Since the pandemic started, it has given us time to slow down and reflect on many things, including business in particular. We've missed so many opportunities to meet and connect with clients and contacts old, new and potential. Instead, we've done it remotely, as good as it is, it is limited in a way. You miss making those connections with new people and learning from them. We'd hope a lot of our network could learn a lot from our experiences too, so we'd like to share our inspiration wall. If we have ideas we add them in the middle of the board. But our quotes and inspirational thoughts are shared around the edges. Here’s some of our favourites.  This one is great for when you talk about peaks and troughs in your career and business. When things get quiet, you get worried as a business owner. You like to be busy, as everyone does. If you’re overwhelmed with work,  you’re in a good place, as this gives you plenty of drive. We like this image as it is a really good analogy not to give up, regardless of your position. It’s a reminder to keep digging away and keeping that momentum going. Persistence pays off, as there’s always a diamond at the end of the road. This one is a firm favourite. A kid pulling a power pose. This is all about standing up straight in the mirror saying ‘yeah, I got this,’ giving yourself some positive affirmation. Say [...]

Despite this 2020's unfortunate circumstances, we've still been able to work and to create plenty of helpful video content for our clients and contacts. Industrial Videography has still been incredibly important to so many this year, and we couldn't be more happy to assist those looking for corporate video for this business. So what have we cooked up this year? Well, here are a few of our favourite videos, and why they are our favourite. Our Brand Film for Glencroft A few months ago we travelled to the Yorkshire Dales to create a beautiful brand film for Glencroft, a wool clothing manufacturer. It was very exciting to create this film and tell this special story. We mixed corporate video and drone videography to capture a sense of the Dales and the story of the family featured. https://youtu.be/FzwPqdDPhTs Our Product Videos for Gentex Europe We created a series of videos detailing the products of Gentex Europe, a company that manufacture industrial respiratory protections systems. We developed four videos, each focusing on a different product for different circumstances, in which we blended corporate video and 3D animation to detail their products, on how they looked in the flesh and also how they were put together, exampled by the animation. https://youtu.be/6Q8LsZ1pkVs Our Social Distancing Videos Mid-year, we developed a series of 2D animated videos outlining social distancing and COVID-19 safety guidelines, for use in all workplaces. This was a huge and important campaign for the year especially with the dire need of [...]

2020 has been a horrible year, and there's no sugar-coating it. The pandemic has damaged so much, including businesses, and we've all struggled this year.  But through these hard times we've pulled together and made what we can work for us. It's been a learning curve for absolutely everyone. We wish everyone the best for the new year, to a better new year. But there have been good, even great moments for us this year, so here are the things that we feel proud of accomplishing. New services We're very happy to say that we managed to launch some new services this year. We revolutionised 360 video by introducing VR video services into our plethora of expertise, an exciting new venture that will revolutionise our filmmaking future. We also launched our interactive video service, a form of training video that blends interaction and linear film, which has already drummed up a lot of excitement among our clients and contacts. We're always looking for new avenues to go down and this year has been no different. Our COVID-19 safety videos https://youtu.be/iym-YoMsvp8 We wanted to help people as best we could this year. Our COVID-19 workplace safety videos were a massive focus for us in lockdown. Our animated projects helped a lot of our clients this year and we couldn't be more happier for that. It's important that companies stay as protected as possible in preventing the spread of the virus, and it still is. So this campaign will continue to be [...]

With 2020 being a restricted year in many different ways, the world has had to adapt and innovate in whatever ways it can. For Christmas adverts this year, the same has applied, and many brands have had to push the boundaries with what limitations they've had. So, as the Christmas season approaches, here are our picks for the most interesting Christmas Adverts of 2020. John Lewis We know, we know. John Lewis is the go-to advert every Christmas. Although, we will say they have been lacking the past few years (apart from that tear jerking Elton John one!). However, this year they've managed to shine again. This ad displays a range of different types of filmmaking, including various types of 2D and 3D animation, with a little bit of live action mixed in there too. John Lewis worked with a whole host of different video production companies up and down the country, really giving back to the creatives who have lost just as much as everyone else has this year. This one really goes to show that a lot of passion and bright ideas can really pull something dynamic together. Sainsburys Sainsburys are also well known for putting on quite a show with their Christmas adverts. This year is no exception. Instead of something grand and huge this year, Sainsburys have a gone for a three part, minimalistic campaign. Their three ads show three different families engaging in traditional Christmas activities, from the perspective of a home video look. [...]

