Raptors
We just completed a new short documentary called “Raptors”.
Corio Raptor Care and Rehabilitation is a centre specialising in the care and rehabilitation of birds of prey, or raptors. The center is run by Nick and Anji Henderson, who provided us with access to the birds they look after, and to talk about the work they do.
Posted by Phil Powell on July 29, 2008
Live Events
It’s been a busy couple of months in the WeMakeMedia camp, as we’ve been out and about filming lots of live events. We were privileged to be invited along to showcase our work during the judge’s visit for Enterprising Britain, for which Furness has won the regional heats, and is now competing for the national title. We put together a compilation of the live filming we’ve been doing over the past few months, which you can watch here.
Posted by Phil Powell on July 29, 2008
Access All Areas - Video
On 19th May 2008, we presented a business masterclass which aimed to demystify the modern-day internet, and show how it can be easily put to use by any business – large or small.
This event was organised in association with Furness Enterprise, and the presentation is here for you to watch in it’s entirety.
Posted by Phil Powell on June 4, 2008
Go Furness is Go!
We’re really proud to announce the relaunch of Go Furness – a website aimed at encouraging entrepreneurship in Furness.
Go Furness is about “connecting you with enterprising people, new opportunities and inspiring events”.
We’ve been working closely with Furness Enterprise to “take the site to the next level”, by building on the wealth of valuable content they were already providing, introducing a host of new features, and making it all sing-and-dance with a complete rebrand and design overhaul. A state-of-the-art content management system runs behind the scenes, allowing the site’s talented team of contributors to post news and features with ease.
This is just the first phase of the site’s new lease of life: there are a wealth of new features and refinements scheduled for the coming weeks. We’ll also be featuring more about the development of the project in the Our work section of our site soon.
Posted by Phil Powell on June 2, 2008
Working in New Media
On 9th May 2008, I spoke to students at Lancaster University as part of the “Insight to Creative & Media Careers” event.
The two-day event was organised by CEEC (Centre for Employability Enterprise and Careers) and included a wide range of speakers from different areas of the media industry.
As an experienced practitioner in New Media, I introduced a brief history of the industry, and then explored the 10 commandments for following a good work ethic, before concluding with some of my ideas about where the industry is heading in the future.
We filmed the presentation, and you can watch the whole thing, right here, right now. You can post comments or questions by visiting the video page on Vimeo.
Posted by Phil Powell on May 21, 2008
Access All Areas
We’re really pleased to be able to announce a new event which will be taking place on 19th May, in association with Furness Enterprise.
Access All Areas, presented by Phil Powell, is an innovative masterclass which aims to demystify the modern-day internet, and show you how it can be easily put to use by any business – large or small.
You’ll learn about the possibilities for enhancing your business using online marketing, through real-world examples and insights from the cutting edge of the New Media industry.
The customer isn’t always right
Learn to avoid the common pitfalls of online marketing – discover what you really need, rather than what you think you need.
Big cats, and agile mice
It’s not just big corporate companies who can benefit from advances in media technology – more than anyone, smaller businesses are ideally positioned to take advantage.
Are you talking to me?
Browsing the internet is like listening to the radio, or reading a magazine. But unlike traditional media, your audience can answer back. You’d be wise to listen.
But it goes up to 11
The modern-day internet user is an impatient and fickle beast. There are simple and effective ways you can improve customer loyalty, and attract new business, just by giving them some value-added extras.
Viruses are a good thing
Word-of-mouth can be an amazingly effective marketing tool, and the internet is the biggest mouthpiece on earth. Let your customers do the talking with viral marketing.
The event is taking place on 19th May, starting at 7pm, at Forum 28 in Barrow. It’s a FREE event, but you will need to book your place in advance.
RSVP
01229 820 611
mproctor@furnessenterprise.co.uk
You can download your PDF invite here.
This is the first of a number of projects we’re working on with Furness Enterprise, who are an enterprise agency in Barrow-in-Furness. We’ll have some more announcements soon.
Posted by Phil Powell on April 23, 2008
See what we've done
We’ve been making a few tweaks to our website, and have just added a new section, called Our work.
We work in a creative industry, and our greatest asset is the work we produce. We thought that it was important to start putting some of our work online, so that our website not only tells people what we can do, but more importantly: what we’ve done. We added the new section so that you can see some of the things we make – you can watch our films, and visit our websites. You’ll find case studies which explain a little about each project and how they were developed.
Over the coming weeks and months, we’ll be adding more of our work, including some exciting projects we have in the pipeline.
Posted by Phil Powell on April 13, 2008
You'll get a kick out of it
February saw the official launch of Most Kicked Ball. MKB is the brainchild of Blake McGrow, and is a unique charity concept which allows anyone to get involved and raise money for their chosen charity.
