Sydney Video Producer

Please describe your company and your position there.

I'm the Head of Communications and Marketing for the Uniting Church in Australia, one of Australia's largest religious organisations.

For what projects/services did your company hire Sydney Video Producer, and what were your goals?

As part of the regulatory framework post Royal Commission into Institutional Abuse, we have an anonymous service that allows people to report abuse that that they see or experience anonymously and with confidence. We partner with another company which provides this service and we needed a video which underscored the nuance of the project and allowed us to explain how it works.

We arrived at an animated video using our existing branding and plan to use this video as part of an organisational campaign to raise awareness of the service.

How did you select this vendor and what were the deciding factors?

I had looked for a company who could work with our values and ethos to produce a previous animation project that looked at long term strategic thinking for the organisation and found Sydney Video Producers profile and work online and gave Andrew McLean a call.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail, including the project steps and all stages of production.

The process for both video projects began with a script, Sydney Video Producers (SVP) helped us refine the script, storyboard it and brainstorm some vision to match the script. SVP worked with our existing branding elements, which included fonts and colour palette, to bring the one and half minute script to life with some fanastic hand drawn animation.

One of the key animators did a timing script VO for the first draft and the Speak Out team ended up using a professional recording of this VO becuase they liked it so much.

Who did you work with and what was the feedback process like?

We worked with Andrew who kept us appraised every step of the production process, from refining the script through to first draft and master release.

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The Speak Out relaunch will be happening at the end of February so we haven't any analytics yet to measure success. But if a quick turnaround and general agreement that the video was excellent from the Speak Out team is any indication we believe it will be a success.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

Andrew and his team are very responsive and managed the whole project from end to end ahead of time and on budget, so I would say from a project management perspective, the Synod Video Producers team was brilliant and I would recommend them to anyone.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

Professional service delivery and attention to detail along with wanting to have a deep understanding of our values and ethos. Not many vendors we work with understand the progressive, inclusive nature of our organisation - Andrew and his team just get it, which makes the whole process fantastic.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

I don't think so, they have met with me to help them get a sense of what we are trying to achieve, and are more than happy to make the tweaks often needed. I find some vendors want to push their agenda when doing a job, but they genuinely are open to feedback and dealing with changes etc.

Please describe your company and your position there.

We’re a full-service creative and marketing agency Sydney that specialises in brand , design, demand generation and digital marketing . Our personalised approach combines creative and strategic thinking with technical expertise, ensuring our clients have the best marketing strategies and tools to succeed. I am the Managing Director.

For what projects/services did your company hire Sydney Video Producer, and what were your goals?

Our client wanted to tell a story about how their products, services and talented people, working with their clients, have an impact on our lives. SVP provided concepts, scripting, video production, project management.

How did you select Sydney Video Producer and what were the deciding factors?

I had worked with SVP before and trusted them to deliver on my clients vision.

Describe the video(s) and the process in detail, including the project steps and all stages of production.

We started with a discussion on what the client was trying to achieve. SVP sent through some concept ideas for client consideration. When the client had chosen an approach we briefed SVP on the industries and clients we hoped to include. Lots of back & forward as permissions to participate and timeframes were locked in. SVP developed scripting and a tight project schedule. There was signficant regional travel involved and we were operating under COVID conditions.

The SVP crew worked tirelessly over the 2 weeks and created a supportive environment for our untrained talent to shine. Post production was as seamless and SVP were very generous with client revisions.

Who did you work with and what was the feedback process like?

We worked with Andrew, Rhys and Rod - they are all exceptionally talented. Sharing schedules; adding comments within Vimeo; willingness to improvise where we needed to and maintain a sense of humour and perspective.

Can you share any outcomes from the project that demonstrate progress or success?

The outcome was well received by the client. We have been able to extend the engagement with the client and leveraged excellent footage with additional social edits.

Describe their project management style, including communication tools and timeliness.

Very professional project management style mapping locations, scenes, scripting; outcomes sought - and being flexibile enough to make adjustments as opportunities were identifed on site. Regular WIPS leading up to the filming. Sharing edits via Vimeo enabling comments to be marked up. They are very efficient.

What did you find most impressive or unique about this company?

They have the ability to apply their creative prowess to bring a clients vision to life and are humble enough to accept that not all their ideas will be embraced. I trust them implicity - they have integrity. They know their stuff and make everyone who works with them better for their experience.

Are there any areas for improvement or something they could have done differently?

Absolutely nothing I can think of.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I work at a public high school.

What challenge were you trying to address with Sydney Video Producer?

We needed help with branding and video production. We were looking for something that was gong to position us very strongly against private schools in the area and to really tell the good news story we have about our school.

