and enter our own work for awards, for the Smiley Charity Awards, the work has to be entered by the charity who commissioned the film. Both Scout’s and NSPCC have entered our work in the long-form category, meaning not only are we double finalists, we’ve also got a a bit of a Nowadays showdown going on!
For the first Nowadays finalist, we worked with NSPCC to bring everyone the story of ‘Pantasourus’ with Natalie Dormer as our narrator. We created a set that invited the young viewers to feel right at home - working with vibrantly coloured props and furniture, even adding guest appearances from other adorable animals sitting in on Natalie’s performance.
Our second finalist is the Scout’s Remembrance Day Film. Scouts asked us to help mark the 100th Poppy Appeal anniversary with a very special video - and that’s exactly what it turned out to be. This was a conversation between three generations: a World War II veteran, a 10 year old Scout, and the Duchess of Cambridge, all talking about the importance of remembrance. A very memorable shoot for the Nowadays Team indeed.
Last year we were very grateful to receive first place in our category at the Smiley Charity Film Awards for our Scouts Ambassadors video. Featuring some of the U.K.s most well known hero’s, if you haven’t watch it yet - you can check that out here. As for this year, we’ll be crossing our fingers and toes until the awards are announced on the 21st of March (and who knows, maybe it’ll be a tie!).
As always, massive thanks, to the crew/talent/team/clients who made these films a reality.
Tools of the Trade
Today, we're taking a trip down memory lane as we ask the team to reflect on the most important piece of film equipment they’ve ever used. From cutting-edge cameras (circa 2007) to trusty tripods, we’ll be sharing the unassuming tools that somehow ended up being crucial to our careers.
So strap in, forget about the latest Alexa, and cast your mind back to a different time. A darker time, when Justin Timberlake ruled the airwaves, and all of us had much lower standards for professional image quality.
Phoebe Brooks, Director
DIY plastic pipes glued together with gaffer tape
As a teenager, I would run around with my friends shooting ridiculous thrillers and murder mysteries, and without fail our footage would come out looking like outtakes from ‘The Blair Witch Project’.
A way to avoid this is to buy a shoulder rig for added stability. But those are expensive, and I was 15.
So one afternoon I bought some plastic pipes from the local DIY shop, and glued them together in my back garden into a strange four-sided handheld rig. It looked awful - like a terrible low budget prop from a sci-fi film, finished with a coat of black spray paint and copious amounts of silver gaffer tape.
Dear Reader, I ended up using this tape-covered monstrosity on every shoot I’d do for the next eight years. The camera mounted upon it increased in cost and sophistication, but the Shitty Rig stayed constant.
It taught me that sometimes you don’t have to spend money to get results, as long as you don’t care about looking like an idiot.
Peter Jones, Director
2008 Apple iMac
The year was 2008, and ‘emo’ was thankfully starting to wane in popularity. I was young, clean shaven, and completely unaware of the upcoming recessions which would befall my generation of avocado addicts.
It was also the year I got my own computer for the first time, an iMac with 2GB RAM (your phone has more) and a pirated copy of Final Cut 7 (I don’t endorse illegal activity).
It was on this iMac and its stolen software that I taught myself the basics of editing, by cutting the music videos I was directing for local Cape Town bands. This led to a job in the UK as a runner in a post-production department, ultimately setting me on my current career path.
I kept that iMac for 10 years and completely ran it into the ground. RIP.
Thom Wood, Managing Director
Vinten Tripod
We spent a whole morning circa 2007 arguing about whether or not we should buy our first tripod, a Vinten that was to set us back a cool £450. This was precisely £450 more than we could afford at the time. Tripods are bulky, boring and excite precisely nobody at the outset of their filmmaking career - it was so easy to argue that we’d be better off paying £15 to hire one each time we needed to shoot.
Thankfully, Guy won the argument that day (in fairness it was his credit card taking the hit) and we went on to use that trusty shoulder-chaffer for well over 10 years, on several hundred shoots. And while we gawped and fawned over each fancy new camera we got our hands on, it was the unsung hero in our kit bag, the sturdiest of sturdy foundations.
Morgan, Studio Manager
AmazonBasics Ring Light
Sometimes it’s the most useless, cheap, annoying, piece of kit that stays with you the longest and that’s true for my Ring Light. Its best features include an infuriatingly short plug cord and a loose ball joint that refuses to hold the ring up for more than 30 seconds. But I only say that with the utmost fondness of course.
