Leander Ward

Are you a filmmaker or part of a film production company, then claiming Film Tax Relief (FTR) must be a part of your funding strategy. Film tax relief is available for British qualifying films if they: either pass the cultural test: This is an easy process. You only need 18 points to qualify. They ask questions such as if the film is in English, the number of cast and crew who are British, locations in the UK, if the theme of the script is British. My current application has 39 points and that is only because it is not fully crewed: Qualify as an official co-production: Intended for theatrical release: Have a minimum UK core spend requirement of 10%, including those made under official co-production treaties. Tax relief is available on qualifying UK production expenditure on the lower of either 80% of total core expenditure or the actual UK core expenditure incurred. There is no cap on the amount which can be claimed. The film production company responsible for the film needs to be within the UK Corporation Tax net. There are several companies who will advance up to 90% of the Film Tax Credit prior to the start of your production to ease cashflow. Even if your film is a low budget film, don't miss out on applying for FTC to finance your work, 🎥 Lights, Camera, Tax Relief! 🌟 For more details, visit the official HMRC or BFI pages. #FilmTaxRelief #CreativeIndustry #FilmFinance #UKFilmIndustry

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What a great day today at The National Attractions Marketing Conference 2024 😎 with Darren Booth It’s not often you attend a conference where all the speakers are such high quality and insightful! Some takeaways 👇- especially useful for you if you are in the marketing or attractions world…. Abbi Ollive inspired us with her story of setting up and running a successful live event and cafe/ bar from her garden during lockdown, even hosting Ed Sheeran! Her stories provided real insights into the marketing magic she conducts at Castle Howard. I especially liked her analogy of marketing as a bridge 🌉which essentially connects what you offer with the people who want it. And as an atttaction it’s so important to create narratives with your marketing which really reflect the magic of the experience when visitors are there. Joshua Torlop talked about how he has managed to achieve significant growth in visitor numbers at Trentham Monkey Forest, through marketing without spending huge amounts. I loved his quite “put good messaging in front of the right eyes and the feet will soon follow” And to see how he got his marketing PR stunt talked about by James Cordon on the Late Late Show see the post on his profile! 🐒 Anthony Rawlins discussed some realities in that the attractions sector is more challenging in today’s climate with customers expectations and choice being higher than ever before. He suggested the 3 critical things for marketers to do to combat this 1/ Diversify 2/ Modernise 3/ Make an impact (and communicate this!) Samantha L Fay and Catherine Warrilow 😊 talked about the incredible immersive experiences run by Layered Reality and introduced the Elvis Evolution ⚡️- which is set to the one the most exciting up coming experiences to be launched in the UK. They already have over 30k on the waitlist for tickets which was largely achieved through incredible PR which they achieved in-house with their small team. A key takeaway from Sam was to leverage customer own experience and word of mouth advocacy where possible. Bernard Donoghue OBE gave some great insights into the industry trends and summed up by reminding us that the best marketing ideas done have to cost huge money but have to invest in risk, creativity and being dynamic. Lisa Leigh gave a fascinating insight into the recent branding work she has led at English National Ballet 🩰 She showed how hearing from customers, surveys and research is helping them to better position their messages as what their audience wants to hear not what they think they should tell them. Lisa also shared her thoughts on how important it is to provide ease for guests, removing friction from the booking journey as much as possible. This is just a snippet of the ideas, experience and inspiration shared. Thanks Martin Evans for hosting such a great event 👏 #NAMC2024 #attractionsmarketing #marketingconference #visitorattractions

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I'm not sure where that month went! the success of this inaugural conference has inspired us to continue the fight to enhance crowd safety. But, it shouldn't have to be a fight, should it? In our Chairs words, we don't want to be an echo chamber, there is no point in keeping talking amongst ourselves, we need others to join, to listen, to contribute. Local Authorities, Police, Fire, Medical, SAGs, Promoters, Artists, Event Organisers: you all have a part to play. We deliberately priced this conference so costs should not be a barrier, but we know that time constraints always will be. The announcement of next years dates and location are imminent. When it comes, try to get it in your diary and join the UKs only national conference focusing on all matters crowd safety. this year we had visitors from Erope and South Africa. Where are you coming from?

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Such an important study. Help to inform the future and make things better by sharing your thoughts and experience.

