Seaweed in East Anglia: How We Captured It

 ‍

The Background

As always, we started off by arranging a meeting with the client. We needed to hear the story straight from the horse’s mouth, and there was no better place to start, than with Hethel Innovation.

We were told all about how the seaweed industry could be a major benefit to our local area of Norfolk, we were told of the many uses of seaweed and its potential to change the world, and most importantly, we were told that the video would be needed for a workshop/showcase event in January 2024.

With such a monumental and powerful story needing to be told in a relatively short amount of time, we got to work.

But something wasn’t quite right…

The Video Structure

Initially, we were asked for a short but sweet 2–3-minute video, however, it became quickly apparent that there was a much bigger story at large here. One that was too significant and meaningful to cram into a two-minute video.

The team all agreed on this, and with our biggest priority being ensuring that the client gets the best quality video production possible, we discussed this with Hethel, who ultimately gave us the green light to shoot and edit together a 15-minute mini-documentary piece.

And with that, the story was underway, or to quote Arthur Conan Doyle, the game was afoot.

The Filming Process

Beginning with planning, we created timelines and schedules to keep us ahead of the clock, and on track, and to ensure that we met our deadlines. From here, we arranged with all participants for shoot days, interview times, and general chats and video calls.

Working on such a crucial project, the team even started early and toured the Norfolk coast to capture the perfect B-roll footage and extra drone shots to support the narrative of the project.

Before too long, we had started the interview and filming process, traveling up and down the county, we gathered all of our filming equipment and documented our interviews with:

·     University of East Anglia

·     CEFAS

·     Biotechnica

·     Hethel Innovation

·     Norfolk Seaweed

‍

The entire process was a rollercoaster of fun and allowed us to film a whole range of environments and events. From setting sail on a boat to get supporting footage for the retrieval of seaweed stands, to donning our lab coats and capturing seaweed products such as ‘seaweed plastics’ and ‘sweets’. It was a blast.

Behind The Editing

As you’d expect, after the hectic and exciting period of capturing the footage, the team settled nicely into our warm office and comfy chairs and started the editing process.
For this project, we stuck to the storyboard in most areas, but we also let the story guide us naturally and we used our flexibility to allow certain areas and topics to have the spotlight they needed.

Finally, with all the initial editing under our belt, we entered the final sequence of the project and arranged a meeting with our client to tweak and final adjustments and list minute requests, until they were completely happy with it, and it's safe to say they were over the moon with the finished piece.

“Working with Treefrog to create the Seaweed in East Anglia project video to aid us with showcasing what we are doing and the potential of the seaweed industry has been nothing but a joy. The enthusiasm from the team, as well as their professionalism, has resulted in a brilliant piece that we are super proud of showing to our stakeholders and anyone else interested in what we are doing. We will absolutely use Treefrog again in the future if we require further video content and recommend them to the fullest”.

And just like that we were done…
Or were we?

The Event

Having the incredible opportunity to witness the process from start to finish and to play such a vital role in the project, the Treefrog team was invited down to the workshop/project showcase.

‍

We were even privileged enough to present the finished video to our audience and to say our part on what the Seaweed in East Anglia project means to us.

If you’d like to find out how important this project truly is then click here to watch the whole video.

The End

And for a second time, just like that we were done.

All that’s left for us to say is a massive thank you to everyone involved for making the shoots so efficient, professional and most importantly, fun.

If you’d like to find out how Treefrog could work with you to capture video content for your business or project then get in touch with the team via our contact form.

Who knows, maybe you’ll be our next blog subject…

‍