This ring light marks the start of finding my footing in creating content for social media. There’s something legitimising about owning a piece of equipment for filming (other than an iPhone) that gives you a push of confidence to join the youths on TikTok.
So I did, and now somehow my cat has 700,000 followers. But that’s a story for a different time.
Kelvin Fred-Horsfall, Production Manager
Nikon D90
I started my filmmaking career as a self-proclaimed ‘smartphone shooter’. Snapping on the iPhone was a breeze - point, shoot, point, shoot, repeat. I liked to keep things simple, and this was a formula that had always worked for me.
That was until I met my first manual camera, the Nikon D90.
Jumping into the ‘techy’ world of DSLRs changed everything. I became obsessed, I wanted to know everything about how to maximise image quality and elevate my work to the next level.
But I’ll always remember my roots, and now and then my fingers are tempted to flick the dial to the shiny green auto mode, and go back to a time when life was less complicated.
Charlie Maxwell, Junior Producer
Lowepro Backpack
By far my most enduring item of kit is my trusty camera backpack, Lowe Alpine’s finest. Aged 16 and just getting into photography, I was absolutely chuffed with its swanky looking facade that housed the very budget-looking setup I had cobbled together so far.
Fast forward to university, I slung it proudly over one shoulder, showing up to my first ever paid videography jobs, covering obscure student union events and competitions at the local primary school.
The backpack has travelled with me around the world, across fjords in the arctic and on sleeper trains through the middle of Australia. Over a decade later, with several holes in the pockets and a missing zip or two, it’s still the first thing I grab when embarking on any trip.
Guy Saville, Creative Director
Canon XL1s
My first camera as a ‘professional’ shooting director was the Canon XL1s, all the way back in 2007. One of my earliest projects shooting with it involved a trip to Paris, to interview political rappers in the run up to Sarkozy’s re-election.
After an eye opening day of filming in the Banlieues, things really kicked off in the centre of town as we filmed a peaceful protest. The police and protesters clashed and I found myself in the midst of a full scale riot - a battalion charging at a bunch of irate students and throwing tear gas at them. I was caught in the crossfire and stumbled out of a big cloud of noxious fumes, still gripping my trusty XL1s, beaming with the footage I’d caught. I was hooked.
We still keep the Canon in the office for sentimental reasons, having stopped using it when it ate up more DV tapes than it recorded. They don’t make ‘em like that anymore.
And with that, our trip down memory lane winds to a close. We hope you've enjoyed learning about the dusty old bits of kit that played such a surprisingly formative role in our careers.
Now, let’s have another look at that new Alexa they’ve just released…
Cuisinart Cookbook
What comes to mind when you think of filming food? Fruit falling through the air in a black vortex? A silky voiceover salivating over “not just any” roast lamb? Or PVA glue subbing in for fake cheese on those pizza adverts?
Although this kind of movie magic definitely exists on some commercials, our experience of working with Cuisinart was altogether different. We wanted to create a more authentic experience, working with Instagram’s favourite food lovers to cook their most beloved recipes, celebrating the idea that everyone can get creative in the kitchen.
So here’s a few insights into how we made those mouth watering meals but still keeping it real. Like any good recipe, the ingredients you choose to create your film makes all the difference.
First on your shopping list should be a top drawer Food Stylist, someone who really knows their bouillon from their beurre noisette. The PH Collective, our creative agency collaborators, recommended the brilliant Marina Filippelli, who conjures up incredible looking dishes for Waitrose, John Lewis and many a celebrity chef. She can make even the simplest cheese toastie look and taste divine. Trust us, we’ve checked, several times!
Marina and her team set up a mobile kitchen in every location, effectively working like a pop-up restaurant on site. To ensure we have enough food for multiple takes, extra meals are plated up, ready to be swapped in to save precious shooting time. This often means a whole production line of Cuisinart ice cream makers, grills or air fryers are temporarily installed - constantly churning out sorbets, grilling fish or baking cupcakes.
“Check out my grilled prawns!” We relied on natural reactions to all the meals we created live in front of the cameras.
The next not-so-secret ingredient - get yourself a pro-level Product Adviser. They work with the Food Stylist in pre-production, creating recipes that can be made using the Cuisinart gadgets we’re advertising, with no cheating or short cuts using other fancy equipment behind the scenes.
