We have been working throughout the pandemic, helping clients new and old. We have obviously been restricted when it comes to filming but with the lockdown easing, we thought it would be helpful to explain what we have been doing and how we plan to expand our activities.

We will be continuing remote working for the foreseeable future. This has been frustrating at times but it has meant we have improved our internal communications. It does not stop us doing anything we would want or need to do; we have very fast internet connections.

We have always offered training, so equipping our clients with the skills and tools to film themselves has been something we have enjoyed. We worked with the Royal Academy of Engineering to make its extensive programme of events virtual and capture and repackage the results. We helped the directors of a personal electric vehicle startup, Centaur, film their own piece-to-camera for a crowdfunding video. And we gave pro bono guidance to the Maudsley Charity for a fundraising campaign.

We have also been creative; devising different formats to achieve our clients’ objectives. These have been relatively ambitious, such as using 3D animation, or more modest, reusing footage we have previously filmed, for instance.

We restarted filming on location last week, with a commitment to keep our staff and clients safe and stop the spread of the virus. We will do this by:

• Practising social distancing: our teams will travel to shoots separately, avoid public transport and keep two meters apart from others during filming. We will film outside as much as possible, marking distances on the ground with Gaffer tape. Crew members will also wear face masks and gloves when possible. We will obviously not send someone out who is showing symptoms or has been asked to self-isolate by the NHS test and trace service.
• Avoid sharing equipment: we will use boom microphones rather than clip-ons and avoid hand-to-hand transferring of kit (even though this will sometime mean just one person has to carry everything). We will also disinfect things with Natrasan.
• Use local freelancers: last week we filmed in the Isle of Wight. Rather than send someone from the mainland, we used a local camera operator and planned the shoot so we could get what we wanted remotely.
• Risk assess everything: we already fill out a risk assessment method statement for every shoot, so thinking through how we stay safe is embedded in our processes.

If you have any questions or concerns, do please contact us at hello@happendigital.co.uk.