We've not really mentioned before about our love for all things book. We love a good read, and if you don't believe us, you should see our office collection! We all read lots of different kinds of things, so you could say we're very diverse in terms of reading habits. For that reason we've put together a few of our reading recommendations, so if you've got some free time and fancy diving into a good book, we've got you covered. Salem's Lot by Stephen King It wouldn't be a book recommendations list, or even the month of October, if we didn't add in a spooky book. What other author could write a scary book perfect for Halloween? Salem's Lot is one of Stephen King's most classic horror novels, set in the eponymous town where an author fights a group of evil vampires, who are taking over the town person by person. This book helped to bring vampires back into the mainstream after Bram Stoker's Dracula. If you've ever gotten bored over the masses of vampire media out there, this novel will change your mind completely, and make you scared of them once again! Sapiens: A Brief History Of Human Kind by Yuval Noah Harari If you're in the mood for something more educational and insightful, this book could be the perfect companion. Based on a series of lectures taught by the author, the book looks into the history of evolution and where we have ended up. Delving into everything that makes [...]

Whether you're back working in the office or you're continuing to work from home, Spotify is everyone's best friend at the moment. Whether it be a podcast or audio book, Spotify has everything, and of course we can't forget it's biggest feature, music. Depending on how you work, you may listen to any of these things, or none at all. But at Shot Blast Media, we always listen to a range of different music to get us through the day. If you're wanting to listen to some new music, or even music you haven't heard in a long time, here are some of our top Spotify playlists you should listen to when you're working. Lo-Fi Beats to Study/Relax To This one is exactly what it says on the tin. It's a very famous playlist, amassing tons of views on YouTube and Spotify, and for good reason. If you need something chilled out and relaxing to listen to whilst you work, a calming playlist such as this can really get you in the working headspace. Film Scores and Soundtracks We're a corporate video production company, and with our love of video, comes our love of film. And with that love of film, comes our love of film scores. There's a lot of film score playlists on Spotify, but this one has to be our favourite. John Williams, Hans Zimmer... you name the film composer, they're in here. It's a very different and specific playlist but if you're looking for a [...]

Looking for a new podcast to add to your listening habits? As well as our new podcast, we've been busy listening to plenty of different shows from a plethora of different hosts and figures. We thought we'd share our podcast passions with you and give you some suggestions if you're up for finding a new addiction. Last Podcast On The Left The Last Podcast on the Left features comedian and podcast host Ben Kissel, along with Marcus Parks and actor Henry Zebrowski, all of whom are longtime friends. They talk about a variety of topics, all rooted into horror, mostly real life horror. Serial killers, conspiracy theories and the like are looked at and talked about in a dark comedic type of way. It's very unique and the hosts are an absolute delight despite the interesting yet dark subject matter. Sardonicast Three YouTube personalities, YMS, I Hate Everything and Ralph Sepe present a fortnightly podcast where they turn on their complaining brains to talk about film and TV news, as well as having other YouTuber guests on to discuss their favourite movies of all time. If you like listening to a colourful group of hosts have a hilarious moan about the world of film, this could be the podcast for you. Real Crime Profile This award winning podcast presented by a group of criminal experts looks at profiling from a plethora of criminal cases. They've looked at a couple of high profile cases such as the Steven Avery case [...]

We are very happy to introduce our latest client, Ethoss Regeneration. For them we are producing a new type of 3D animated product video, within the medical industry. Medical animations are most commonly used as an instructional tool for medical professionals like dentists or their patients. Generally produced in a 3D format, this type of video content will allow you to convey your information in a deeply informative medium. 3D medical animations add a striking and insightful approach to your content, and they can really help get the message across, in a clear, quirky and concise fashion. Animation is the perfect type of video format for the medical industry. Of course, there are limits to what medical professionals can show you in these videos, with blood, gore and other unpleasant things in the same vain being undesirable to see in a filmed explainer video. Using animation to get around these issues will make your video a lot easier and more comfortable to watch. It will also make it compliant as generally client confidentiality can be an issue when showing a new medical techniques, processes or products in use. Medical methods and explanations can be complicated to understand, and like many other types of animation for business, an animated video can create an interesting, engaging and more understandable way of explaining methodology. This is perfect for new starters in the industry or to customers who don't fully understand the processes or products involved. Especially during the COVID-19 crisis, 3D animation [...]