The Product Advisor is also on set for any mishaps or malfunctions, an inevitability in this line of work. When shooting with the Cordless Blender for example, our first take captured Reece Richards (of Netflix’s Sex Education fame) powering up the whisk and accidentally flinging flour and egg yolk all over himself and half the kitchen. A quick tutorial with the Product Adviser and a wardrobe change put us back on track.
“POV: you’re a freshly made chocolate cupcake.” - We took apart an Air Fryer to get some unexpected camera angles.
The final ingredient is a dash of camera wizardry. Some of the most satisfying takes we got on set used a Laowa Macro Probe Lens - an awesome bit of kit for capturing objects close up, giving the shot a unique macro perspective. DOP Paolo Bischi made the recommendation, using it in conjunction with a Technik Skater Dolly to create the super smooth tracking on kitchen surfaces. We even dismantled a Cuisinart Air Fryer to fit one through the back, capturing the influencers as they pulled out their delicious culinary creations.
Contrary to popular belief, the crew don’t often get to try the dishes featured in the films, mostly due to how vital it is to have food ready to go for extra takes. That said, to satisfy any tummy rumbles you may have from reading this blog, here are three great recipes we did get to gobble up on set. Enjoy!
And for even more foodie inspiration, check out all the fabulous cast who featured on Instagram.
Adam Riches - @thehonestdad
Preena Desai - @myhungrylittlehelpers
Bryony Morganna - @brymorganna
Reece Richards - @reecejrichards
Kate Smith - @thehumblepescatarian
Dina Macki - @dinewithdina
Adam Shaw - @at_dads_table
Joseph-B Cumberbatch - @kitchenwithcumbers
Emma Hollingsworth - @mrshollingsworth
Christianna Aristidou Karaolis - @eathappyfeelgood
Charlotte McElvogue - @familylife_with_us_
Lily - @foodie_lilly
Lathu & Aki - @eatwithlaki
Tom Swanson - @tastesliketom
Elliot - @snackzcitybitch
And also a special shoutout to the brilliant DOPs Paolo Bischi & Tom Wright and our amazing Food stylists Marina Filippelli & Becks Wilkinson for making the shoot everything it was.
Enter the dragon - Peter Jones joins Nowadays
We’re ending the year with a new beginning, and welcoming our newest Nowadays director: Peter Jones. And no, we didn’t just pick the first Peter we found on Google, we promise.
Before joining us Peter spent 11 years working in the advertising industry in the UK after studying film in his homeland of South Africa. He started out as a runner at Hogarth before working his way up quickly into editing and moving over to Grey London. He’s been freelancing for the last 4 years, working at places such as Saatchi & Saatchi, Prodigious, Ogilvy, Nexus Studios and Media Arts Lab.
Whilst editing was his day job he’s always had one or two eyes on directing - managing to win back-to-back ADCAN awards including the Grand Prix, which sent him out to LA. He was also nominated for the prestigious Shots New Director of the year, as well as a 1.4 Awards nomination. These are some brilliant achievements for someone directing off of their own back.
We stopped Peter for a chat on the red carpet (actually the bit of floor between the kitchen and our break out room) and he had this to say:
“I can’t wait to get stuck into directing full time - it’s been a goal of mine for a long time. I’m buzzing that Nowadays have put their trust in me and the opportunity to work with such a strong team and create great films is what drives me.”
We don’t know why he said that, we’d asked what he’s having for lunch.
Welcome to Nowadays
Hello. We have some fairly seismic news to share with you.
After 15 years of making films as 3angrymen Productions, we’ve decided to rebrand and change our name.
Naturally, this isn’t a decision we’ve taken lightly and it’s been some time in the making. Like many, we’ve seen the turbulence of the last few years as an opportunity to take stock, to rethink and to re-evaluate - about who we are, what matters most to us, how we’ve already changed and how we want to move the company forward.
Some things haven’t changed. We have always and will always put ‘making films that matter’ at the heart of what we do - hence that tagline is here to stay.
But at the same time, we’ve expanded our horizons, matured and evolved as a team, which led us to the conclusion that we had truly outgrown the name 3angrymen, and that the time was right for something new. Something better.
That’s why we’re rebranding: to better reflect who who we are and everything we want to do. And that's why we've chosen a brand new name:
Nowadays.
