Assembly

St Paul's Churchyard

2012-03-07T07:40:00.003-08:00

One of our developer clients wanted a CGI with a bit of a difference. They were keen to show the building in day, dusk and evening, but didn't want a static set of images. Our solution was an animation, constructed from the three still images, which gently pans from left to right as the scene shifts from day to night.

Confidential Project, Goa

2012-03-07T07:01:00.003-08:00

It's still confidential but here's a glimpse of a project we worked on last year for one of our developer clients. We were commissioned to produce a series of marketing images to promote a luxury development of apartments in Goa, in the south of India. We are hoping for a site visit soon!

Image Nation Cavalcade

2012-02-07T09:14:00.000-08:00

Abu Dhabi-based Image Nation is one of the world’s leading feature film producers. It has co-produced a number of high profile feature productions including recently 'The Help','Contagion' and 'The Double'.

We were commissioned to produce the cavalcade that will be used to represent Image Nation. The piece is conceptually based on encapsulating a nation of people, coming together through the medium of film.

Creative Somerset Launches

2012-02-06T09:13:00.000-08:00

We're delighted to announce that the third area to join the Creative Assembly suite of websites - Somerset - has now gone live! www.creativesomerset.com has now joined Creative Torbay and Creative West Sussex, and is connecting the creative industries across the county and beyond.

2012 is looking to be the year of growth for Creative Assembly - we have had some interesting talks with several regions just outside of London - it's secret for now but we'll let the cat out the bag as soon as we're allowed to!

For anyone who is not familiar with the system: it is an online tool to connect creative, cultural and arts businesses and individuals with each other and their customers. The online hub allows users to network, share knowledge, showcase their work & products, and reach customers and consumers. To learn more about it visit www.creativeassemblyuk.com or call us on 020 7426 2080.

Hertford Road Project Returns

2012-01-20T03:40:00.000-08:00

Hertford Road is a project we worked on a few years ago for Metropolitan Housing Trust. When the scheme changed we were pleased to rework the images to reflect the new design. Look out for them on a billboard near you soon!

Wanted: Talented Senior 3D Artists, London (Permanent & Freelance Roles Available)

2012-01-04T11:30:00.000-08:00

Assembly Studios is an award winning multi-disciplinary design agency. Our creative CG department works with the wider studio to deliver a diverse range of content for print, web, interactive and animation.

We are on the lookout for talented experienced 3D Artists to fill both freelance and permanent roles. 3D Studio Max, VRAY, Photoshop and After Effects skills are essential, as is experience with animation, compositing and post-production. We need great team players, able to work on multiple projects simultaneously, who are passionate about CG, very creative and diverse in their skills sets.

If that sounds like you we would love to hear from you! Please send a C.V. and showreel / portfolio to jobs@assemblystudios.com (6MB Max).

Applicants must be located within commuting distance of our London office (E1).

Looking forward to hearing from you!

“I want an APP!”

2011-12-19T09:16:00.001-08:00

You want an App? We can give you an App! Here at Assembly Studios, we can produce a version of your website that functions as an App, allowing you to browse your website WITHOUT an active internet connection. A click of a button lets you export your site to iPad / iPhone / other mobile device. Here are some of the questions we get asked:

How can it benefit me?
Use your website as a presentation tool without being reliant on an internet connection. Downloading to mobile devices could give you image galleries with touch screen navigation, or geolocational applications to guide your customers right to your front door.

How much do they cost?
The cost of producing your App can be a small percentage of your web build cost.

What do I put in it?
Whatever you like, with Assembly Studios’ content management system, you can modify the content of your App with the click of a mouse.

How do I get me one?
Give us a call 020 7426 2080 or drop us an email on info@assemblystudios.com – we’d love to discuss how it might work for your company.

assemblystudios.com gets festive!

2011-12-19T01:42:00.000-08:00

Our new website has had a Christmas makeover, with each project being carefully translated into a beautiful festive bauble. Check it out - www.assemblystudios.com

A Winter's Tale

2011-11-18T06:34:00.000-08:00

Here's an animation we produced which was used as a viral Christmas greeting. We really enjoyed working on it and now that Christmas is lurking around the corner it seems like the perfect excuse to get it out again! If you are looking for a creative digital greeting to send out to capture your clients' attention then give us a call - we have many ideas up our sleeve for all budget types and mediums!

Two New Areas Join Creative Assembly

2011-11-14T08:03:00.000-08:00

We are excited to announce that two new areas will be joining our network of Creative Assembly sites: Somerset and Swindon.

For those of you who are not familiar with Creative Assembly, it is an online tool developed by us, in collaboration with Torbay Council, to connect creative, cultural and arts businesses and individuals with each other and their customers. They use the online hub to network, share knowledge, showcase their work & products, and reach new customers and consumers. Creative Torbay and Creative West Sussex have been running successfully for some time now, getting thousands of hits per month.

Click here to read case studies from Torbay Council and West Sussex County Council!

To find out more about Creative Assembly and how to set up a site for your region, click here for a product information sheet or contact us on 020 7426 2080 or daniela@assemblystudios.com

Assembly Studios in the News: Property Week

2011-11-04T02:08:00.000-07:00

Here is one of our images in action, doing what they do best: showing a scheme off to its best advantage. This image was a verifed view, so it was used for both planning and marketing purposes.

Assembly Studios.com Goes Live!

2011-10-28T06:49:00.000-07:00

There comes a time in every website’s life when it’s time for a refresh. That time arrived for us several months ago. We get a lot of compliments on our site, but we felt collectively that it was time to move on. Our new website is, much like us, all about the work. Visually, it’s quite a departure from our slick, black look of old: neutral backgrounds and simple, well designed menus ensure that our portfolio is always the main focus. Here are a few additional features that make our new website cool:

The site uses a fluid layout, which means that it displays equally well across desktop browsers and mobile devices (useful since an increasing number of our visitors access the site from smart phones, iPads, and the like).

Even non-Flash users will be able to see animated content and galleries thanks to our standards compliant HTML/CSS and Javascript (this makes for better SEO too…)

Lots of great new work. We hope you like it!

Here’s a link to the new site – we’d love to get your opinion: www.assemblystudios.com

Drop us an email at daniela@assemblystudios.com to share your views. So, if that gives you food for thought, and you’re interested in refreshing your own website, give us a call. We’d love to discuss your requirements! 020 7426 2080

Abu Dhabi Airports Company Animation

2011-10-28T03:09:00.000-07:00

Abu Dhabi Airports Company (ADAC) is the owner and operator of five airports and several check-in facilities. Our brief was to produce an animation that could be used to clearly illustrate their business to a multi-lingual audience. We have been commissioned by the ADAC marketing team on numerous occasions to produce a variety of marketing collateral from corporate animations for events through to e-mail teasers for their new brand reveal, for which we also created a brand reveal animation.

A Chapel With A View

2011-10-27T10:07:00.000-07:00

We recently worked with one of our international architecture clients to produce some dramatic new renderings of their chapel project. The day and night shots show the chapel in its stunning surroundings, built into the countryside.

We are recruiting… Senior Project Manager / Studio Manager, London

2011-10-10T02:30:00.000-07:00

We are currently seeking a Senior Project Manager with Studio Management skills to work from our London studio.

You will have wide-ranging experience of project, account management, and studio management in the creative industries, exceptional communication and organisation skills with a proven ability to deliver medium to large scale projects, building lasting client relationships within a variety of industry sectors and media outputs, including strategic identity, print, digital and mobile both on time and within budget.

You will be managing a small but growing team across three studios, taking a studio resource management and utilisation role as the company expands.

