Today, Apple TV+ revealed the trailer for a new 10-part docuseries that we had the pleasure of working on. “The Secret Lives of Animals,” is set to premiere globally on December 18. Narrated by SAG Award winner Hugh Bonneville (“Paddington,” “Downton Abbey”), “The Secret Lives of Animals” highlights 77 unique species in 24 countries over three years, revealing stunning, never-before-seen animal behaviors and highlighting the remarkable intelligence of the natural world.
“The Secret Lives of Animals” utilises cutting-edge technology to showcase new and remarkable animal behaviors, including our very own LiveScene macro virtual production technology.
We had the pleasure of working with Motion to produce a reveal video for a tech trade show in the USA last month for this amazingly precise industrial laser tracker.
Engineered to bring greater precision to large-scale manufacturing (such as aerospace and shipbuilding), this advanced laser tracker comes equipped with a laser radar-type direct scanning technology that brings reflector-level accuracy to non-contact distance measurement.
“Industries like aerospace and shipbuilding are making large structures where scale and detail are equally important. We’re excited to offer manufacturers a system that delivers leading-edge capabilities to measure intricate features with less disruption at the heart of production and throughout the critical stages of assembly.”
Pirmin Bitzi, General Manager for Portable Measuring Devices at Hexagon
“This laser tracker is a testament to our commitment to work with our customers very closely and develop products that address core market needs. Complementing our laser scanning systems, the highly portable ATS800 can cut manual processes from hours to minutes and support the generation of a digital twin. Moreover, it can be used on our customers’ preferred AMR or robot systems to fast-track ‘push button’ automated inspection with confidence across the shopfloor.”
Andreas Werner, CTO at Hexagon's Manufacturing Intelligence divisio
Until recently, robotic automation has been limited by the supporting cabling and large control cabinets that prevent AMR use and complicate robot deployment in large-scale manufacturing. The ATS800 can be operated completely wirelessly, and is highly portable because it integrates all systems and electronics into a single lightweight tracker unit with a small control box that can be securely mounted to and integrated with common robotic control systems.
The continued decline of traditional TV viewing by younger generations was verified with this year's research by Ofcom, who discovered that just 48% of young people tuned in to watch live TV each week in 2023, a massive drop off from 76% in 2018.
People aged between 16 and 24 were found to watch just 20 minutes of television each week, while those aged between 25 and 34 watch television for only 35 minutes in the average week.
It won't come as any surprise that the media regulator’s research found that most young people prefer to watch video-sharing platforms such as YouTube and TikTok instead, with as many as 93% of those aged 16 to 24 watch a video streaming platform in the average week, while 63% of those aged between 25 and 34 also opt for TikTok and YouTube and suchlike over traditional TV viewing.
Those in the 16 to 24 age group reported watching one hour and 33 minutes of content on video-sharing platforms, while those in the 25 to 34 age group reported watching an hour and three minutes of shared content each week.
There has also been a large increase in those viewing broadcasters’ on-demand services such as ITVX and BBC iPlayer, which rose 29% between 2022 and 2023. Netflix remains the most popular streaming service, viewers spending an average of 21 minutes a week on the platform. Streaming services overall saw a marginal rise in viewers, up 6% between 2022 and 2023.
The trend toward moving away from linear television viewing is slowly taking favour in older generations, despite being slower to both take up new tech, have less awareness of new platforms or less likely to change from their viewing patterns. Middle-aged viewers, aged between 45 and 54, showed viewing rates in the age group falling from 89% to 84% in a just a year. As could be expected, traditional television remains popular among oldest audiences, with those aged 65 and above watching more than four hours of television every week.
But despite figures showing that traditional viewing is falling, people in the UK watched more TV and video content at home in 2023 than in the previous year, averaging four hours and 31 minutes a day. There has been a number of popular Live national and international events that peaked the tables of the most popular TV broadcasts, with the Euro 2024 final between England and Spain attracting a massive 15.1 million viewers across the BBC and ITV. It would be interesting to see how the stats of traditional TV viewing this past year would fare without these hugely popular live events.
Remarking about the report figures, Ian Macrae, Ofcom’s director of market intelligence said: “Gen Z and Alpha are used to swiping and streaming, not flipping through broadcast TV channels. They crave the flexibility, immediacy and choice that on-demand services offer, spending over three hours a day watching video, but only 20 minutes of live TV. It’s no surprise that the traditional TV is fast becoming a device of choice to watch YouTube. But while live TV may not have the universal pull it once did, its role in capturing those big moments that bring the nation together remains vital.”
Read the full Ofcom report here
Photo by Amateur Hub
Nestled in the heart of the English countryside, Somerset is a county rich in history, legends, and a touch of the supernatural. From ancient castles to quaint villages, this region is a prime location for paranormal investigations. For filmmaker and paranormal enthusiast John Shackleton, Somerset offered a unique blend of historical intrigue and eerie atmospheres, making it an ideal backdrop for capturing the mysteries of the unseen for a documentary series. View the promo here.