Nowadays is the way we work - it’s a name that is implicitly adaptable, that will forever move with the times.
Nowadays is our brilliant in-house team and clients - switched on and sensitive to the issues of today.
And Nowadays is the content we create - socially conscious and culturally relevant, produced with a modern audience in mind.
Over the next month or so we will be making the leap from 3angrymen to Nowadays and we hope you’ll come with us, as we roll out a whole new look for the company, a new website, and, most importantly, lots of lovely new work.
Welcome to Nowadays. Making films that matter. Always.
15 Years of 3angrymen
We’re only two years from being able to get our driving licence!
Well holy macaroni, we’ve only gone and gotten 15 whole years old. What on earth is all that about? Indulging nostalgia, that’s what that’s about.
That’s right - after all the films, for all the clients, made with the help of all those people - we thought we’d take the opportunity to take a saunter down memory lane. To give this some sort of order, we’ve asked Thom and Guy to reach all the way back to 2007 and write up a list of #15filmsthatmatter most to them.
2007 / our first proper 3angrymen Showreel
The culmination of our first year's worth of work, which, if we're honest wasn't much to look at... 😬 probably why we ended up shooting a bunch of shots of London with some colourful SFX pasted all over them. We’ve all been there… haven’t we?
2008 / promo videos for Basecamp Ski school
Our first international shoot took us to the French Alps, trying to keep up with the hardcore Olympic-level Basecamp instructors. Did we make some great films? Yes! Get stuck halfway up a mountain, on a black run, with all our kit after the lifts closed? Also yes! Sample Meribel’s famous apres ski? Mayyybeeee…
2010 / relieving exam stress with
the NSPCC
2010, relieving exam stress with the NSPCC. A real game changer - our first promo for the NSPCC and our first film to go "viral". With 70+ teenagers sat in a sports hall, doing Mexican waves, for 2 days straight - what could possibly go wrong?
2011 / stop motion animation for Channel 4’s Random Acts
Our first telly appearance (as far as we can remember), original Angry, James Dunlop, directed this madcap stop-motion caper with animation wizard Chris Butcher. Got us a Vimeo Staff Pick and no real soldiers (or cows) were harmed in the making of this film. 🙂
2012 / teen focussed promo for ChildLine
A two nights shoot in South London, followed by countless late nights in post-production to bring young people’s problems into the light with fizzing bright neon vfx. Our first film to break the million mark on Youtube but, you know, who's counting?
2013 / online promo for Scouts UK
The first of many collaborations with the fearless folks over at Scouts. Making this was an adventure in itself, involving leaps into the unknown, river scrambling, mountain hiking … and 10 minutes with the Chief Scout Bear Grylls 🐻.
2014 / short documentary for the Shoreditch Trust
Focused on three trainees finding their way in the intense environment of a busy London restaurant, this was our first foray into the magical world of documentary filmmaking. Three stories - Leanne, Jack and Lucca in their own words - accompanied by some luscious b-roll shot through some vintage Cooke lenses. Yum! Nearly as delicious as the food being served up.
2014 / charity gala film for Build Africa
A lesson in 1) how to do pre-production on the fly and 2) extreme battery management, with the script still being written on the long and bumpy road to the remote ultra-rural area of Masindi, northwest Uganda.
2015 / political campaign film for The Green Party
With critical seats to be won in Bristol and Brighton ahead of a spring general election, we followed the Green Party’s main representatives around their constituencies, fighting for a greener United Kingdom 💚. Pre-2016 politics, eh! Feels like a far-away fairy-tale land now.
2017 / charity promo for Crisis
After 50 years of incredible work, Crisis wanted to mark the occasion by challenging their audience to imagine a world without homelessness.
An especially memorable project for us - lots of very early hours location scouting (with an especially epic effort from DOP Adrian Peckitt), a newly commissioned poem, voiced by someone who'd recently spent 3 years living on the streets - everyone involved just going very above and very beyond to make the project work.
2018 / online promo for Scouts UK
The one where we finally learnt to let go (a bit). Directed by Danny Baldwin and produced by Kezia Clark this was the first big campaign shoot that didn't have either Guy or Thom around on set. And it turned out beautifully, what does that tell you?