You will be expected to bring the following key abilities to this role:

· Ability to manage key projects from agreement of project plan and scope of work through to final delivery and client aftercare.

· Ability to work as a single point of contact with both internal and external production resources, on a range of media outputs, including strategic identity, print, digital and mobile.

· Ability to manage client expectations and negotiate change management with diplomacy and financial acumen.

· Ability to pull out from the detail and monitor the wider studio picture by keeping a handle on resource utilization and production overruns studio-wide.

· Ability to have fun and not take yourself too seriously, whilst still being driven and passionate about your role and the company.

You will be required to liaise with our design, development, sales and marketing teams and report into the Directors and Board.

Working knowledge and expertise working in SalesForce CRM, Access FocalPoint Project Management, 37 Signals Suite, Roadmap, InDesign and Photoshop or similar systems would be preferable.

For further information or to apply for the position, please email richard@assemblystudios.co.uk

Flights of Fancy

2011-09-16T09:28:00.000-07:00

We’ve been working with Abu Dhabi Airports Company for a while now and we were thrilled when they asked us to create a promotional film that they could use at exhibitions and events to educate viewers about its corporate arm. The film focuses specifically on the five airports ADAC owns and operates, its subsidiaries, and its customer services brands. Our brief was to present this information in an engaging way and our resulting piece is a visually rich blend of mediums, from photography and typography to animation and motion graphics.

Wanted: Talented Middleweight 3D Artists for freelance, contract and permanent roles!

2011-08-16T07:34:00.000-07:00

We're busy - we need another CG Artist! Have a look at the visualisation section of our website:

www.assemblystudios.com/services/visualisation

Does that look like your work? If so, we want to hear from you! We have both short term and fixed term contracts available. Here's what we're looking for:

· 3 - 5 years visualisation experience

· Previous studio experience

· Ability to work daily from our London studio

· 3D Studio Max, VRAY, Photoshop and After Effects skills

· Experience with animation, compositing and post-production

· Great team players who are passionate about CG

If that sounds like you we would love to hear from you! Please send a C.V. and showreel / portfolio to info@assemblystudios.com (6MB Max).

Apologies - due to high volumes of responses it is not always possible to respond to all applications.

Things We Like: Part 01...

2011-08-15T02:32:00.000-07:00

The quality of the street art around our studio, just off Brick Lane, is seriously good. One guy whose work really jumps out though, is Mexican artist Pablo Delgado. Pablo's work has a unique three dimensional quality that both engages and involves the viewer. A few of Pablo's works can be seen on Calvin Street, Corbet Place and Jerome Street (pictured).

London 2012: One Year to Go

2011-07-28T06:23:00.000-07:00

Since it's the one year countdown to the 2012 Olympics, it seemed like an appropriate time to revisit the CGIs we produced for the winning bid! Here they are...

Our CGIs for OMA's Commonwealth Institute Feature in BD Magazine

2011-07-20T02:42:00.000-07:00

It's always exciting to see our work in the press. Above are a couple of the images we produced for OMA's Commonwealth Institute which were published in BD Magazine today.

http://www.bdonline.co.uk/news/inside-omas-commonwealth-institute-redevelopment/5021841.article

Wanted: One Talented Middleweight 3D Artist!

2011-07-19T04:59:00.000-07:00

We're busy - we need another CG Artist! Have a look at the visualisation section of our website:

www.assemblystudios.com/services/visualisation

Does that look like your work? If so, we want to hear from you! Here's what we're looking for:

3 - 5 years visualisation experience
Previous studio experience
Ability to work daily from our London studio
3D Studio Max, VRAY, Photoshop and After Effects skills
Experience with animation, compositing and post-production
Great team players who are passionate about CG

If that sounds like you we would love to hear from you! Please send a C.V. and showreel / portfolio to info@assemblystudios.com (6MB Max).

Apologies - due to high volumes of responses it is not always possible to respond to all applications.

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Hammersmith Grove

2011-06-23T03:15:00.000-07:00

You might not guess from these images, but this scheme by our client, Development Securities is actually, at this moment, a car park in Hammersmith town centre. Not for long though... As you can see, there are big plans for this plot and it will soon be transformed into a mixed-use development with office space, a cinema and restaurants.

2KS Summer Party Invitation

2011-06-23T03:02:00.000-07:00

We love a good party, so when our client Development Securities asked us to come up with a design for their summer do, we were only too happy to oblige! They wanted to use an aspect of the Two Kingdom Street architecture in the design, so we focussed on the bright panels in the front foyer. We aimed to create something both playful and memorable by only allowing the viewer to decifer the text by altering their view of the invitation.

International Dialogue Group Mission to Mumbai 2011

2011-06-23T02:51:00.000-07:00

The last few months has seen me travelling a lot as we help boost our UK workload by expanding into new markets. Trips to Russia, Ukraine and the Middle East have proved fruitful, so when I was invited to travel to Mumbai as part of a 10 man delegation organised by the International Dialogue Group, I decided to take the plunge and see how much further the Indian economy had moved since my last recce in 2009.

Given that this particular patch of land had been earmarked for redevelopment for over 10 years, knocking it into shape in 48hrs through an architectural charette chaired by NLA‘s Peter Murray was always going to be a challenge. Well, ok, we actually had three days, but we needed to make sure we were finished in time to watch the cricket, obviously. The guys on the trip were a great mix of high proile british talent and experience, a real age range too – most, if not all, had some connection or business reason to be in Mumbai. What really shone through was the professionalism of the team and how well they gelled together.

Given the scale of the plans for Mumbai (we got a sneak preview into their 40 year plan) it was always going to be a challenge to make an impact in such a short time, but we did achieve something - over the course of a few days we met with various government and private sector organizations. We were able to stimulate debate and canvas ideas that had not yet been considered - issues of land reclamation (currently regarded a sin in India on environmental grounds) expanding green and civic spaces and housing were all systematically considered and represented with commercial and passionate flair. Listening to one local architect explain "one of the problems with trying to improve housing for the slum dwellers is that the slums are built next to the place of work and the new housing is usually out of town, about 20-30k out - what often happens is the slum dweller gets his new house, he then sells it for good money and moves back to where he started from". The vast majority would rather be local than commute through the mad traffic. What an earth can you do about that? Possibly not a lot, by all accounts.

I would love to go into further detail as to what we were specifically tasked to look at, but the powers that be have been stimulated by the team’s ideas, and it looks like it may well be taken further. As a result we are limited in what we can and can't say. Notwithstanding, such big ideas tend to touch a great many, so one has to tread with a certain amount of diplomatic dexterity. It may be that some or all of the team will need to be back in the coming months to see if we can make a difference to what has been a long time in the making - watch this space.

Launch of Creative West Sussex...

2011-06-21T04:25:00.000-07:00

We are delighted to announce the launch of Creative West Sussex yesterday, which is the second website in our Creative Networks suite, following Creative Torbay.

The Creative Networks system enables creative communities to communicate, network and publish their content online. The site content is user driven, with administrators able to adjust how their own site works using a unique control panel, thereby sculpting the way the site facilitates cross pollination and communication across creative sectors in their area. Geolocational information, date proximity and a host of other techniques are deployed to ensure that individual users of the sites are presented with fresh and appropriate content.

Torbay was the ONLY council in the UK to increase footfall to museums and gallery spaces in 2010, a fact they attribute to their creative website!

To see the websites in action visit http://www.creativewestsussex.com/ and http://www.creativetorbay.com/

If you are interested in finding out more about the Creative Networks or would like to set one up, give us a call on 020 7426 2080.