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Leon Milns hosted a panel session on The Alchemy Behind "Attracting and Retaining Top Talent" with E3 International Agency Network on Friday 7th June at Manchester Art Gallery. Although Leon has already given his thanks, We Are Adam would also like to say a big thank you to Matt Smith, Claire Smith and Derek Bishop for the invitation and sharing their knowledge on the topic. Leon's key takeaways were - ⭐ Importance of having a clear and well-articulated vision, mission and purpose to attract the very best and aligned talent. ⭐ Culture is evolving rapidly and it's so important to get it right for where you are at on your business journey. ⭐ Communicate, communicate, communicate - you simply cannot over-communicate to your Team to keep them highly informed and engaged. ⭐ We now have a multi-generational workforce and it's crucial that leaders approach each generation accordingly to get the very best out of them and help them to thrive. #Talent #Culture #EmployeeExperience

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It’s an exciting day to see SMPTE showcasing the HBO Camera Assessment Screening here in London. I’ve been led to believe this has only been shown before at the illustrious CAMERIMAGE International Film Festival and The American Society of Cinematographers Club House 👏🏻 But here we have it, on UK soil for the first time 🤩💪🏻 The HBO Camera Assessment Series, is a one-of-a-kind project that seeks to create a rich and expansive image library, available to producers, directors, and cinematographers across the entire Warner Bros. Entertainment Discovery Inc family. Twenty-five years ago, the paradigm was simple. If you were shooting a dramatic series for HBO, you were shooting it on motion picture film. Today, it appears that film is now a smaller sub-sample of the wide array of choices offered to filmmakers. This does not, however, make the choices any simpler. How would "Game of Thrones" have looked if they decided to shoot it on a RED Digital Cinema Camera or a Sony Venice instead of an ARRI Alexa? How would "The Sopranos" have looked if it had not been shot on film? The goal of the HBO Camera Assessment Series is to continue the testing of digital camera images and workflows. By staging complex and real-life scenarios, encountered by real shows, and shooting them with the latest high end imaging tools, we can present an in-depth and thorough review of the strengths and weaknesses of each camera system. This comparison allows filmmakers to make an educated decision on what system is right for their film or show. Season 6 features five of the top of the line digital cameras. ARRI Alexa Mini as a baseline and then also test the Sony Venice 2, RED V-Raptor, Blackmagic Design Ursa 12k, and brand new Arri Alexa 35. Additionally, with the resurgence in the last several years, we've also decided to include 35 mm motion picture film. We tested these cameras in standard situations, such as colors, patterns, and skin tones; as well as exploring new limits within our other tests. In our dynamic range test, we show 18 full stops of exposure, as well as 1ft candle and flame tests. Our mixed lighting test has been expanded to include underwater lighting. We also decided to explore something we haven't before and test the image elasticity of the cameras. With each camera we shot over and under by 4 full stops and will see just how well each camera preserves details when corrected in post. Finally, we were able to take our available light to a whole new level and film under moonlight only, among other lighting. The goal of the HBO Camera Assessment Series is to not de termine what camera is "best" but to determine what camera is appropriate for each individual scenario we face across production. Event Details Date: 11th July Location: Channel 4, London Doors open at 6.15pm. Food & networking from 6.30pm. Screening at 7.30pm. Closes at 9.30pm. Registration is first come first serve 👇🏻 https://lnkd.in/ery5yTJZ #camera #cameratest 📸

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Even when the weather let's you down....the show must go on! 🤩 Pic taken from a recent shoot, lower ground floor diner coupled with one of those rainy / gloomy days weatherwise...can be tricky when you are waiting for a bright day to optimise your shoot. HDR on the Insta360 cameras however is fab. Along with some fine tune colour grading, you can see for yourself the difference. 🌟 🌟 🌟 #londonestateagents #londonestateagentsandsurveyors #sellingaproperty #londonpropertydevelopers #londonpropertydevelopments #privatepropertysale #londonlandlords #insta360_uk

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Amazing to be sharing the page with Karen J. Hewitt. Some great insights! Just remember risk can benefit your business if you capture it correctly.: Positive Potential: Upside risk focuses on the possibility of gains exceeding forecasts. Comparison is Key: It's often measured in comparison to a benchmark, like a stock index. So, upside risk looks at how much an investment might go up beyond what the broader market is expected to do. Not all Risk is Bad: Unlike regular "risk" which refers to potential losses, upside risk is a good thing. It's the chance of things going better than expected. TSM UK IIRSM AntiroMedia

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Here's my plan. ⬇️ If you're reading this, please hold me accountable and check-in for progress reports. ✅ I ask because I ALWAYS put my own projects to the bottom of the pile... ...so for the future of Wilde Studios Ltd and all those we'll be able to help - this one is SUPER important. Drum roll please 🥁 Wilde Studios are producing our first in-house YouTube channel. 😮 I'll tell you what it's about in a second, but first - lesson time. When you build a YouTube channel you have to remember it's not primarily about you or your business - it's about the value you provide to the viewer. 💷 Once you know who your ideal viewer is and what value you're adding, the whole process becomes a lot easier. So, on that note, the aim of our channel is to provide a safe space of guidance, support and light entertainment to help creative graduates navigate the chasmous mist that is life after university. We'll be leaning on my own experiences, my failures, wins and not so sures. We'll also be bringing on persons of interest to share a little of their expertise. On other episodes I'll be talking directly to those in that in-between space and seeing if I can help guide them in a positive direction. Even if it's just switching off Netflix for the first time in 3 days. If it sounds like something you'd like to be part of, where you feel like you can provide some valuable insights or maybe you'd like some free one to one advice from a 30 year old intrapreneur turned entrepreneur - please get in touch. There is more of a plan than that but I'm sure you get the jist. If I haven't uploaded anything by 23:59 June 30th 2024, you can pick one of my precious tie collection to bin, burn or donate to a good cause. And I friggin love my tie collection. 👔 😍