2019 / profile mini-doc for Schroders
After over 10 years of working with Schroders we really struggled to narrow down our selection. In the end, we've gone for this sunny, sandy little beauty, which required Guy to get out into the blazing heat of the Sahara Desert, to film the sheer lunacy that is the Marathon Des Sables. ☀️☀️☀️
2019 / charity promo for Leonard Cheshire
For every day we worked on this project we learnt something new about the challenges facing people with disabilities, including how woefully inaccessible our shoots can be. Thankfully we had the legend that is Jack Binstead schooling us on a daily basis.
2020 / TVC for food delivery service Field & Flower
Deep into lockdown #1, with the nation obsessed with upping their home-cooking game, we visited Home Farm in the gorgeous Gordano Valley to sample the amazing food F&F offer for delivery. Our abiding memory - how good it felt to finally be out and about filming again.
2021 / fundraising film for Impetus
As the pandemic finally began to abate and production began to crank back up to something like full-steam-ahead, we went and shot this film about young people determined to make up for lost time. It felt like a real turning point for us, turning our attention to how things are going to move forward, how we want things to change.
3 is (still) the Magic Number
Charlie, Sophie and Kelvin, striking a pose outside our secret lair’s front door.
It’s said that good things come in threes*, and whilst we may be biased we couldn't agree more. As such, we’re absolutely chuffed to announce three fantastic new additions to the Good Ship Angry!
Please put your hands together (or gesture a big hello using semaphore if you’re here for the nautical references) and welcome aboard the terrific trinity that is Junior Producer Charlie Maxwell, Editor Sophie Farrell and Production Manager Kelvin Fred-Horsfall!
Charlie comes to us off the back of an extended stay in British Columbia (no, we weren’t jealous either) where she was working remotely as a Multimedia Producer and sometimes Editor - for educational bodies including Northwestern University and a little place called Harvard. Before her time in the mountains she studied film at Goldsmiths right here in London. From there, she set out cutting her teeth in the camera department, shooting with clients such as Selfridges, Universal Music, and the BBC, and was even mentored by Robbie Ryan, no less (again, still not jealous).
“After spending two years living and working in Canada, I’m really excited to be back in the UK, especially London. In the past my roles have always been along the lines of a ‘small cog in a big machine’; only being involved in a small part of a much larger whole but with 3AM I get to see projects all the way through, from creative through to delivery. Everyone here is super-talented, everyone’s happy to wear a few different work hats and I’m looking forward to learning as much as I can about short form content!”
Charlie Maxwell
Next up we have Sophie who, coincidentally, studied the same film course as Charlie at Goldsmiths, albeit a little later down the line. Graduating in 2019 she didn’t hang around and began running for production stalwarts BLINK and later award-winning feature filmmakers Archer’s Mark. It wasn’t long before the editing bug bit her though, and she started freelancing for the likes of Somesuch, Excel Films and Olyvon. Outside of filmmaking she’s an ardent music fan and is part of a vinyl-focused DJ collective in South East London.
On joining Team Angry she had this to say: “I’ve been freelancing for sometime, and whilst that comes with its own perks, I’ve really missed the camaraderie, team-spirit and drive that you get from working closely with the same team, all focused on the same projects. 3angrymen really appealed because they’re clearly a lovely bunch of people and I’m sure it’s no accident that as a result they create really lovely work!”
Sophie Farrell
Last - but by no means least - along the gangplank and through the hatch is Kelvin, our new Production Manager. Another London local, Kelvin hails from Tottenham and (much to Thom’s chagrin) will happily bend your ear to laud his beloved Spur’s recent performances. Away from the pitch Kelvin’s background is a rich tapestry - having worked across global branded campaigns for the likes of Plan International, Mediacom and Wired, and before joining us at Angry Towers Kelvin threw himself into the world of TV drama courtesy of Fully Focused Productions.
“When I first came across 3angrymen, the thing that stood out to me the most was how much their content aligned with my ethos: striving for excellence whilst maintaining a moral compass. Getting to chat to everyone it really became clear to me how this was true not just for the work they put out but for the team themselves. They’re really set on creating the best work they can and I’m really looking forward to being part of something that has that kind of drive behind it!”
Kelvin Fred-Horsfall
Welcome to the team one and all! All three have got stuck straight into some fantastic new projects we’ve had come down the pipeline, and we can’t wait to spend the rest of the summer cooking up some new work with them!
*Lions on a shirt, Amigos, Hanson brothers, the list is long and illustrious
How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Constraints of Covid
A rare image of Phoebe Brooks taken during the COVID-19 era.