An Unexpected Marshmallow Break

2011-06-17T02:44:00.000-07:00

There are many great things an intern can do, but this week I think we discovered a new and, frankly, unexpected one, courtesey of our lovely design intern Matthew: make the team homemade marshmallows! They were the best mid-afternoon pick-me-up we have discovered to date, and since there is nothing more boring than trying to describe how something tastes, here's the recipe so you can discover for yourselves...

Use these:
455g/1lb granulated sugar
1 tbsp liquid glucose (available from some chemists and specialist cook shops)
200ml/7fl oz water
2 large free-range egg whites
9 sheets gelatine (about 16g/½oz), soaked in 140ml/5fl oz water
1 tsp vanilla extract
icing sugar, for dusting and coating
cornflour, for dusting and coating
125g/4½oz fresh raspberries
200g/7¼oz white chocolate, melted, to serve (optional)

Do this:
1. Place the sugar, glucose and water in a heavy-based pan. Bring to the boil and continue cooking over a high heat until it reaches 127C/260F on a sugar thermometer - take care as the mixture is very hot.
2. Meanwhile, beat the egg whites with an electric whisk until stiff peaks form when the whisk is removed.
3. When the syrup is up to temperature, remove from the heat and carefully slide in the softened gelatine sheets and their soaking water. The syrup will bubble up so take care not to burn yourself. Pour the syrup into a metal jug.
4. Continue to beat the egg whites while slowly pouring in the hot syrup from the jug. The mixture will become shiny and start to thicken. Add the vanilla extract and continue whisking for 5-10 minutes, until the mixture is stiff and thick enough to hold its shape on the whisk.
5. Lightly oil a 30cm/12in x 20cm/8in shallow baking tray. Dust the tray with sieved icing sugar and cornflour and then spoon half the marshmallow mixture over and smooth it with a wet palette knife.

6. Coat the raspberries with a mixture of icing sugar and cornflour, and lay over the top of the marshmallow mixture. Cover the raspberries with the remaining marshmallow mixture and leave for at least an hour to set.
7. Dust a work surface with more icing sugar and cornflour. Loosen the marshmallow around the sides of the tray with a palette knife and turn it out on to the dusted surface. Cut into squares and roll in the sugar and cornflour. Leave to dry a little on a wire rack before packing into an airtight box.
8. Serve the marshmallows as they are or accompanied by melted white chocolate for dipping.

Original recipe here: http://www.bbc.co.uk/food/recipes/raspberrymarshmallow_86118

Commando Challenge Weekend: The Aftermath

2011-06-06T04:30:00.000-07:00

So, Saturday finally saw the arrival of the Retrack Commando Challenge. Matt, Matthew, Ross and Frederick from the Assembly London Studio chose to spend the day canoeing 13km, climbing 10km, cycling 20km, then finishing off with another 3.5km canoe. Brave or foolish? You can decide from the photos below! Six gruelling hours equalled second place in the competition and over £1,300 for charity...

Our Branding Guides the Way To Lighthouse

2011-05-25T03:54:00.000-07:00

How exciting - our branding has gone up on site at Lighthouse in central Moscow! We'll keep posting as the project progresses so watch this space to see the development take shape.

Virtually Perfect | Issue 03 | May '11

2011-05-19T07:32:00.000-07:00

Issue 03 of our CG Illustration & Animation newsletter, Virtually Perfect is now out. If you didn't recieve a copy direct to your inbox - email marketing@assemblystudios.com to be added to the distribution list!

Crouch Hill Community Park

2011-05-18T09:09:00.000-07:00

Here's a closer look at our CGI section for Penoyre & Prasad's Crouch Hill Community Park.

Nanjing Waterfront Redevelopment

2011-05-18T06:33:00.000-07:00

Check out some of our CGI stills from a recent film we worked on...

From ‘Creature from the Black Lagoon’ to ‘Avatar’: The rise, the fall and the resurrection of stereoscopy

2011-05-16T07:38:00.000-07:00

Stereoscopy: noun - a device by which two photographs of the same object, taken at slightly different angles, are viewed together, creating an impression of depth and solidity.

Ok, now we know what it is (vaguely) – but how did it evolve? And how can it give your firm a competitive edge in a struggling market?

What Is It?

I’m sure everyone at some point has seen a 3D film; I remember seeing a show-case as a child with a shark jumping out of the screen… and being slightly underwhelmed. Although impressive, it was rough, unconvincing and jarring for the audience. Now 3D films and media are all around us and the medium is quickly losing its ‘disappointing’ reputation and is increasingly being described as truly impressive. Films like Avatar and other recent blockbusters have blazed a trail, along with 3D computer games and 3D televisions, which are growing in popularity every year.

Ok, let’s talk science: the basic principle behind a ‘3D’ image or film is that any media can present two slightly different images from two adjacent viewpoints; one for each eye. This gives the effect of parallax (difference of an object’s position perceived from two different viewing positions). Humans (and other front-eyed animals) use parallax to judge distance, a skill essential to our daily lives. But how does anyone present a different image to each eye?

The Evolution

Historically this effect has been achieved with coloured filters (red and green) separating out images to each eye. I’m sure everyone, at some point, has had experience of the classic ‘red and green’ anaglyph glasses; maybe a 3D comic, or some of you may even have had the misfortune to see some of the films touted around in the 80’s. The common assumption is that this was when the first 3D films arrived. In actual fact, the first anaglyph 3D film was shown (incredibly) in 1922.

From the 1930’s, the popularity of 3D grew rapidly, before its eventual fall from favour in the late 1950’s. As the years went by, popularity in the medium peaked and troughed: new breakthroughs in technology were made - film companies jumped at the chance to offer a never seen before experience to their audiences - audiences flocked to see what all the buzz was about; then, inevitably, interest plateaued until its next incarnation came onto the scene.

So, what came next? Stereovision in the 70’s allowed both of the images necessary to create a 3D effect to be on the same film reel and used a special projector lens to separate them, meaning films always remained in sync. These days, you’re most likely to encounter polarization, which is characterised by the 1980’s sunglasses you’ll be asked to don. This is preferred over the old red and green process, because it gives better colour viewing. With this method, two views are projected onto the screen with different polarisation, then the glasses only let one version into each eye, because the lenses also have different polarisation. Clever stuff. The technology just keeps getting better and better and now, with the right hardware and software, you don’t even need the glasses at all. Great news for anyone who’s ever wanted to take a date to a 3D movie!

A Competitive Edge?

“All this is interesting” you might say (assuming you’re still reading, and haven’t succumbed to death by 3D!) but what does it mean to businesses today? Well, 3D just won’t die - it’s becoming commonplace at the cinema, there’s a very real possibility that 3D TV will enter the average home in the not-too-distant future. If you want to be seen as the vanguard of modern technology by your customers, and keep one step ahead of your competitors, now is the time to put some feelers out and start thinking about how stereoscopy could be used to engage with your client base. Being on the forefront of technology could be more cost effective than you think: 3D computer monitors are cheaper than ever and most computer graphics cards support 3D output to screens and glasses. There are, of course, right and wrong times to utilise stereoscopy within any media and if you are thinking of doing it, do it right. Have it in mind from the start, craft the project to suit and complement the medium, and take advice from the experts!

If you want to have a chat about how 3D could be used to enhance your project, product or marketing, get in touch on 020 7426 2080 – we’d love to hear from you and discuss your 3D needs!

Assembly Studios Tackles Commando Challenge for Retrak

2011-05-16T02:02:00.000-07:00

On 4 June, an intrepid group of Assembly Studios folk and friends will be tacking the Commando Challenge in aid of Retrak, an amazing charity working to improve the lives of street children in Africa. The challenge will take place in the Lake District, where the team will have a mere 12 hours to travel 46.5K.