What was the scope of their involvement?

They produced a series of videos which was our branding and promotion of the school within the local community. They did everything with us from the initial concept through to the scripting, filming, and the final mastering and editing of the product. They even gave us assistance with the social media aspects with Facebook and Instagram.

What is the team composition?

We’ve done two different projects with them. On each occasion, there were 3-4 people.

How did you come to work with Sydney Video Producer?

They’re a local business in our area. We came to work with them because we met with Andrew (Founder) and he was so personable. He was extremely attentive to what we were trying to achieve. He listened very carefully. He was able to reflect that back to us in a way that made sense to us. He was able to create a brief around everything that we’d discussed very quickly. It was a wonderful, simpatico relationship. He was very much in tune with what we were trying to do and they were able to deliver on it.

How much have you invested with them?

It was $30,000 for both projects.

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in October 2019 and finished in December 2020.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

It was a branding and positioning campaign. It’s hard to give metrics on that. I can say that it has generated incredible word of mouth in the community. We get a lot of feedback through our social media channels that have endorsed what we’ve said. We’ve had a lot of posts, shares, and engagements measuring in the hundreds and we’re only looking at a very small target market of probably only 1,000-2,000 people. That’s a phenomenal success. It’s something I expect to see the benefit of over the next several years.

There were a lot of positive comments in the community about the quality of the video. Everyone is extraordinarily impressed by the polish and professionalism in which it was able to promote our school. They were enormously impressed by the very personal touch that the videos had. They created beautifully, personal internet products that really engage people deeply at an emotional level. They really got to the heart of who we were as a community.

How did Sydney Video Producer perform from a project management standpoint?

They were incredible throughout the entire project. They were involved and engaged. They were timely in their delivery of every stage that they promised they’d do. They kept incredible communication throughout the whole process. They were regularly checking in to make sure that we were happy. They gave us feedback throughout the entire process so we could continue to test and adjust what we were doing. By the time we got to the final deliverable in both the projects, it was a very simple experience. There was nothing delayed, hung up, or not being what we wanted in the first place. They’re incredible project managers. We had physical meetings. With COVID-19, we had a lot of online through Zoom.

What did you find most impressive about them?

There’s a lot of things that distinguish them. The quality of their communication is impressive. The first and foremost thing I think of is their collaboration. They were so engaged in the process all the way along. They were part of what we were trying to do. The ease of working with them was so very easy. It was a joyful experience the whole way along. There was no generic, cookie-cutter approach to what they produced for us. Everything was custom and bespoke to what we wanted. Their creativity was the other thing that really struck me. They delivered creative solutions that were far better than we expected. They achieved our goals beautifully.

Are there any areas they could improve?

I can’t think of anything. I have nothing but praise for them. They’ve done everything that we’ve asked in what I’d consider an incredibly tight budget. I recommend them highly.

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

They’re so collaborative. Anyone that’s looking to work with them, all you have to do is meet with them. It’s so reassuring once you’ve met with the team to talk about what you want. Tell them what you want and then let them go away and do it. They add a layer of creativity that you probably can’t conceive of yourself. If you’re very open and upfront about what you want, they can do incredible things on the backend that you may not have expected.

Introduce your business and what you do there.

I’m the marketing manager at a personal injury law firm. 

What challenge were you trying to address with Sydney Video Producer?

We were looking to improve the quality of our TV commercials without spending too much money.

What was the scope of their involvement?

We hired Sydney Video Producer to provide video production services. We want to differentiate ourselves from other firms. We did several ads with them. They developed TV ads, and we cut different variations of those ads to use online. 

What is the team composition? 

We work with Andrew Founder & Lead Strategist). There are also some additional contractors that do the filming. 

How did you come to work with Sydney Video Producer?

I’ve known Andrew for several years. I have a lot of trust in him, so I didn’t hesitate to reach out to him about this project. 

How much have you invested with them?

We spent around $200,000. 

What is the status of this engagement?

We started working together in May 2017, and we worked together for about two years.

What evidence can you share that demonstrates the impact of the engagement?

One of the ads that we ran on YouTube was so successful that YouTube asked if they could do a case study on it to show the effectiveness of YouTube advertising. We got a lot of leads from working with them. 

How did Sydney Video Producer perform from a project management standpoint?

They were excellent. Andrew is an excellent communicator who is really on top of things. 

What did you find most impressive about them?

They’re really flexible in terms of how they worked with us. They were especially accommodating to our budget needs. 

Are there any areas they could improve?

No. 

Do you have any advice for potential customers?

Listen to the advice they give you upfront. When they give you advice on a budget for a video, listen to them. They’re coming from a place of wanting to deliver the best possible service, not just wanting to make more money.