Broadstroke

Guide to Self Management in Cancer Rehabilitation

2011-07-26T14:48:00.015+00:00

The last few months have been spent creating a DVD for Velindre Hospital in Cardiff, which deals with the care and treatment of all types of cancer. Sue Acreman, consultant AHP for Velindre NHS Trust cancer services, wanted to use the DVD to help promote self management after leaving hospital.

As they already had a booklet, we came up with a treatment which involved filming various scenarios with ex-patients, a voice-over and music.

DVD Menu highlighting the Practical section

We then put together an interactive DVD detailing the 8 points in their care plan.

Physical
Nutritional
Psychological
Informational
Spiritual
Practical
Social & Relationships
Financial

The project was delivered on DVD in English and Welsh, with an additional 5 minute subtitled version for use in doctors' surgeries across Wales and eventually the UK.

We'd like to take this opportunity to thank all the people involved, who helped make this DVD, especially the ex-patients and staff at Velindre Hospital, and the Croupiers Running Club in Penarth for donating some of their runners for use during filming. Thank you, and good luck to all of you.

Kiwi Knights are set to go!

2010-08-10T09:45:00.006+00:00

Max & Dave - The Kiwi Knights

For the last few months, we've been preparing for one of our biggest adventures yet. We are sending two Kiwi guys off on an epic journey that will see them take in 14 countries, cover 5000 km, and take almost a year to complete, all on foot!. That's right... they're walking the entire 5000 km.

Their journey starts this Sunday (15th August 2010) from outside the Templar Church in London, where they will be setting off for Portsmouth, walking the same footsteps that the original Knights Templar did over 800 years ago. They will be blogging daily about their entire journey so we've set them up with a website, which they can publish to directly from their mobiles just by sending an email with a picture or video attachment. The guys will also be filming the entire trip in HD, sending back footage weekly for editing and uploading to the blog. This footage will also be edited and purposed for TV.

We are also looking for co-production partners to join us on this multimedia adventure, so if you are interested in getting involved, please contact Viv via our contact page.

Why not click the link above, or here, and give them a visit.

Video Editing and DVD Authoring for UWIC

2010-03-17T23:03:00.004+00:00

We've spent the last 5 months on a very big job for Estyn/UWIC, which entailed editing 60 x 1hr English and Welsh language lessons.

Shot on DV by Bay TV using 2 cameras, the lessons were edited here on our Avid editing systems, using the multicamera mode. The tapes were synched together in a multicamera group, then it was a simple case of choosing which camera to look at and when, just like using a vision mixer.

The lessons were then played out to DVD for appraisal, before being further edited down to roughly 1/2 hour. Some lessons also had a 'feedback' section by the examiners to the teachers.

All 60 lessons (15 English Primary, 15 English Secondary, 15 Welsh Primary, 15 Welsh Secondary) were then authored to DVD, 3 lessons per DVD, and are to be used internally by UWIC as a teacher training resource.

All artwork, printing and duplicating was done right here too, supplying UWIC with 11 copies of 20 different DVDs.

Carew Wartime Memories 1939 - 1945

2010-03-16T14:30:00.016+00:00

We were asked to create a 1 hour Wartime Remembrance DVD for the Carew Cheriton Community Association & Carew Cheriton Control Tower Group.

These guys have used Heritage Lottery funding to renovate their control tower at Carew in Pembrokeshire. It now looks exactly as it did back in 1941, with all the paraphernalia that you would expect to see in a wartime airstrip control tower.

The DVD was to make a record of the memories of the people that lived in Carew during the 2nd World War. Viv took a camera down to Carew, and interviewed lots of the locals to record their version of events. Some were just kids at that time, others just visiting, but all had stories to tell, about German aeroplanes bombing the runway, the huge oil fires that required the London fire brigade to spend 5 days putting it out, the gunner who "had them in his sights" but didn't receive the order to fire and many more similar tales.

With over 24 hours of interview footage and over 300 photos, we edited a 1 hour documentary detailing the stories and events of that time. The artwork comprised the full colour DVD cover (pictured here) and 2-page booklet, together with onbody print, together with artwork for an audio CD compiled by Lawson Dando at Albany Studios in Fairwater, Cardiff.

Adult Learning and Why you should learn Welsh

2010-01-20T01:48:00.005+00:00

Another advert for Capell Creative (thanks Steve!), this time a revamp of the Adult Learning campaign from a couple of years back in which a series of celebrities and members of the public say why they are learning welsh... to help my business, to get on in life, to talk to my staff, because it's fun, etc.

Barry YMCA New Website

2009-08-11T01:08:00.004+00:00

We were approached by the YMCA in Barry to revamp their website. Having been rebuilt almost from the ground up, the YMCA felt they needed a newer, fresher looking website, with the ability to book rooms and present news of the many different activities that take place. We sent our photographer (Andy Brotherton) down to take shots of all the rooms and some external shots for texture, and through consultation with the CEO and staff, rebuilt their website to provide the services they required of it.