The challenge comprises a 13k canoe to Ullswater, then a 10K stroll up Helvellyn via Striding Edge, followed by a 20km bike ride to Derwent Water, then, to round off, a 3.5k canoe from Derwent Water to Keswick.

The team is made up of: Matt Fairman (CEO); Matthew Jones (CG Artist); Ross Cunningham (Creative Director); Ben Tadiar (Web Developer) and our good friends Fredrik and Chris.

If you would like to support Retrak by sponsoring the Assembly Studios team, you can donate securely online here: http://www.justgiving.com/MC-Jones

Something For The Weekend...

2011-05-09T03:56:00.000-07:00

I don't know what you did at the weekend, but here's a little something our UAE Creative Director, Jon Wells, created, just for fun. I hope you like it!

New Commision for Mohammed Bin Zayed City, Abu Dhabi

2011-05-05T03:50:00.000-07:00

An animation we produced last year led to another exciting commission from KEO International Consultants. This time we produced a series of CG images for the Public Realm Concept at Mohammed Bin Zayed City in Abu Dhabi. The work was commissioned last month to showcase on the KEO stand at Abu Dhabi Cityscape and the entire project was completed in less than one week. Scroll down to see the image set.

Meet the Team - Senior CGI Artist, Kyle Grace

2011-04-18T04:05:00.000-07:00

Q: What’s your favourite advertising / marketing campaign and why?

A: The First is “Those who can; Teach” - A government funded campaign to encourage new talent into the teaching profession. Heartfelt interviews with famous sportsmen and artists regarding their influential teachers. It was simple, powerful and well shot.

The Second is “Good things come to those who wait” – Guinness. Their brand is strong and their adverts are engaging, I am yet to see a bad representation.

Q: What do you wish you had designed / invented?

A: 28 hour days would be a great invention.

Q: Any websites or design magazines you use for inspiration?
A: CG Architect, World Architecture News, Digital Photographer.

Q: Is there a piece of technology you couldn’t live without?

A: My Wacom. It’s the key tool of any good retoucher or CG artist.

Q: What’s the best job you’ve ever worked on?

A: Make’s Grosvenor Waterside. We produced several key images and a matched CG animation into a helicopter based footage.

Q: What makes you laugh out loud?

A: Any surreal British comedy, from Monty Python to Eddie Izzard.

Q: Describe your perfect weekend?

A: Any music festival – a weekend of Music, Beer, Beards and Badgers (You need something to talk about at 3am in a field).

Q: If you had to sum yourself up in 140 characters Twitter style, what would you say?

A: I like to spend a lot of money on beer, fast cars and women. But as I’m not George Best, I’ll just squander my time and money on music and photography instead.

Wanted: One Talented 3D Artist!

2011-04-14T01:57:00.000-07:00

Assembly Studios is an award winning multi-disciplinary design agency. Our creative CG department works with the wider studio to deliver a diverse range of content for print, web, interactive and animation.

We are on the lookout for a talented experienced 3D Artist to join our London studio. 3D Studio Max, VRAY, Photoshop and After Effects skills are essential, as is experience with animation, compositing and post-production. We need great team players, able to work on multiple projects simultaneously, who are passionate about CG, very creative and diverse in their skills sets.

If that sounds like you we would love to hear from you! Please send a C.V. and showreel / portfolio to info@assemblystudios.com (6MB Max)
Click to visit the Assembly Studios website.

iPhone Travel Photography... Matt in Mumbai...

2011-04-08T02:37:00.000-07:00

Mumbai trip 2011 - UKTI mission to Mumbai reveals a buzzing economy and lots of opportunity for us Brits to export... The last few months have seen me travelling a lot as we help boost our UK workloads by expanding into new markets. Trips to Russia, Ukraine and the Middle East have proved fruitful, so when I was invited to travel to Mumbai as part of a 10 man delegation organised by the international Dialogue Group, I decided to take the plunge and see how much further the Indian economy had moved since my last recce in 2009.

Equiped with nothing but an iPhone to document the trip - here's a taste of what went on...

A Beacon of Good Design

2011-03-30T07:06:00.000-07:00

We have just completed work on a full marketing campaign for a large commercial building located inside Moscow's Garden Ring. The name 'Lighthouse' and the logo are inspired by its prime location and the spectacular panoramic views you get from the development across Moscow.

We developed the typography and colour palette to reflect the modern approach and direction of the development, the integrated mark in the logo 'O' symbolises an open approach and a seamless extension of the building into its wider context. We really enjoyed working on the project and we hope you enjoy the results!

Assembly Studios Creates New Sting and Website for Abu Dhabi Media

2011-03-29T03:13:00.000-07:00

We have just completed work on an exciting new project for Abu Dhabi Media, who commissioned us to create an animated sting and website to coincide with the launch of a new brand identity.

The sting was inspired by Arabic calligraphy and the colour palette of Abu Dhabi Media’s ident, which is revealed in a series of sweeping strokes in a rainbow of colours that form the Arabic characters. The sting was produced in full HD for use in a variety of different media, and features on the website homepage.

The Abu Dhabi Media website is a fully content managed, bilingual and accessible suite of web applications, developed and deployed by Assembly Studios’ in house team, which worked internationally, collaborating with Abu Dhabi Media’s own server team and site designers, Brand Faith.

"We had a fantastic website launch" said Colleen McMillen, Director of Corporate Communications and Publicity at Abu Dhabi Media, "Assembly Studios did incredible work in a short amount of time. We are so pleased with the site and the sting, both of which allow us to effectively communicate our new brand identity."

Shaikha Al Shamsi, Associate Director of Corporate Branding said, "The new site and the sting clearly showcase the vibrancy of our new brand. We really enjoyed working with everyone on the Assembly team and appreciated their utmost dedication throughout the project."

The animated sting and website are now live at www.admedia.ae

When Jon met James (Cameron, that is!)

2011-03-22T04:16:00.000-07:00

3d Masterclass with James Cameron and Carlos Saldanha
Abu Dhabi Media Summit

Jon Wells, our Creative Director in Abu Dhabi, was lucky enough to be invited to a 3D masterclass with James Cameron last week, by one of our clients, Abu Dhabi Media. The invitation followed our recent work on their new website and animated sting. (Have a look - http://www.admedia.ae/)

James Cameron was joined by Carlos Saldanha (director of the Ice Age series and the upcoming film Rio) and Jim Gianopulos (Chairman and CEO of Fox Filmed Entertainment) to deliver the special masterclass, held at the auditorium of the Emirates Palace Hotel in Abu Dhabi.

James Cameron spoke about reactions to Avatar and how indigenous people around the world identified strongly with the movie and its overriding message. He showed behind the scenes clips from the film to demonstrate how ‘performance capture’ is so much more than just ‘motion capture’.

Carlos discussed the incredible hard work, dedication and time that goes into today’s animated 3D films, not only on the Stereo 3D aspects of it. He showed clips from the making of RIO, his soon to be released S3D animated film.

Both James and Carlos agreed that S3D by itself will not “make” a film. It’s the idea, the story, the acting and the directing that makes a compelling S3D film, as it does any film.

So, all in all, an incredibly inspiring and educational morning!

Friday 18th February – (Kiev)

2011-03-09T04:28:00.000-08:00

After validating the visa story by trying to speak to various Ukranians on the flight and arriving through passport control with a warm imperial feeling in my stomach - I was struck by the distinct difference to Moscow: even less English advertising, less English spoken and much, MUCH cheaper. Not being stitched up by the taxi driver seemed a little easier to navigate too – or perhaps I was and I didn’t know the difference due to the contrast in prices… I’ll no doubt find out next time.