What’s this? Yet another article about the trials and tribulations of working during this seemingly interminable pandemic?
Not exactly.
I’m Phoebe, I’ve been a director at 3angrymen for coming up on nine months now, and I’ve already had the pleasure of directing work for the Scouts, the NSPCC, P&O Ferries, and Girlguiding. It’s been a wild ride, and we’ve done all of it while dealing with what’s hopefully (!) now the tail end of Covid.
But rather than delving into the tediously well-documented downsides of the pandemic, I want to talk about the ways it’s changed how I direct films for the better.
Directing Blues.
1. Why do I do it like this?
I never went to film school or had any formal training, so my processes have evolved over the years through a combination of learning on the job and watching YouTube videos called ‘5 Top Tips for Low Budget Filmmakers’. In the past I’ve justified the way I run my set purely on the basis of “that’s just how I’ve always done things”, or “that’s how they said to do it in ‘5 Top Tips for Low Budget Filmmakers’”.
Then Covid came along. Most of the restrictions are self-evidently not an improvement, but they still made me confront why I do things a certain way.
As an example, I used to be fairly laissez-faire about letting crew members move around on set, and I’d rarely mind if a dozen crew members were all packed into a tiny room, even if the actor was meant to be having an intimate emotional breakdown in said tiny room.
Covid forced me to be much more strict about who was allowed on set, cutting it down to who was truly essential. It made me realise that often this is a much better way to work, and that it’s far more efficient to have a good radio system or trusted producer calling crew to set when they’re needed.
A beautifully socially distanced set.
2. Nothing will stop my production unless I let it
In pre-Covid times, I used to take any last minute disasters hard. If anything went wrong unexpectedly, I’d be totally blindsided and would feel like I might as well give up and become an accountant. Inevitably things would work out, but somehow my brain was programmed to expect things to go well, and so any problems felt like being on the Titanic post-iceberg.
The Covid era introduced me to a level of stress that I never before knew existed. I’ve had to deal with my production manager, production assistant, camera operator and 1st AC having to drop out to self-isolate two days before a shoot, and then a replacement production manager dropping out at 11:00pm the night before the 9am call time.
The sheer deluge of disasters finally made me realise that there isn’t a single problem that can’t be solved - or at least, cannily navigated around - by sitting down with my producer and marshalling some intense creativity.
The fires of Covid have left me permanently a more Zen-like director, and I find that even non-Covid-related issues don’t bother me as much any more.
Filmmaking: Not an easy job to do WFH.
3. Taking safety seriously
Before Covid, the only time I’ve been faced with an obviously dangerous situation on set was when I was a teenager, running around the fields making films with my friends, and one night we had a terrifying run-in with a shotgun wielding farmer. In my professional career, I have to admit I’ve mostly seen risk assessments as merely a piece of paperwork to be ticked off by my producer.
Covid changed all that. The possibility that any set could turn into a superspreader event is something I have to be constantly mindful of. My shoot could be responsible for not just getting my cast and crew ill, but also starting chains of infection that end up reaching more vulnerable people.
This stark reality has made me a more responsible filmmaker. I’m now more aware that a film set is always a potentially dangerous operation. Combine hot lights, heavy machinery, and lots of people trying to move around each other at speed, and there’s a far higher baseline level of risk than with a regular office job.
Going forward, I think I’ll be a lot less likely to grumble when things are moving slowly because people are taking the time to set up equipment properly.
A film set can be a dangerous place.
4. I won’t take connection for granted
Facemasks are absolutely horrible to wear all day. They also make it harder to communicate with people, because you can’t read facial expressions. This is bad, if your job is to build rapport with people in stressful situations, or to subtly adjust an actor’s performance.
But mask wearing also exposed a weakness in my directing that I’d never faced up to. I’m someone who likes to avoid having difficult conversations, and I can get shy when meeting lots of new people. Covid made me realise that because of this I’d not been paying as much attention as I should have to making sure my cast and crew were happy and understood what we were trying to achieve. I used to rely on a perfunctory nod, and I often wouldn’t take the time to properly check in with people.
Going forward, even once masks aren’t required, I intend to be more deliberate about checking in with my cast and crew throughout each shoot day. Communicating with my collaborators is like 90% of my job, and I should spend much more energy making sure I’m doing it well.
Spot the DoP.
