26/03/2020
Storytime. I thought I'd share the Dead Pixel story and give a brief insight into how I switched from being a freelance camera operator to co-running a video production company.
Everyone's journey is different and I hope you can take something from this whether you're just starting out or have been established for a while.
I've been creating films and videos from the age of 13. I started off writing, shooting, directing and acting in WW2 short films and then re-creating Jackass stunts with my brother. This spiked my interest in film-making which then lead me to University to study Bsc Film Production Technology.
I knew pretty early on into my studies that I wanted to be hands on with kit working on sets. After graduating University I took a job as a marketing representative for a summer camp organisation. I spent 2 years driving up and down the country giving presentations to students to to encourage them to work in USA and Canada for the summer. I filled my evenings and weekends freelancing as a camera operator on weddings and corporate gigs whilst saving and investing in kit. I took runner roles and camera assisting jobs on bigger productions to gain experience and network with the Manchester film-making community.
I eventually got to the point where I was turning down work mid week as a freelance camera operator because I had a full time job. It was at that point I knew I needed to make the jump into the self employed world. My outgoings were minimal. I had no dependents and lived with my mates in a grotty house in Manchester (I still looked like, and lived like a student so it wasn't particularly tricky for me).
I remember it vividly. It was April 2013 and I'd just applied to be a sole trader on companies house. I reached out to every contact I'd acquired over the past 2 years and let them know I was open for business. I must have done something right because I pretty much had 3-4 full days filming every week for the next 4 years. I gradually upgraded my equipment and really honed my craft as a film-maker. I was top of Google when people searched 'Manchester Camera Operator' or 'Manchester Cameraman'. I got a lot of repeat business but also regular enquiries through my freelance website. I had very few head aches when it came to work. I turned up with all my kit where and when I was supposed to. I did a good job, transferred the footage and submitted my invoice. That was it. Things were great, so why did I decide to shift everything and set up my own production company?
I've always been fairly ambitious and driven. I basically got to a point in my career where things were easy - too easy. I felt like I wasn't being challenged much as a film-maker and the work I was doing was becoming a bit like a conveyor belt. I often didn't get to see any of the work I'd shot. Some of it ended up on TV, some on big brand social channels but a lot was corporate communications and was lost to the internet or left internal.
Any impact I wanted to have on a production in terms of giving ideas and helping before the production got going were either ignored or accepted for free. I'd often be driving all over the city picking up specialist equipment (for an underwater shoot for example) and purely getting paid for the day rate of filming. The expectation that I was going to go above and beyond on each project with little appreciation was getting tiring with no real loyalty toward the next project. It was at this point I knew I needed my own clients. I wanted to see a project from start to finish and be genuinely proud of something I'd created.
Dead Pixel Films was born.
I spent about 2 years in a transition period where I was still white labeling my services to other production companies. These were people I'd consider good friends and that I'd had a historic relationship with. I was also seeking out my own productions offering full concepts, development, pre-production, production and post. After all I had the kit, the experience and the skills to see content through the entire process so it just made sense. I took office space at The Sharp Project (near Manchester City's Football ground) and has a sick neon signed installed.
Enter Kieran Edwards. Kieran and I have known each other for about 6 years. He worked at a creative agency in Manchester and brought in Dead Pixel as a supplier to help increase their video offering to their clients. Kieran decided he wanted a change of pace and scenery and asked if he could help take Dead Pixel to the next level. With his background in operations, strategy and social content it seemed like a no brainer. We weren't two film-makers coming together to make slightly more films. We were two totally different skilled people combing our skills to increase our offering to clients.
Within 5 months Kieran and I managed to grow Dead Pixel significantly. The website got overhauled and re-designed, the logo updated and a lot of back end processing such G-suite were implemented. We updated the showreel and put together a creds deck. Kieran then organised numerous meetings every week with prospective agencies and brands that we felt we could help. We knew the demand for multiple video assets was growing and we doubled down on that. Content was now being created with Youtube, Instagram stories and Facebook ads all well thought out before hand.
We brought on numerous brands as our own direct clients offering fresh ideas, pre-production, production and post services. With our combined network we're able to bring in other freelancers to scale up productions or keep things small and nimble. We're plugging gaps for creative agencies offering high end content with a full understanding of the deliverables. Over the past few months we've worked with Frankie and Bennys, Pip and Nut, Heck and My Protein either directly or through agency partners. (Some are still in post production but will be shared very shortly).
It's very exciting to be able to see a production from to start to finish and the engagement from audiences on the other side. There's a huge sense of satisfaction knowing that we've cultivated the relationship with clients and delivered a product that's exceeded their expectations. I'm finding the experience of running a business and a brand very fulfilling and ultimately I'm still very hands on, on set being the Director of Photography for most productions. Kieran and I are constantly bouncing ideas off one another about how to make our business better, how to serve clients better and how to be better people in general.
With our sights set on bringing on a full time editor, taking on a small studio and offering work experience placements its safe to say we're keeping busy.
I can't wait to see where we'll be in a year! Thanks for reading.
Manchester based video and film production company specialising in sports, lifestyle and food video content for brands and agencies.