The project we’ve been asked to have a look at is a really interesting one, which has much the same sensitivities that a central London planning application may face. In the heart of a cultural district, there are opportunities to create an intervention between old and new that hopefully, if we do our job correctly, will engage the local community, provide a dynamic civic space and also create much needed grade A office space in the centre of town.

It’s true what they say about Kiev, it’s a fun city with lots of natural beauty… The architecture is typical Russian fare, but there is an element of style and grandeur that is more compacted than in Moscow and the hills make it much more photogenic.

Friday night passed uneventfully as it is a difficult gig to get anywhere where no English is spoken and all the signage is in Cyrillic.

Had a brilliant Pulp Fiction moment however, when all attempts at McDonalds (this was the best attempt at an eatery that wasn’t based on low quality meat… sorry not fair as Ukranian food on the whole is excellent, but you try ordering from a Russian menu when your Russian doesn’t extend further than“OK” “Perfect” “Please” “Thank You” and “One for the Road…”). Anyway, attempts to order a “quarter with cheese” went through four members of helpful staff until jubilantly, the manager appeared and said in a broken Russian-American accent “Ah, you mean a Royale with cheese”... John Travolta is popular everywhere… genius.

Thursday 17th February (Moscow to ridiculously cold Kiev)

2011-03-08T04:27:00.000-08:00

I joined the daily Moscow crush to get to my first meeting, which was a site visit to a business park next to Dynamo FC, so the Metro route was fairly straight forward in the end. What wasn’t straight forward was the 20-25 minute walk from the Metro. It was -27 and a lovely Siberian breeze was adding to the chill factor. I felt like Sir Edmund Hilary without oxygen. By the time I got to my destination, my legs had properly frozen up through my jeans and the receptionist killed herself laughing because I was slurring my words so badly with the cold!! Despite my hat, it felt like my ears were going to fall off!

After 3 more trips across town, and only going in the wrong direction twice, my various meetings went well, we won some work, and I was clearly looking very much the Russian as I was asked for directions 3 times on my way back to the Metro!!

I proudly emerged from what I was sure was the right station to get back to my hotel and found I was in a completely different place altogether!! Hmmm, fortunately my hotel was near a really tall tower that I recognised, so I improvised and found my way back to base. I reckon £100 saved in taxis, plus an interesting experience and I dodged the traffic, but it was soooo cold – respect to the Russians, no wonder they have such a reputation for being so tough.

After making it to the end of the Moscow leg of my trip, my good friend and client very kindly extended dinner with his family en route to Sheremetyevo airport and insisted on sharing some vodka in the back of the car – given the traffic and the time taken this turned into a genius, impromptu night in…

I was genuinely worried on the way to Ukraine that I needed a visa for my passport given the onerous process to get into Russia. I read somewhere that following the temporary relaxation in the law a few years ago to let travellers travel to see the Eurovision song contest, you no longer need a visa to get in from the UK to Ukraine – so Eurovision is worth the money then?? 

Boris Johnson Opens the Place UK Stand at MIPIM

2011-03-08T02:30:00.000-08:00

8 March 2011 - Boris Johnson opens the Assembly Studios designed Place UK stand at MIPIM!

Matt on the Road Part Two - Dubai to Moscow...

2011-03-07T03:39:00.000-08:00

Tuesday 15th February (Abu Dhabi to Moscow-co-co-cold)

In the north they might say it’s a bit parky… well in Moscow this week it was more than a bit parky – it was a lot parky – national parky! I touched down in Domededova in Moscow and made my way quite sombrely through the area that had been hit by the bomb last month. There was absolutely no evidence of the blast – in fact, someone told me that the airport recommenced normal operations within 20 mins of the blast… Anyway, I found myself compelled to stand well clear of the crowds whilst waiting for my bags, and headed for the exit sharpish.

The “official taxi” stand was surrounded by taxi drivers sporting the same branding as the official taxi stand! Not only that, I tried to order my ticket (which is the best and safest way to stay safe here) and the girl behind the desk initially verified one of the drivers… when I pushed however, she changed her story and he was in cahoots to blag a direct fare – you have to be so careful with this kind of thing…

Anyway, walked outside and within 10 seconds I could feel the bones in my legs literally chilling… It was so cold (around -22) that when my ancient taxi got stuck in traffic, my feet went numb inside the cab within half an hour of the marathon 2.5hrs it took to drive 20K into town.

I have to say, respect to anyone that deals with these sorts of temperatures on a daily basis – after some interesting meetings, with a hotel to help with their marketing initiatives and also with my good friend Pavel who I have worked with for nearly 7 years, I was faced with a dilemma for the following day – 3 meetings, 2 of which were at opposite ends of Moscow, with a projected journey time of 2hrs between each leg, or, take the Metro.

This may seem like an easy option but given that outside the business community and hotel receptions, there is very little English spoken and most of the signage is in Cyrillic – this becomes quite a challenge. Anyway, I’ve done this once before and the only really tricky bit is working out if you are going the right way on the Metro once you get on the train – the names are all in Russian, are around 30 characters long and you don’t have time to read them as the train moves – so you have to do the old cricket umpire trick of striking out a finger, every time you hit a stop.

To be continued...

Matt on the Road Part One - London to Dubai

2011-03-01T09:49:00.000-08:00

Both our Middle Eastern and Russian client bases have been keeping us busy over the last few months and what started out as a quick trip over to see a new client in Moscow, literally snowballed into a business tripathon that spanned from Saturday to Saturday. The big question was, whilst already sporting a cold, whether I could dash between Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Moscow and Kiev and be home in time for tea the following Saturday.

After a load of overnight flights, five economy class airlines, two visa changes, a couple of dodgy taxi negotiations and a 45 degree Celsius temperature switch from a balmy +25 to a quite literally barmy -20 at Domededova Airport; I saw some real contrasts in economies, culture and of course architecture.

Saturday Night 12th February (London – Dubai)

After boarding the most packed flight ever bound for Dubai, I went through my itinerary for the week: 6 meetings in 2 days in UAE, 4 meetings in 2 days in Moscow and a new project briefing and site visit in Kiev, which will be my first trip. I was really looking forward to finding out if the rumours were true – a city renowned for its natural beauties, I mean beauty…

Anyway, ordered my tomato juice – has anyone else noticed this is the drink of choice on nearly all airlines all over the world and yet no-one ever orders it in a bar or a restaurant, or buys it when they are at home? Some genius marketer at a tomato juice plant must have thought of this a long time ago – it’s similar to the fact that practically the only place you can buy a torch or a disposable barbecue is a petrol station in the UK??

We’re expanding our creative services in the Middle East so we are looking out for a good Project Manager to assist our Creative Director Jon in Abu Dhabi. We had a few pitches for web, interactive and also a really cool motion graphics one, so was looking forward to this part of the trip.

Sunday 13th February (Dubai)

A working day in the Middle East region saw me and the team catch up with our friends at Sian Events – reports that the market is picking up are certainly true if their current work levels are anything to go by, but architecture and real estate is still fragmented in Dubai at best.

Monday 14th February (Abu Dhabi)

We took the mad crazy road to Abu Dhabi where 4 lanes become 6 and the hard shoulder is reserved for VIPs to overtake / undertake - you get the picture. Zaha Hadid’s new bridge is now open which has cut the commuter traffic down by 20-30 mins into central AD from Dubai, which is still the city of choice for the younger ex-pats to live; they just grin and bear the drive – it will still be a while before any real volume of residential construction will change this.