5. Why am I doing this?
As the director, I have a lot of responsibility. Not just as a leader on set, but more fundamentally as the shepherd of the film’s creative vision.
I’m veering dangerously close to totally disappearing up my own behind here, but the purpose behind all this - all the processes, practicalities, hard working collaborators, and scarily large sums of money - is to turn an ephemeral idea into reality.
Over the last two years, I’ve found myself pushing a lot harder to not just settle for creatives that are ‘fine’. To constantly ratchet up my standards for what a film can be. Can I take constraints and weave them into a strength? Can I find a way of doing something that’s never been done before?
But it’s more than just pushing myself in terms of quality. Across months of home working, the ebb and flow of restrictions and changes to how we live and relate to one another, I’ve also found myself thinking far more about the value of what I’m working on. How are the projects I work on creating value for the companies who commission them, and how are those companies adding value to the world?
Before the pandemic, I didn’t care too much about the type of projects I directed - I just wanted to make cool work, maybe with a nice camera and some snazzy camera moves.
Last week, I directed a film for the NSPCC, with the goal of making it easier for parents to talk to their children about bodily autonomy. It was a simple setup - just one camera filming an actor* talking.
But I finished that day feeling far happier with myself - my work and what I was bringing to it - than I’ve ever felt on a big budget set with all the flashy gizmos.
That’s something they didn’t mention in ‘5 Top Tips for Low Budget Filmmakers’.
On set for a shoot with the NSPCC.
So no, I’m not going to miss Covid restrictions in the slightest, and I can’t wait to throw my mask in the bin. But I’ll always be weirdly grateful for these strange times, because I think Covid has made me into a stronger and more purposeful director.
*Admittedly this actor was Natalie Dormer, which does always help.
A decade of making films with the NSPCC
A little over ten years ago, I walked into the NSPCC’s headquarters near Liverpool Street, for an intro meeting - entirely too caffeinated for my own good. I found out later that I’d been visibly shaking as we chatted with the charity’s new Creative Director and Head of Marketing Ian MacArthur. In the meeting we talked about how the future of online content was video, lots and lots of video, especially for young people. And the NSPCC needed filmmakers with ideas for content that would work without the traditional ad-land budgets.
Aside from the litre or so of coffee I’d consumed, I can honestly say that at least some of the shakes were down to me being thrilled just to get that meeting. For context, 3angrymen at the time could more accurately be described as two incredibly naïve freelancers with access to a couple of Sony Z1s. We’d made a couple of fun promos for not a lot of money but nobody was taking us remotely seriously and so this really was a big opportunity for us.
Here’s Louis Haywood (Creative Producer at the NSPCC 2007-2017), to add a lovely dollop of context:
“When we first started making video content at NSPCC we were working with tiny budgets and needed hungry, talented collaborators with fresh ideas. That pretty much sums up 3am at the time. They just seemed to have loads of great ideas buzzing around in their head, they were learning their trade and the NSPCC were learning how to use strategic video content so we grew and learned together.”
A decade on, on a day when we’re releasing our latest campaign film for the charity, it strikes me how as a team we still get just as jazzed about working with the NSPCC as we did back then.
So to mark the occasion I thought I’d take a little self-indulgent walk down memory lane, to look at some of the films we’ve produced and how, in a world of fleeting collaborations, working with a client over such a significant chunk of time can affect a production company.
As Guy and I bundled giddily out of the lift of NSPCC HQ that day, we immediately and hurriedly started thinking about ideas that might answer the first brief - to make a film about exam stress. Before we’d even begun to make our way back to our tiny office in Ladbroke Grove we thought we had something - we wouldn’t make a film about exam stress, that sounded dull. Instead, we’d put our obsession with OKGO videos to good use and make something fun set in an exam room, something to put a smile on the faces of all those students marching into sports halls to blank pages and their impending doom.
We pitched the idea, along with a severely undercooked 2-page treatment, to Ian a week later. We were going to do a sort of dance video, students performing wave after Mexican wave in the midst of an oh-so-serious exam - tagline “exams don’t have to be stressful”. To his credit (and our eternal gratitude), Ian broke into a broad mischievous grin on hearing the idea and gave us the green light and a modest budget to make it happen.
And that was, as they say, that. A month or so down the line, the film was released on Youtube and for the first time we got to experience what it felt like to make something that went viral. Even better for us, it got press, getting mentions in the Guardian and Creative Review, which blew our tiny minds.
