Following on from our piece in the Creative Matters section in The Journal this morning about Quick Response codes I figured it’s best to see them in action – although if you have arrived here directly from using the scanner on your phone on the article then you’ve already had a sneak peek and a warm welcome to you.

Here’s how ht media have used QR Codes recently:

We link them to specific bits of video work, so if we wanted to show somebody the work we carried out for Newcastle Airport they could scan this code

Scan me!

and will be taken to this video…

or if we wanted them to see one of the Enterprise Made Simple videos then they could scan this code

Scan me!

and be taken directly to the relevant video. We find it’s a great way of having a link to your work with you at all times.

We also use them on our business cards, which allows easy import of contact details such as name, mobile, website, email and twitter account straight into your address book depending on which phone and reader application you’re using. 

We’re currently running some package deals for small business to help with their social media content, DVDs, iPads etc so QR codes are ideal in our brochures to give a link to an example of the type of video relating to a particular package.

A couple of other things that we’ve found are that a colleague of ours uses a code on his email footer to forward to his Justgiving page for a charity walk he’s taking part in over the summer and some people (in this case a musician) will include a code on their product which takes them directly to their webshop, allowing them to cut out the middleman and have a direct link from customer to store.

Interested in how it could work for you? Speak to us about creating some video content and a direct code for your business.

Email us: info@ht-media.com

Phone us: 0191 2659205

At ht media we’ve been working closely with Enterprise Made Simple on their Bootcamp and Eureka programmes for budding Entrepreneurs. They’re a North East based business delivering advice and support to enable people to start their own business which have been a massive success. EMS asked us to join them on these programmes where we’d film the delegates over the weekend or during the week and deliver the finished film the next day. Striking while the iron is hot is a major part of Enterprise Made Simples work so an important part of our brief was to turn the work around and deliver the project as quickly as possible, which we were more than able to fulfill. another happy ht client!

Further reading:
Enterprise Made Simple
Twitter

Our esteemed editor Dave Hindmarsh was a winner at this year’s Royal Television Society Awards held at The Sage in Gateshead. The ht media team were unfortunately unable to attend as we were up to our eyes in mud filming a bootcamp so here’s Dave belatedly with the prize.

Dave was part of the production team last summer as Mark and Judith from Northern Upstart wanted his editing expertise in their production about disability in television for BBC2 called ‘Are You Having A Laugh?’. The programme came up trumps in the Best Drama Or Entertainment category.

The Society had this to say:
“a BBC2 commission for new North East indie Northern Upstart, co-producing with Mark Three Media, was original and courageous — incisive research, clever use of archive, comments from some brilliant (and for once, relevant!) celebs, and the ability to make us laugh (out loud at times) at a subject that has many taboos. The judges applaud a production company which has a genuine commitment to building a strong production base in the region, and which has brought an important issue into the mainstream in a bold and truly engaging way.”

It was a cracking production and it’s great to see Dave’s work get the credit it deserves. Well done everyone!

Further information:
Programme Details
Northern Upstart
RTS Award Page

We were commissioned by Pete Ross from Little Cat Theatre to help out on the K’ALIVE’OSCOPE project he was running at The Little Theatre in Gateshead. The K’ALIVE’OSCOPE project is an all-encompassing community project comprising local musicians, primary schools, magicians, genealogists, youth drama groups and community based films.

Pete came to ht media to help him with an intergenerational documentary based around the elder residents in Bensham. This was based around conversations with residents at Rosewood House in Bensham and a visit to Saltwell Park. Pete had a tight deadline to show the film at the K’ALIVE’OSCOPE event so we turned around his film in two days. You can see the finished video below:

The event at The Little Theatre was jam packed and a great success so congratulations must go to the Little Cat Theatre team. It was an interesting project to work on and we found them a real pleasure to work with.

More information:
Gateshead Council – Bensham And Saltwell Alive
Evening Chronicle article on the event

It’s been a while since we last blogged, not that we’re ignoring our social media responsibilities you see but we’ve been flat out combining our production work and training courses with moving our headquarters into a fresh new space.

We’re still in the fantastic Kiln building on Hoults Estate in Newcastle but are now the envy of the other tenants with the lightest office in the building. We’re set up for meetings, viewings, sit-in edits, video conferencing and a new high speed connection to upload proofs or finished videos to our dedicated client area. We’ve had a couple of jobs recently that have required mega quick turnarounds so our new set-up has helped us enormously to deliver projects to our clients quicker.

That’s the whistlestop tour over – if you’re interested in how video from ht media can help your business then get in touch:

Twitter: @matt_htmedia
Email: matt@ht-media.com
Phone: 0191 2659205

Visit:
ht media
Studio 22
The Kiln
Hoults estate
Walker Road
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
NE6 1AB

View Larger Map

We’ve been running courses to enable Small-Medium Enterprises to enhance their presence in the world of Social Media via online video. It’s often something that companies would like to do but the recent downturn and cuts have made this very difficult to implement.

However we’re able to deliver a 1 day, funded course to add a bit of DIY to online media. We give each participant a high definition flip camera, an editing package and a grasp of the basics of how to make a short video to let people know about the work their company does, run a regular series of blogs or promote particular deals they’re running.

We’re able to give a bit of guidance with the ideas that people would like to work on, show them camera and editing techniques to use the basic equipment more efficiently and get great results and an appetite for video production.