Excellent back to back client meetings reveal we should be on to produce a motion graphics sting for a really high profile company (top secret at present) and also we have got ourselves onto the procurement lists for some big government organisations which, in time, assuming the procurement departments don’t start requesting you leave a member of staff as collateral for the duration of the project (it is getting rather onerous out here as they roll out bureaucracy with bells on) we should be up and running in the coming months with some interesting content creation projects.

Caught up with some ex-pat friends on Monday night who kindly helped our travel budget by putting me up ahead of the biggest temperature and culture switch you could imagine within 4 hrs flying time.

To be continued...

We are looking for.....a Design Intern

2011-02-24T09:49:00.000-08:00

We are currently looking for a keen designer for a 1 to 3 month internship. We want someone who is passionate about design, eager and willing to get stuck in. You should be capable in all of the Creative Suite packages and be primarily interested in branding, print and web. We will pay for travel and a lunch allowance.

If that sounds like you, send a C.V. and examples of your work to info@assemblystudios.com

Unfortunately, due to high volumes of responses we may not be able to reply to everyone.

Meet the Team - Benedicte Van Boxel

2011-02-14T04:16:00.000-08:00

Assembly Studios Appoints New Account Director for London Studio

Here at Assembly Studios, we're proud to announce the appointment of Benedicte van Boxel as Account Director for our London studio.

Meet the Team - Benedicte Van Boxel

What’s your favourite advertising / marketing campaign and why?

Compare the Meerkat : fantastic character and catch phrase. My kids use it: Simples! Aleksandr Orlov really makes the brand stand out and creates a connection between the brand and the customers. Irritating but so memorable!

What do you wish you had designed / invented?

I wish I had designed L’Institut du Monde Arabe in Paris, still one of my favourite buildings ever.

Any websites or design magazines you use for inspiration?

One of my favourite site is Mashable, it’s all about social media . I am quite fascinated by how social media has made people a force to be reckon with! Otherwise I am a big fan of the Sartorialist blog, amazing fashion pictures, real trend setters.

Is there a piece of technology you couldn’t live without?

My smartphone!

What’s the best job you’ve ever worked on?

Working on the travelling exhibition “les Grands Travaux” in Paris. The aim of the exhibition was to promote the major architectural projects commissioned by Miterrand in Paris (The Pyramid du Louvre, etc). I was at the time working in Paris, and the exhibition travelled to the RIBA in London. It was my first trip to London and I absolutely fell in love with the city!

Describe your perfect weekend?

Time with the children , a run, good food and a night out with my best friends.

What makes you laugh out loud?

Slapstick comedy.

If you had to sum yourself up in 140 characters twitter style, what would you say?

A fun and food loving gal who embraces life to the full.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

We are recruiting…Project Manager, Abu Dhabi

2011-02-11T03:54:00.000-08:00

We are currently seeking a junior/middle weight project manager with 1-2 years experience, especially in identity, print, web and interactive, to work from our Abu Dhabi studio, alongside the UAE General Manager.

You will have an eye for detail and accuracy while being able to maintain a high level view of a project, team, department or company as required. You will have exceptional communication and organisational skills, experience within the creative industries and knowledge of computer programmes such as MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), Project & Resource Management (MS Project, Focal Point), CRM (Salesforce) or similar.

The role is pivotal to both internal and external (client) project management. You will have a number of areas of responsibility, including account management (existing and incoming client account maintenance, pre-sales and after-sales), project management (of Abu Dhabi office jobs, including production quality, deadlines, profitability, invoicing and WIP reporting) and marketing management (including managing the database, promotional and campaign activity and all marketing collateral).

If you are excited by the prospect of supporting the growth of the company within the GCC regions and helping to establish our Abu Dhabi studio as both a market leader and a strategic international hub, then we want to hear from you!

For further information or to apply for the position, please email info@assemblystudios.co.uk
Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

CG Illustration and Animation

2011-02-03T04:48:00.000-08:00

We have just finished a number of CGIs for our client, a Dutch real estate developer. We were able to pull in expertise from all our design teams for this project: CG Illustration, Animation, Web, Interactive, Identity and Print. Click here to watch the film.

Easy CG, Lemon Squeezy... Selecting the right agency to create creative CG illustrations

2011-02-02T04:32:00.000-08:00

So, your design project’s moving along nicely and now you need to commission some CG work. As you will know all too well, there are an infinite number of different factors that come into play when selecting a company to use: budget, reputation, personality, location, turnaround times, and the list goes on…

But there are certain qualities that transcend the above and really separate a great CG house from an average one, regardless of size. Here are our hot tips on what to look for when selecting an agency to work with:

1) Do they ask a lot of questions?
To get a full picture of your needs and provide you with the best solution possible, you should be answering a lot of questions. Who is the target audience? What is the purpose of the illustration or animation? How does the product fit in with other marketing material? What are the required final deliverables? From this analysis a detailed brief and initial concepts can be produced. These may include boards to demonstrate the mood and pace of an animation, ideas on look and feel and descriptions of how the illustration/animation and cameras will tell the story. This initial stage provides the backbone to the whole production process.

2) Are they research hungry?
Do they undertake as much research as humanly possible in the available time? Are they knowledgeable about the project, your organisation, its target audience? In addition they should always be digging into new styles, history, art, film, advertising, editing. This research, no matter how abstract it may seem, can, and does, influence CG work in a great way. Research should not be restricted to a project, but be part of a CG Artist’s daily routine.

3) Are they experimental?
Do you see them experimenting with composition, story telling, treatment, edits, and colour palette? In this game, it’s critical to always try new things, push the boundaries and never rely on old, tried and tested routines which can quickly become stale. If the work is not constantly evolving, then you aren’t getting the best possible results for your design projects.

4) Do they collaborate?
It’s key to collaborate with people as much as possible, whether that is within in-house teams or by working with other experts outside of the company. Are they working with artists, photographers, musicians, film makers and editors? That’s how to deliver really incredible work for clients!

If the answers to the questions above are yes, congratulations - you've found yourself a top agency! If any of the answers are no, or you're not sure - give us a call on +44 (0)20 7426 2080 today to see how we can help you get the very best CG illustration and animation to represent your projects.

Wanted: One Talented 3D Artist, London

2011-01-26T07:21:00.000-08:00

Assembly Studios is an award winning multi-disciplinary design agency. Our creative CG department works with the wider studio to deliver a diverse range of content for print, web, interactive and animation.

We are on the lookout for a talented experienced 3D Artist. 3D Studio Max, VRAY, Photoshop and After Effects skills are essential, as is experience with animation, compositing and post-production. We need great team players, able to work on multiple projects simultaneously, who are passionate about CG, very creative and diverse in their skills sets.

If that sounds like you we would love to hear from you! Please send a C.V. and showreel / portfolio to info@assemblystudios.com (6MB Max)

Click to visit the Assembly Studios website.

Win a brand review for your business...

2011-01-17T03:45:00.000-08:00

What better way to kick off the New Year than by winning a brand review for your business? It can be hard to evaluate your own branding for a number of reasons: over familiarity is usually number one. What is your visual identity saying to clients or potential clients? Is it still reflective of your business goals and aspirations? Is it still fresh and on-message in this changing economic climate? Our creative team is experienced and adept at working with organisations to answer these questions and work out effective solutions where any lack of alignment is identified.