We’ve been working on the development of the MKB online presence, and the website now features all of the latest news, plus video updates of all the latest events and celebrity kicks. High profile kickers now include BBC presenter Ray Stubbs, politician George Galloway and players from Tranmere Rovers and Preston North End.
Sir Bobby Robson has also thrown his support behind the project:
“The Most Kicked Ball is another great concept which not only raises money for charity but it allows football fans the chance to get a kick at the ball!”
The project is being supported by Football Aid who administer all incoming donations and distribute the money raised to charities and community groups.
With momentum growing fast, there are some exciting things happening in the coming months:
The name Accrington Stanley is synonymous with the origin of British football throughout the world and they are the first major league club to sign up for a “Public Kicking” event, which will be taking place on 24th March.
And highlights of the Most Kicked Ball will soon be a regular feature on British Television. Charge – a TV programme shown nationally in the UK on the Community Channel – will be following the progress of the ball throughout the MKB season. It is broadcast every day between 6pm and 10pm on Sky 539, Virgin TV 233 and Freeview 87.
Posted by Phil Powell on March 11, 2008
Valentine's short films at Carnforth
Venue: Furness & Midland Hall, Carnforth Station.
Starts 7:35pm – FREE ADMISSION
We’re presenting a selection of international short films with an air of romance, screened in the ideal surroundings of Carnforth Station, where scenes from the classic film Brief Encounters – one of the UK’s greatest romances – were filmed.
We’re hosting this evening of films in association with folly and the evening will include everything from light-hearted comedies to poignant tear-jerkers: there will be something for everyone, with films from the UK and abroad.
And you don’t have to come as a couple! It’s open to all, and what’s more the night is free.
Stories include the shy woman in the British Library who spells out her declarations of love in book titles in Rare Books and Manuscripts, a French actress who practices her lines with a stranger in a cafe in On S’Embrasse, the experimental Evol, the tale of the cleaner and the security guard, and, of course Industrial Love Dwarf No. 7.
For Lancastrians wishing to attend, the train from Lancaster arrives at the station just after half past 7, and there are buses or a train back to Lancaster after the show.
This event is sponsored by Signposts with funding from the Carnforth Area Regeneration Project and the Market Towns Initiative, and is supported by the Carnforth Station Trust.
We’re pleased to be working In partnership with Future Shorts, Dazzle Films and Rubberductions, all of whom are providing us with a world-class programme of films.
Posted by Phil Powell on January 31, 2008
February pocket movie-making
Pocket Movie-Making Workshop
Saturday 2nd February 2008, 10:30am – 3:30pm.
Venue: Furness & Midland Hall, Carnforth Station
Throughout 2007 we worked in collaboration with folly to deliver a series of free pocket movie-making workshops at Carnforth Station. Last Halloween we embarked on something a little bit different. Working from an original script by North West writer Steve Jansen, workshop participants worked together to create something ghoulish out of the digital ether that casts a new light on the after-life – see the results on our Films page.
This February’s movie-making workshop will follow the same format with a romantic theme and the finished film will receive its premiere at The Valentine Short Film Night at Furness & Midland Hall, Carnforth Station on Thurs 14th Feb, 7:30pm. An original script, written especially for the workshop, will allow participants to learn some hands-on movie-making skills such as: how to breakdown the script into shots, how to find locations, how to draw up shot lists and put basic camera skills into practice.
Whatever your experience or skills, whether you’re interested in being in-front or behind the camera, come along and get involved with a fun and exciting workshop – no experience is necessary. Places are free, but you need to book ahead by calling folly on 01524 388 550 or email enquiries@folly.co.uk.
Posted by Phil Powell on January 8, 2008
Velocity: A fantastic success
In October of this year, WeMakeMedia were proud to be involved in the Velocity Festival of Digital Culture which took place throughout the Morecambe Bay area. Hosted by folly, It was an ambitious 3 week festival of exhibitions, events and activities, bringing some of the very best technology-driven creative practice to the area.
Our contribution to the festival was the production of a short film titled A Frantic Shot Torn, which was screened alongside other international short films at the Halloween Short Film Night in Carnforth.
Throughout 2007, we worked with folly to deliver a series of free pocket movie-making workshops at Carnforth Station in Lancashire. For Halloween we embarked on something a little bit different. Armed with a single Canon DV camera, and working from a script by North West writer Steve Jansen, we worked intensively for 3 hours with workshop participants to create something ghoulish out of the digital ether that casts a new light on the after-life.
You can watch the film right here on our website, or over at folly’s YouTube channel.