The Great Pyramid Beckons

2009-04-10T00:20:00.001+00:00

We sent a team of people out to Egypt to get some footage of the Great Pyramid for a project we are working on (more news of that later). Viv led the crew with Sheena (producer), Andy (photographer), Rob (Soundman), Danny (Producer) and Sue (publisher) and we spent 5 days shooting up and down the Nile, around the Pyramids, in the Coptic Churches and loads more. We even had time to party on the last night. The footage and photos are for a number of projects we have in the pipeline all based around the Pyramids, and involving a best selling author. Intrigued?

TWF Cymru wants you to pass it on!

2008-12-20T01:35:00.004+00:00

Capell Creative, an ad agency here in Cardiff, approached us to deliver an advert in time for Xmas. It was for Twf Cymru, to encourage people to pass on the Welsh language, from father and mother, to son and daughter.

We created the advert with a series/montage of photos of a man growing from a baby to an adult, with a voice-over saying how his parents gave him everything, but the thing he was most proud of was that they gave him the "gift of the Welsh language". We then finished the advert with him saying the same thing to his own newborn baby. Ahhh... how sweet.

Flick - The Movie

2007-11-30T15:41:00.002+00:00

Working with Mike Burrett, we've spent the last few months doing the visual effects for a full length feature film entitled Flick.

Starring the Oscar winning Faye Dunaway (Bonnie & Clyde, Chinatown), Hugh O'Connor (Chocolat), Liz Smith (Royle Family), Mark Benton (Early Doors, Northern Lights), Julia Foster (Alfie, Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner), Terence Rigby (Mona Lisa Smile, Tomorrow Never Dies) and Michelle Ryan (Eastenders, Bionic Woman), it tells the story of Johnny, a bullied teddy boy in the 60's. His dream of dancing with Sal (Michelle Ryan) turns into a nightmare when he is bullied and beaten by Sal's boyfriend Creeper, and he finds himself at the center of a murder on the dance floor. Panicking, Johnny flees the scene of the massacre, only for his car to veer into the river, sending him to a watery grave.

40 years later, a mysterious pirate radio station playing the sounds of the 50's causes Johnny to awaken from the dead. Driving through the night, he is a monster in search of lost emotions. Through his eyes, the modern world looks just as it did in the 50's, and memory sees him return to the only place he ever called home... his mother's flat.

Johnny's back - alive and killing...

Stop Motion & CGI in Romanian ING TV Ad

2007-10-13T12:27:00.000+00:00

In the animation world, we've just finished a 30 sec stop-motion / CGI commercial for ING, the international banking and insurance conglomerate, for use on Romanian TV.

With just three weeks to turn it around, we had a twelve strong team headed by Mike Mort (Gogs) working flat out to bring it in on time. The entire commercial was shot on digital SLR cameras at ~4k resolution, downsized to 2k for workflow, with most cgi elements rendered at one or two times SD TV resolution, and final delivery was to be standard definition 4:3 PAL.

All of our studio space was utilised with two working setups alongside each other, and a third being made ready for when one of the others finished. Two disk recorders were used to allow the animators to step forward and backward, to ensure their animation was working correctly. Then the frames were brought in on CF cards in RAW format, converted, and the compositing process began. Having the compositor on hand at all times to check camera angles with test frames, and to see whether or not a composite will work before any frames are shot, removes a lot of guesswork from the whole process. The camera guys and animators were very impressed to be able to walk in and say "Can you quickly check if this will work?". It's not often that post-production processes can be used to check the workflow before actual production takes place, but it does save an awful lot of time.

All compositing was done right here at Broadstroke using Digital Fusion, and editing was done on Final Cut Pro with its fantastic Blackmagic Decklink HD card. The entire workflow was completed at uncompressed SD, and the final frame sequence was conveniently uploaded to the client's ftp site for near immediate delivery. In fact, some minor adjustments were able to be made right up to the night before airing, something that would be pretty much impossible with the UK clearance and broadcast regulations.

The London producers (Joyrider Films), and Romanian agency (CAP), together with the client (ING), all expressed their delight with the final result.

High Stakes & Spirit Seekers

2007-10-10T10:07:00.000+00:00

Well it's been a busy few months, with films, commercials, TV pilots and CGI projects all on the go at once. "It never rains..." as they say.

Other projects we've been working on include the vampire horror film "High Stakes", shot on HDV and just going through grading and the DI stage down at Dragon Digital. More news on that as it happens.

Alongside that, we are now at the editing stage of a pilot for a new TV series "Spirit Seekers" for Gavin Cromwell from "Most Haunted", which is based around his celebrity séances. Also shot on HDV, Gavin searches for spirits in a brand new concept in Paranormal Television, to be aired in the New Year. Guests joining Gavin on the programme include, Natasha Hamilton, Stuart Cable, Caprice, Terry Longden, Peter Karrie and Kirstie Howells to name but a few. If you're a clairvoyant you probably already know when this is due out, if not then you should probably just re-read this paragraph. :-)

BSL - A Matter of Policy

2007-02-20T17:05:00.000+00:00

The Welsh Assembly Government (WAG), through the efforts of Assembly Minister Jane Hutt, has recently announced that it is policy to translate official documents into BSL (British Sign Language) as well as the usual Welsh and English versions. It is important to understand that for some, BSL is their first language, and they may never learn English or Welsh.