To be in with a chance of winning a brand review with Assembly Studios, all you have to do is count the number of Assembly 'A's (see example below) hidden within the image above and email the answer to daniela@assemblystudios.com by Monday 7 February 2011, including your name and company name. Please click on the image to enlarge it (you can then zoom in further by clicking again). All correct answers will be entered into a draw and the winner will be notified by email by 11 February 2011.

Assembly 'A'

Click here to watch our behind the scenes film of the photoshoot!

Competition Terms and Conditions:
1. Entrants must be over the age of eighteen.
2. The prize is not transferable and cannot be exchanged for cash.
3. Closing date for entry is 31 January 2011 at 13.00.
4. Winners will be notified via e-mail by 4 February 2011.
5. By entering the competition and supplying your information, you consent to receive relevant promotional material via e-mail unless 'no marketing' is stated within the body of the entry email.
6. The judges' decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios website.

Surviving MIPIM

2011-01-14T05:44:00.000-08:00

Top 10 Tips from Assembly’s 10 year MIPIM veterans Richard Conner and Matt Fairman

1. A first class return train ticket from Kings Cross – Cannes is the same price as cramming onto any of the budget airlines (unless you booked 3 months ago…) – more pleasant and not much longer door to door – plus the last 2 hrs down is glorious as the track follows the Riviera and gets you in the mood and you can brush up on your Franglais.

2. Be organised, have meetings pre-booked but allow enough time in between for random encounters and recovery – try to fill lunch and dinner slots ahead of getting there – however lunch is often a good recovery period so be flexible on this.

3. Talk to everyone you know before you go and try and trade events, functions and party invites to maximise your options – turning up with no invites puts you on the back foot and bear in mind it is just as useful for you to be able to bring someone along to something as you attending yourself (for them, for you and the host of the event in most cases) – Try to get invited to Hang the DJ on Thursday evening and turn up to when the mayor rocks up to the London Stand for maximum draw.

4. Gents - 2 pairs of shoes. Alternate days. 16 hrs in the same shoes, day after day makes day 2 grim let alone day 4… If you are on a stand, with a load of time standing, take a clean pair of socks and change into them at 1700 if you are not heading home to freshen up pre-evening shift. This tip has been passed down from MIPIM generations via Paul Finch MBE and I swear by it.

5. Unless you need to refer to the big manual while you are there, don’t load up with your MIPIM bag on the first day until the end of the week (you can use your pass to pick one up at any time) – it’s big and heavy and the marketing team back home needs it – you certainly don’t want to carry it about and nothing else is of value, including the opening cocktail party pass....

6. Keep your ears pinned back and your eyes peeled, various events last year were orchestrated through social media channels, facebook, linked-in, twitter, etc. Follow #MIPIM on twitter and www.twitter.com/twipim as this was one of the better, informative, unbiased live information feeds and is often quite entertaining too.

7. Get your rounds in early and then head to The Carlton Hotel and Martinez Hotel Bars on the Croisette (pricey) - later at night can be filled with very senior players that you wouldn’t normally get access to let alone assist back to their feet.

8. Don’t peak too early and pick wine ahead of beer and don’t drink it until at least 5pm, that way, you have a full drink in your hand but you stay sharp enough to make friends and influence people.

9. Despite the ridiculous temptation to justify it to yourself, drinking and socialising past midnight /1AM virtually never converts or brings as much benefit as you think so if you are going to do it, know that’s what you are doing, and that you will bring much pain to yourself and your next 8AM meeting for very little upside (unless of course the god of hangovers is truly benevolent towards you…) – be disciplined, go to bed by 1 until Thursday night – you’ll have a more productive time and your voice stands a fighting chance of making it until Friday.

10. IMPORTANT – if point 9 is ignored – this can be countered somewhat by remembering a) to take some resolve with you and b) drinking it before you fall asleep as it is twice as effective as a pre-emptive strike as it stops the headache before it happens – put it out, ready dissolved in your water glass, before you head out in the evening, ready for your return so you don’t forget – you won’t forget…

Flavio Ochoa

2011-01-10T03:02:00.000-08:00

We are deeply sorry to hear about the loss of our friend Flavio Ochoa. Flavio spent several years working at Smoothe, dividing his time between the London office and leading the Bulgarian branch. He was an extremely talented artist who contributed a great deal to our portfolio, as well as being a loved and respected friend and colleague. Flav – we are missing you already.

Plans, Resolutions and Goals for 2011.

2011-01-04T05:00:00.000-08:00

At Assembly we've been chatting about Christmas (the office's favorite time of year to indulge - see previous post!), the New Year, Resolutions and our plans for 2011...

Christmas

A thought that came up repeatedly during our discussion was that the best gifts to receive at Christmas were the thoughtful ones - whether it was a trip to Rome(!), or quite an amusing novelty jumper from someones Grandma;

Among the other wishes for gifts from Santa were a new laptop, and Tango lessons!

A different type of 'doing' gift we'd recommend would be to check out this exhibition - it's the Rachel Whiteread Drawings at the Tate Britain, on until the 16th January 2011. Well worth a look! Or have a sneak peak at this informative review.

Or for something a little different, we're itching to check out This Exhibition. It's called 'Shadow Catchers: Camera-less Photography'. It's the work of five international contemporary artists, who work literally - without cameras to create one-off pictures (or works of art)...it looks really interesting and unusual.

New Years Plans/Resolutions
A popular resolution with the team that also seemed pretty do-able, came from our Managing Director - "To free up time to engage more often with current design. It's easy to fall out of the habit."

This resonated with a lot of the office - it's so easy to focus on work, and solely on the particular area of design and creativity you're working on, it's often refreshing and can be pretty useful to remind yourself of the other creative industries and disciplines.
Different people choose to do this in different ways, with some deciding to make more use of the Internet - reading more design-orientated blogs, newsletters and visiting sites such as The Cool Hunter, and Its Nice That.

For other members of the team however, it translates into visiting more museums, exhibitions and different places locally, such as the Barbican Centre - a fairly unusual experience for central London!
In 2011, Assembly Studios as a whole is hoping to attend more design talks, conferences and trade exhibitions - not only as visitors, but also hopefully as contributors!

Plans for 2011

It looks like the Assembly staff are going to be pretty busy during 2011! A few plans include;
- A Stag Do in Amsterdam
- Snow-boarding in Bulgaria (in February) & Florida (in October)
- Traveling to Sri Lanka to see my latest nephew
- Tangoing Neouvo in Berlin - apparently it's the place to dance at the moment.
- Fitting in as many festivals as possible!
Speaking of festivals, a few of our favorites are (in no particular order);

Hop Farm Festival
Glastonbury
Benicassim
The Camden Crawl

And so so many more. We can't wait 'till summer!

However our favorite resolution/plan for 2011 had to be:
Become a year wiser.

Wishing you all you could hope for in 2011, the Assembly Studios team xxx

Click to visit the Assembly Studios homepage.

Mince Pie and Mulled Wine Mayhem

2010-12-23T04:36:00.000-08:00

Christmas has officially hit Assembly Studios with the arrival of these amazing hand crafted mince pies and mulled wine, courtesy of Matt F... roll on Saturday :-)

Retrak

2010-12-14T07:57:00.000-08:00

Our Creative Director Ross Cunningham has been super busy recently! Not only working on several exciting Assembly projects (keep your eyes peeled!), but also helping out a charity called Retrak. They're a UK based company that works with street children in Africa to "give them a real alternative to life on the street";

"There are numerous reasons why children live and sleep on the streets such as poverty; family strife; abuse; being orphaned, often as a result of HIV/AIDS; war and famine. Often abused or violated on the street, regarded as barely human and on the very fringe of society, they eke out an existence, begging or scavenging through rubbish for food. Our aim is that these children can realise their full potential and discover their inherent worth.