Somerset's historical depth provides a fertile ground for ghost stories and paranormal activity. Places like the imposing Glastonbury Abbey and the enigmatic Wookey Hole Caves have long been associated with eerie tales. For the pilot episode we provided camera and drone work for three locations, including Shepton Mallet Prison (claimed to be the most haunted prison in the world) a haunted historic costume hire warehouse in Frome and Walton Castle, in Clevedon. Then after many late, and spooky nights filming we produced graphics and promo edits for the launch of the pilot episode.
Bagpuss, the most magical, saggy, old, cloth cat in the whole wide world, is 50
The eternal favourite children's show first aired on 12 February 1974.
The stop motion animations were made by Peter Firmin and Oliver Postgate in Peter's barn in Blean, just outside Canterbury, Kent. Bagpuss lived in a shop that was a home for lost property. (Trivia: the shop window was also Peter's home, and Emily his real life daughter - Emily!
Together with Gabriel the Toad, Professor Yaffel the Woodpecker Bookend and Madeleine the Rag Doll (and not forgetting the Organ Mice) they inspected whatever item Emily had left them.
Today, Bagpuss is on show at The Beaney House of Art & Knowledge in Canterbury.
Go Big, Go Hot Wheels!
Building monster trucks, setting-up terrain and then making the trucks perform stunts and crashes - a tough shoot ;)
Bladez Toys have designed more of their innovative construction kit Hot Wheels toys. We have had some fun with these in the past, racing these along a track but this time it wasn't about speed, it's all about power and size!
Working to a modest budget, we shot a series of four different product videos in our small on-site studio in Clifton, Bristol. Here we designed and set-up a variety of stunt pieces, then let our young talent loose to start constructing their trucks and get them revved-up and crashing over (and through!) the set.
Kitchen Chaos
We recently had a lot of fun producing a follow-up commercial to our successful Blomberg washing machine ad, this time we introduced the kitchen range.
As always, the journey of creating a commercial starts with a concept. We collaborated with James from Creative Sauce to brainstorm ideas that resonate with the target audience. The goal is to bring the script to life in a way that captivates and engages viewers. Once the concept was finalised, and a script crafted, Dan set about storyboarding the commercial to give everyone involved a visual idea of how the concept could play out.
Blomberg had an ideal location at their headquarters in Watford, in their kitchen showroom. Casting the actors was easy as our father/daughter duo returned from the previous production.
Once props and wardrobe and makeup were meticulously organised, James had the unenviable task of making the cake. And hats-off to him, as after a long night in the kitchen he made a Bake-Off worthy creation that would have earned him a handshake from Paul Hollywood!
Working with children in film and television has it own particular set of working practice rules that are designed to keep our young talent from being overworked. The shoot schedule was designed to accommodate this, and so it was great to have Blomberg set a room set aside for the crew to allow our young actor to rest between her time on set.
Indeed, the folks at Blomberg helped make everything on the two shooting days very easy for the crew; they were readily on-hand sourcing extra props, or with a dishcloth - to help us clean down the cake baking devastation between takes.
Live Action Barbie Movie
As rave reviews for Greta Gerwig's live action Barbie Movie (portrayed by Margot Robbie) hit the internet this week, we were reminded of our own experiences with the live action version of Mattel's famous doll. When Barbie celebrated 50 years on the toy shelves, we worked with Mattel and design agency Oakwood to bring Barbie to life on the streets of London - specifically Regent Street's Hamley's Toy store. We created multi screen animations along the store's window fronts, using the kaleidoscopic colour palette of Barbie's brand (yes, there was a lot of pink tones) keyed into silhouettes of our live action Barbie model shot in a chromakey studio as she makes a multitude of costume changes to reflect her many, many career choices over the 50 years.
We are thrilled and humbled to mark a remarkable milestone in our journey as Olaus Roe celebrates its 20th anniversary. Today, we take great pleasure in reflecting upon two decades of creating all manner of graphics, filming across continents and providing creative content.
We extend our deepest gratitude to our valued customers and esteemed colleagues for your unwavering support and partnership. Without which, our journey would not have been possible. Our 20th anniversary is a testament to the strength of these relationships and our shared commitment to excellence. We are excited to see what the future years bring us, embracing new challenges, seizing opportunities, and continuing to explore new video and graphics technology.
Thank you for being an integral part of our journey. Here's to celebrating our past achievements and embracing a future filled with exciting new possibilities.
With heartfelt appreciation, the Olaus Roe team.
Olaus Roe were privileged to be out filming in some stunning locations for Channel 4 for this series looking at the most luxurious mansions and houses in the country. This included both aerial camera work with our CAA approved drone and handheld documentary style content shot on our own Sony FX6.
If this particular house takes your fancy, it is available for guests to stay at only £30,000 per night!