The festival proved to be a fantastic success with over 20,000 people visiting and taking part. You can read some more of the feedback and stats over on the folly website. We’re looking forward to working with folly again in 2008, and wish them continued success!
Posted by Phil Powell on December 19, 2007
Toe By Toe
We’re pleased to be able to announce that we’re going to be working with The Shannon Trust to develop a series of films to promote their Toe By Toe literacy scheme.
The Shannon Trust is a charity devoted to the development of literacy in our prisons through peer to peer mentoring. The charity encourages and helps prisons to develop teams of inmates, who run daily one-on-one lessons for illiterate fellow prisoners.
Literacy in our prisons is an important issue, as explained by the Trust:
The government’s statistic is that 38% of all adult prisoners have no useful literacy skills. A further 29% have very poor reading skills. That equates to over 50,000 prisoners at any one time.
And it is a moving parade. The prison population is around 76,000 strong, but 90,000 inmates are released every year.
So there is a constant stream of people going through the system with very weak literacy. And all of them are currently almost barred from well paid and fulfilling employment.
We’ll be working closely with Trust volunteers, along with participants in the scheme, to produce two short films which will encourage wider participation, and to promote the efforts of the scheme so that it can be rolled out in more prisons and in the probation service.
This is a really worthwhile project which we’re proud to be involved with.
Posted by Phil Powell on December 10, 2007
We like to talk
We like to get out and about to talk about the work we do, even if we are in the depths of the cold winter months and it means we have to wrap up in our gloves and scarves! We’ve been braving the elements, and getting to know some of the creative students in the region and lending them some of our knowledge.
A couple of weeks ago we were invited to present some of our work at the second successful On the bus to Barrow event organised for students from Lancaster University. The event was hosted at the Nan Tait Centre, and the art exhibition was the perfect place for us to chat to creative students, showcasing a selection of our work and providing them with advice on working in a creative industry.
And last week, Phil was invited to Barrow Sixth Form College to provide an in-depth talk to the art and design students. He talked about his extensive experience of working as part of a team at creative design agencies, and how to attract clients as a freelancer, whilst presenting real-world examples and advice on best working practices.
We really enjoy being invited to talk about our work, especially when it provides us with the opportunity to inspire and motivate anyone who is interested in pursuing a creative career. If you think we’d be able to help you by presenting at your college or university, then get in touch with us.
Posted by Phil Powell on December 10, 2007
Most Kicked Ball
We’re proud to announce that we are working closely with Hold Tight TV on a new project called Most Kicked Ball.
Most kicked ball is a unique charity concept, with a mission to create the most kicked ball in history, raising money for local good causes along the way. Hold Tight TV will be producing a feature-length documentary of the project, and We Make Media have been commissioned to develop an online presence, including a full-featured website and online promotions.
Here’s how the founder of Hold Tight TV, and creator of Most Kicked Ball, Blake McGrow, explains the concept:
You can spend your whole life pretending you are going to do something special with your life without ever getting up off the sofa. Then one day you wake up to the dawning horror and desperate realisation – You’re 40 next year and you really aren’t going to make it as a professional football player.
It got me thinking. It seems the only time the whole world unites and plays by the same rules is through a little round ball. So I’ve bought one and I would like to invite you all to kick it.
You’ll have to pay mind, but how much you pay is up to you. I only ask that you think of the pleasure the ball has given you throughout your life, as a player or spectator and donate accordingly. 100% of all donations will be awarded to charities and/or community projects in the area where the ball is being kicked.
Go on – you’ll get a kick out of it!
We’ll be launching mostkickedball.org at the end of November, and once launched, we’ll be developing new features and content as the “ball” makes it’s way around the UK.
It’s all very exciting, and we’re proud to be a part of it.
Posted by Phil Powell on November 16, 2007
Introducing: Us!
First of all, a huge welcome to our new website! We Make Media was founded in September 2007, and it’s taken us a few weeks to get our fully-fledged website live. Now that we’re online though, we’ll be adding more content and extra features over the coming weeks and months. We’ve got some exciting plans for our online presence, which we’ll be making some announcements about in the near future.
Secondly, welcome to our brand new news section. If you want to keep up-to-date with news about our activities and our plans for the future, then this is the first place you’ll read about it. That’s not to say that we’ll be restricting our posts to a string of lifeless press releases though – nosiree! We’ll also be posting commentary on subjects related to our work, along with tips and advice which we feel are worth sharing. And we want you to get involved, so we’ll be inviting you to contribute your thoughts and opinions.
So, before you do anything else, why not subscribe to our RSS feed. If you don’t know what RSS is, or you’ve heard of it but haven’t dabbled, here’s a short little video from Common Craft which explains how it works in plain English.
Posted by Phil Powell on October 10, 2007