We run the course from the Northern Film & Media conference facility based out of the same building as ourselves. Click the link below for a map of the location.

Northern Film & Media
The Kiln, Hoults Yard, Walker Rd
Newcastle Upon Tyne, Tyne and Wear NE6 1AB

The next dates we’re running are:
Friday 12th November
Wednesday 17th November
Wednesday 24th November

The course runs from 9am-5pm & You PAY:
£700

You GET:
1 day of video training
A FlipCam worth around £150 to take away
A 2GB memory stick with everything you’ll need to start making your own videos
All the tea and coffee you can drink
Lunch
Oh, and if you’re eligible (which most people are) then you can claim back £600 and have it back within 30 days.

Interested? Contact training@ht-media.com or ring 0191 2659205 to book your place now.

STOP future customers in their tracks…
…and make them buy!

find out about creating effective online video content for your business

So… ht are offering a training day? Tell me all about it

(in 60 seconds please!)

OK; start the clock…

What will I learn?

You’ll learn how to communicate your business or organisation using multimedia on
YouTube, the world’s second largest search engine.

How?

We’ll show you how to make a brilliant short video and how to list it properly on YouTube.

You’ll take your own personal ‘toolkit’ away. Sorted.

Why?

It’ll communicate and build your brand – properly. It’ll reach and engage your target customers with your most compelling marketing messages yet. They’ll see that you’re their obvious choice so they’ll contact you and buy.

What does it cost me?

Potentially minus £25! No really!

You pay £700, 30 days later if you’re eligible you can claim £600 back from our friends at NBSL.
(for more information on funding eligibility, get your pre-eligibility form in today)

AND you’ll work with a ‘Flipcam’ worth £125 which ht will let you keep after the course as a thank you for attending.

If you do the math! You’re £25 up.

Where and when?

You choose.

• Thursday October 14th, 2010. 9am (prompt, please) to 5pm.
• Thursday October 21st, 2010. 9am (prompt, please) to 5pm.
• Thursday October 28th, 2010. 9am (prompt, please) to 5pm.

Venue: Northern Film and Media,
Hoults Estate, NE6 1AB

What else do I need to know?

There will be parking (we’ll tell you where), we’ll feed you on the day and we’ll give you lots of tea and coffee too.

stop the clock…

____________________________________________

Eligibility
You must be based in the North East and employ at least 5 people and no more than 249 (including volunteers) and be in a strategic position within the business. You also must not have previously accessed NBSL’s ‘Leadership and Management Programme’. If you’d like to find out if you’re eligible for funding before taking our course:

Call Morgan on 0191 265 9205, Monday to Friday,9am to 6pm

or email training@ht-media.com

The detail
The course will cover the principles of shooting video including tips and tricks; how to present you, your product and your service; where to find basic free editing software; the basics of editing a video and uploading it to the web; how to get the most out of a YouTube account; how to use video to raise awareness and sell your products/services and much more. So be prepared to be bombarded!

____________________________________________

What to do now

Please contact Morgan, General Manager at HT Media on 0191 265 9205 or email

training@ht-media.com

If you’re ready to book, go for it. Places are limited.

If you have questions or want to chat about group discounts, that’s fine too. Please just call. We look forward to hearing from you.

Thank you.

We like to do our bit and muck in to help with the environment, we’ve been able to help some other companies out with their bit as well.

First we’ve been working with TJX Europe and Sustainable Advantage on a scheme to make all of TJX’s TK MAXX stores in the UK greener. Their target is to reduce their 2006 Carbon Footprint by 10% by the end of 2010 and the majority of this will come from having their workforce carry out many tiny changes and monitoring energy usages and practices in-store. It’s all the small things that help to make a difference.

Paul Black from Sustainable Advantage commissioned ht and had this to say “it’s been great working with the guys from ht media, it’s such a professional team and it’s been nice to be back in the North East and find such a healthy media industry. “ We’re blushing…

Ht’s role in this is to create a video following the course that will be sent on to the TK MAXX stores in the UK to further spread the message and ideas that the course is delivering.

Meanwhile we’ve also been helping out International Paint who have different concerns about the environmental impact of the shipping industry. We created a short web video for use in their Propeller online magazine with Dr Julian Hunter who was reflecting on the Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen and how shipowners can reduce Carbon Dioxide emiisions simply applying a new coat of paint to their vessels such as their Intersleek 900.  In keeping with the theme of this work we filmed Dr Julian in front of a green screen, it seemed only right!

We’ve been working up at Newcastle International Airport on a project between the Airport and the excellent on site Academy run by Newcastle College. The Academy is used to train every kind of discipline in aviation from cabin crew to aerospace engineering. It’s been one of the first projects where our use of High Definition has really helped the shots come to life. The Airport’s fire station were especially accommodating – giving us free reign to get some spectacular shots of their cool Panther Fire Engines putting out a variety of fires on their training plane, they were very understanding of our calls for bigger and bigger flames!

Seeing as though I was an aircraft obsessed kid it’s been great to be at the end of a runway having planes pelt towards me and filming them in full 1080 High Def resolution! The quality of the shots has been fantastic and working with a tapeless technology has been something we’ve been wanting to do for a while, it eases up our workflow and helps us to review footage faster and get the edit underway quicker.  The benefit of HD to this project is clear to see and is definitely something to consider for your next video.