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Take the leap or lose the chance. I'm thrilled to embark on this new venture, Aura Elite Media, because it's something I'm passionate about and have been learning a lot about over the past two years. We've had our share of trials and errors, but through perseverance, we've built structures that have not only driven sales but also shaped a solid foundation. Here's the thing: I strongly believe social media and digital marketing should be kept in-house. Over the years, I've hired several companies to handle this, but despite lengthy and costly inductions and frequent meetings, they never quite met our expectations. Third-party agencies, no matter how skilled, aren't immersed in your business. They don't share the vision and the daily experiences of the team. I may be taking a bold stance, but at Aura Elite Media, we aim to empower business owners and their teams to think outside the box, to embrace failure as a learning process, and to take control of the digital age. It isn't easy, but we're here to guide you through it. If you're attending the Sussex Business Show on the 26th September, please stop by and say hello. I'd love to connect and share more about our approach to marketing and video production.

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It was a pleasure to do some #filming at the #BirminghamCoffeeFestival in Digbeth Estate last year. The footage was for a promotional film for Cue Media, who provided all of the AV for the event. 🎥 As a big coffee fan, it's pretty fair to say that I was in my element! ☕ Cue lots of pretty shots of coffee pouring, milk frothing and cup sipping. 😊 #videoproduction #promotionalvideos #casestudyfilms #explaineranimations #filming #editing #EmbraceVideo #GetVisibleWithVideo

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Video Case Study for First Cymru Buses Ltd. 🚌    We produced a new promotional film for First Cymru recently to launch a new campaign of theirs called “Tap On, Tap Off”    I thoroughly enjoyed working with the voice of the Scarlets Rugby himself, Luke Davies. On the day he was a pro at learning and performing his lines, word for word! It was a first for me and certainly won’t be the last.    Thanks to some well-executed planning, I'm very proud of the finished product. Because of this, our finished film turned out exactly as we expected as we prepared our script. As the saying goes, “Fail to prepare. prepare to fail!” It was a big win for the Stori Cymru team. This was a first for my wife Amy Owen to get her first major edit signed off with minimal support from me. This enables me to focus more time on relationships and developing the business! #teamworkmakesthedreamwork    “Overall, it was a fantastic experience. At our initial meeting, James left no stone unturned in fully understanding the project and our business.” Aled Williams ACIM, Marketing Manager for First Cymru.   Hopefully, this gives you an insight into what it takes to create a professional video for a company like First Cymru. If you want to take your brand story and create a powerful message to captivate your audience, I'd love to chat!   #videoproduction #videomarketing #commerical #tapontapoff #brandstory

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Don’t overcomplicate your node 🌲 just because you think ‘looks cool’! There are many ways as a colourist we can achieve the same result by using different tools. However that is, getting to that end goal by manipulating the image the least should always be in mind 🧠 #colourist #colorist #videographer #videoeditor

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😎 A little snap from Parliament TV of me looking very serious 😎 Today I was invited to join the Business and Trade committee to shed some insights on how the UK Government can support the Creative Sector, one of its current focus sectors. My main takeaway point is this: The creative sector needs more specialist development funding. As an industry, we're a national + international success despite having so few enablers to do so. We currently create 3 times more jobs than the national average and have grown by 32% from 2010-2019, in comparison with the 20% average. YET, we are so misunderstood when it comes to private investment, the balance sheet approach and institutional support. This is massively hurting small businesses and SMEs in their scale-up phase. In a nutshell: We need more access to development capital! Thanks for Creative UK for putting me forward. I had a blast 🙌 #parliament #UK #creative #industry

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A new debate on the cost of cool, which digs into the environmental impact of increasing vinyl sales and rising concerns among several major artists. In summary, some counter-argue that the tech behind vinyls is significantly evolving, notably with BioVinyl, whilst others mention the environmental cost of storage data from streaming platforms. For me, it is entertainment, it is what consumers want, and it is the same debate as EV cars vs. good old gas. It’s evolution meets nostalgia. What do you reckon? 

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My amazing team wouldn't let me off the hook for this one! It seems captions vs. subtitles is a burning question, so I'm jumping on the trend (thanks for the gentle shove, team!) to break it down in this quick video. Check it out and let me know what you think! #CaptionsVsSubtitles #AccessibilityMatters #TeamworkMakesTheDreamWork (even if it involves a little camera time for yours truly)

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