We have recently finished shooting our second such DVD, which is entitled "Delivering Services in BSL". We shot everything against our blue-screen, and used an Autocue to ensure a professional delivery. The next stage is the editing, where we sit with the interpreters to ensure the document fits together in the correct order. Then its over to the DVD recorder to record the individual segments, authoring the functionality of the DVD with menu structure etc, and finally off to the duplicators for a glass master and however many copies the client wants.

Special thanks to Gloria Ogborn of Sign Solutions for translating the document "Delivering Services in BSL".

Broadband TV for Wales

2006-12-20T16:08:00.000+00:00

Today the Welsh National newspaper, The Western Mail features a story about Surf City in its business pages ...

Surf City TV has joined forces with Newport-based VIP Film Productions – the company behind Franchise News 24 - to put Wales on the map as a leading country of online development.

Vivian Mainwaring, managing director of Broadstroke Productions, said:

"The strength in Broadstroke is production. Unlike many broadband suppliers we have
experience making programmes, which will be invaluable as the service gains popularity. The content needs to be good or people won’t watch. We believe broadband TV can be a democratic force in Wales, enabling the general public to have a voice."

As these services expand throughout the UK all towns and cities could potentially have their own dedicated local broadband TV service delivering entertainment, documentaries, sport and news to various niche audiences.

For more information, please click here for the Western Mail website. To see a short video interview with Richard Williams from VIP, click here.

SurfCity TV is local TV via broadband

2006-08-23T16:05:00.000+00:00

Starting in Cardiff, we aim to introduce local TV aimed at local markets so that local businesses can market themselves directly to local buyers. We are close to launch date, and are very interested to hear from prospective advertisers and businesses located in any of the following areas:-

Cardiff, Penarth, Barry, Bridgend, Pontyridd, Blackwood, Pontypool, Cwmbran and Newport.

If you run a business in any of these areas, and would like to hear about the advertising opportunities that SurfCity could provide using video on the internet, and at the same prices as your current press or radio advertising, then please contact us on +44(0)2920 250737 and ask for Viv or Richard. For more information click here.

Broadstroke helps First Plus in their celebrations

2005-11-07T16:02:00.000+00:00

First Plus - a finance and loan company based in Pentwyn, Cardiff, has won a very prestigious award - that of being the best SME in Europe to work for. Announced at the Millennium Stadium, FirstPlus were up against the likes of BMW and Siemens but still managed to come out on top. HTV recorded the event but FirstPlus wanted some internal reaction to the events and so they called in Broadstroke to film some pieces to camera and to put together a DVD to be distributed internally to the staff who had worked so hard to achieve this fantastic award.

Broadstroke also went to the Holiday Inn at Heathrow to interview one of the judges of the competition who had been flown in from Germany especially. If you've got similar needs for internal corporate video or DVD then why not contact Broadstroke to see what we can do for you.

Niace Dysgu Cymru

2005-10-31T16:00:00.000+00:00

Niace Dysgu Cymru, a charity that helps learners in Wales, is celebrating its 21st birthday next year. We've edited together a collection of success stories, introduced by none other than Roy Noble, to help their cause. They need your help now more than ever as their funding from the Welsh Assembly is to stop soon. Help them to change people lives by donating to the cause. For more information please visit www.niace.org.uk.

Blaina Fire Service

2005-08-22T15:59:00.000+00:00

Fire services do more than just fight fires, they help educate children by taking classes at local schools to raise awareness of various issues. As an aid to their presentations, we cut together a promotional piece which we delivered on DVD. Now they can show their video, which automatically pauses in the right places for them to discuss the issues raised, and then a simple click to continue provides an easy solution to presentation with video. Call us now on +44(0)2920250737 to discuss what we can do for your video presentation needs.

Waterloo Village Community Project

2005-03-21T15:54:00.000+00:00

A small township in Sierra Leone, West Africa, was subject to horrible civil war during the 90's, and only now is it getting back to normal with running water and electricity supplies.

We edited together a promotional piece to help a fund raising event for their organiser Yaina Samuels. She has managed to garner the support of the Welsh people to get some much needed supplies and has arranged for them to be shipped them out to Waterloo. For more information please visit their website at www.wvcp.org.uk.

We think, therefore we blog

2005-03-01T15:53:00.000+00:00

We've decided to implement a blog on our site to allow us to post news, updates and to allow clients and prospective customers to keep up to date with what goes on here at Broadstroke.

If you have any comments or suggestions about the site then please contact us via the link on the left.