The one with the teenagers doing Mexican waves (Mexican Exam, 2011)
Since then we’ve gone on to create well over 50 films for the NSPCC (not including a billion or so cutdowns and re-edits) on topics including depression, self-harm, neglect, forced marriage, contacting Childline and letters to Santa - it ain’t for the faint-hearted but it’s always felt good to be talking about stuff that genuinely matters.
For whatever reason, the relationship clicked and the briefs have kept coming, here’s current Senior Creative Producer, Andy Abrahams on why he thinks it works:
“I love working with the Angry team because they do like to challenge us creatively – dissecting a brief to fully understand what we want to say and how best to achieve that. It can be quite a tough process and sometimes we even have to go back to the drawing board. But I always come out the other side with more confidence about the films. It’s a genuinely collaborative way of working.”
While we’re on the subject of collaboration, we should mention all of the many people we’ve met as part of making the films - the NSPCC employees up for appearing on film and victims of abuse who have bravely, generously shared their stories with us. Not to mention the brilliant crew members and Angry Alumni who’ve brought deep wells of both ambition and sensitivity to the process. We’ve even got to hob-knob with celebs here and there: from Natalie Dormer from Game of Thrones, to Wayne Rooney, to the apple of Guy’s eye: Marvin Humes from JLS.
Want to see a few of the films from the back catalogue? Oh go on then.
The one wiht the cool neon VFX which earned us our first million-view video on YouTube (U Can Talk To Us, 2011)
The paper-craft one we made 15 times in several different languages (Making Contact, 2011 - 2016)
The one we put together mid-pandemic (Frontline, 2020)
It hasn’t always been an easy ride of course, naturally there have been some very tough challenges along the way - from researching harrowing personal stories of abuse to trying to get 70 odd teenagers to sit still for two whole shoot days. And then there was the time they convinced me to run the London Marathon with a Go-Pro protruding from my chest. But you don’t get good at making films for national charities by coasting through easy-to-put-together productions. You’re far too busy trying to squeeze out every single penny from the budget, trying to enlist freelancers who’ll go a good bit above and beyond for the cause, finding ways to disguise the fact that the 3angrymen team and their families are appearing, yet again, as extras.
Here’s that Louis Haywood chap again:
“Working with 3am was a different experience from working with the big ad agencies who were less collaborative. 3am made films with us, rather than for us. The nature of the relationship meant they could get under the skin of the brief themselves as creatives rather than account managers relaying information to 'creative' teams who wanted to win awards for shocking people.”
That brings me to the flip-side of what we’ve been doing for the NSPCC - to the question of what working for the charity has done for us. The answer is that it has undoubtedly, irreversibly and fundamentally shaped us as a company. Put it this way, we certainly didn’t set out with some grand plan for becoming a production company specialising in making films for charities. But that’s where we got to, we love it here and so we ain’t going anywhere.
Working with the NSPCC helped define what our values are, it influenced how we approach all budgets and continues to push our creative process to new levels.
When we first trembled into that meeting, one of the first things we were told was that we weren’t there to make the films with the crying kids in dirty cots, that style of NSPCC film had run its course and we were gifted the challenge of telling the story from another angle. That’s something we’ve tried to employ in every piece of work we’ve taken on since. It would be so easy, in a long-term client relationship, to keep making the same style of film, but the team over there has always pushed us to evolve our ideas, there’s always been an appetite for trying new approaches.
And it’s brought us to the attention of the other clients who we now work with. Without that initial break from the NSPCC, who knows if we’d have ended up working with the likes of Scouts, Crisis, Mencap, Leonard Cheshire and the Samaritans.
Perhaps the biggest, most fundamental effect it’s had on us is shaping the personality and temperament of the 3angrymen team. Whenever we post a job vacancy, we know we’re going to attract brilliant individuals who’ve seen our charity work and want to be a part of that, who are driven toward helping us make more films that matter, thus they give it their absolute all whenever those opportunities arise.
It’s a virtuous cycle we’re very grateful to be in.
I’ll end with a few thank yous: to some of the individuals at the NSPCC who have, along the way, kept trusting us to make the work - to Ian, Rosie, Louis, Kevin, James, Joy, Jules, Angie, Sue, Lorrin, Andy and Sophie - we owe you all a lot.
Here’s to the next decade or so.
Thom