Retrak began in Kampala, Uganda in 1994 as a football club providing street children with the opportunity for play and, for a short while at least, escape their day to day problems and dangers. Recognising both the need and the potential, Retrak expanded the scope of its work beyond football and, by 1997, had become a UK charity and was registered in Uganda as a non-governmental organisation (NGO) called the Tigers Club Project; later renamed Retrak.
Programmes were developed by working with the children individually, to find what worked best for them; and grew to include education, vocational training, health care, counselling and more, while keeping the much loved football sessions. The common aim of all of Retrak’s programmes is to work with the children as individuals, with their own individual hopes and circumstances, to enable them to take their place back in the community and, where possible, within their own families.
Retrak has enabled hundreds of children to move off the streets and back into their communities. As well as Uganda, we now also have a centre in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia which has been hugely successful and we work with partners in Kenya."

A pretty worthy cause I'm sure you'll all agree. So what Ross has done, is to put his design skills to work and he has created a range of t-shirts for the charity. They are trying to increase funds by selling more merchandise and hosting events - something the whole Assembly team may be taking part in, but more details on this to follow!

So if you fancy looking swish and helping some very desrving children out at the same time (or are just in need of a new t-shirt), you don't need to look any further!

Click to visit the Assembly Studios homepage.

Place UK - The UK Mission to MIPIM 2011

2010-12-14T04:14:00.000-08:00

We have just finished work on an interesting project and one a fair few of you may be clapping your eyes on in the not too distant future: the logo for Place UK - The brand which is the UK's mission to MIPIM next year. The Place UK stand will be showcasing the work of a number of regional councils who are not taking their own stand. The design challenge was to produce an engaging logo that was recognisable, yet could work with each of the participating councils' existing logos and branding.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Share Your Imagination.

2010-12-10T08:02:00.000-08:00

We came across a website a couple of days ago with a competition that seemed too good not to share with everyone we know!

The website is http://www.openplanetideas.com/ and the brief looks a little like this:

"Share your imagination.
Sony and WWF want to hear your smart ideas about using technology to make the most of our planet's resources. And to get you started, we’ve pulled together a showcase of technologies that are ripe for re-purposing. Now it’s up to you to put them together in radical new ways… and shape a cleaner, more sustainable future for our planet. How can we make better use of our scarce natural resources? How can we actively change people’s behaviour and encourage more sustainable lifestyles?
These are the environmental challenges that clearly matter most to you...
Take a look at our technology showcase and start thinking about how you could re-use, combine or mash-up these and any other technologies - to address the challenge. Everyone in our community’s invited to get involved. You can applaud other people’s concepts or refine them further: best of all, why not contribute a concept of your own?
Our expert panel will select, along with the community, the concepts that most excite them. Once the winning concept is chosen, its contributors will work together with these experts to make the final concept real."

One of the themes is 'Cleaner by Design', which is where our ears pricked up:

"How can technology help us design products, services and infrastructure with fever environmental impacts in their manufacture, use and disposal? Smarter design approaches could improve products' energy efficiency and reduce the materials used in products – but that’s just the start. From car sharing clubs to cloud services, we can reduce environmental inputs and enjoy the results. Technology can also help us re-think conventional approaches to urban planning, building design and food production & distribution."

This is an example of one of the (many) entries, entitled 'Ecological House'. You can read a bit more about it here; http://www.openplanetideas.com/how-can-sony-technology-be-used-to-address-environmental-challenges/inpiration/ecological-house/

Can't wait to see the winners!

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Seasons Greetings

2010-12-09T01:31:00.001-08:00

Watch our animated version online here!

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Cobalt Parklife

2010-12-03T09:41:00.002-08:00

We were pretty excited when Highbridge Properties appointed us to deliver a new website for the UK’s largest business park. The project is split into two phases; phase one being design and production of a marketing site, and phase two the addition and integration of a community site. The core priorities for this project were to deliver a solution that really made Cobalt Park stand out from its competitors and demonstrate the lively and bustling nature of the development. To achieve this impression, we elected for a hybrid site of Flash and HTML. The core functionality and site framework were built to be both strong and flexible and the end result was an extremely effective sales tool for the park. The site is enhanced by the integration of a number of creative elements, including dynamic media galleries, video streams and interactive maps and floor plates.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

The Perfect (Bilingual) Storm

2010-12-03T09:41:00.001-08:00

When Moscow-based Storm Properties were looking for a brand refresh they chose Assembly Studios as just the creative minds to help them achieve that. We were tasked with updating all their marketing materials and website with a fresh new look and feel for the Russian real estate market.

As anyone who has been through the process will testify, the brand refresh is an extremely delicate matter. There is a fine balance to be struck between retaining the positive elements of the existing identity and enhancing and moving the brand forward. On this occasion we achieved this through a considered approach to colour palette, typology and spacing. After a number of client meetings and brand investigations, we unearthed five key brand values that defined Storm. We interpreted these values into brochure chapters throughout the course of a two day photoshoot. Phase two of the project was to translate this material to web. The client opted for a simple html site, with a subtle use of flash on the homepage. The website reflected the brochure through its clean typographic layout and together they complete a cohesive suite of material that distinguishes Storm as a fresh and dynamic proposition.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

The Big CMS Question

2010-12-03T09:40:00.000-08:00

So, driving more relevant customers to your website…a compelling proposition so far. But how does it happen? Who carries it out? What are the extra elements that can make the difference between engaging with your targets, and losing them to a competitor's website? By selecting the right CMS (Content Management System) for your business, all the functionality you need, news, SEO, social media integration etc. can be integrated into your day-to-day website updates.

To advise organisations on how to select the right CMS system from the thousands on the market, we have produced a Web White Paper which will be available to download free of charge in January. The paper covers:

- How to select the best website system for your business
- How to fully integrate your website into multiple marketing channels
- How to compare various site offerings and must-have elements
- How to understand the behavior of the digital media consumer
- How to keep your website “alive” and ensure your site performs consistently over time

Subscribers to the Disrupt, Create, Communicate newsletter will automatically receive a copy of the Web White Paper on release. If you know anyone else who would like to receive a copy of the Paper, please ask them to email us to be added to the distribution list.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Zayed National Museum Design Revealed

2010-12-03T09:39:00.000-08:00

Abu Dhabi played host to Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip this week, as they began their first state visit to the UAE since 1979. There had been a genuine sense of excitement in the run up to the visit, and one of the Queen’s key engagements whilst in town was the unveiling of the design for the new iconic Zayed National Museum by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. The museum is set to open on Saadiyat Island (Abu Dhabi’s new cultural hub) in late 2014.

The facility, which is being developed with the help of the British Museum, will include five galleries, a library, educational facilities and a fine dining restaurant. The cornerstone of the Saadiyat Island cultural hub, it will simultaneously honour the life and achievements of Sheikh Zayed and celebrate the rich history of the UAE.

A Foster & Partners designed project, Assembly has been working with TDIC (Tourist Development & Investment Company), who are responsible for the delivery of the museum. Not wanting to miss out on the action, some extremely late nights/early mornings were put in to ensure the client had a range of top notch CG Illustrations, which appeared online and in the press following the unveiling.

The museum's architecture resembles the wing tips of falcons, a symbol of UAE heritage and culture. The tallest of the five wings will be a spectacular 124 metres. Five towers, made of lightweight steel and made to look like feathers, will rise up from a man-made hill housing a public lobby.

We had amazing feedback from our client, Erica Lewis the Marketing Manager from TDIC, who said ‘Thank you so much for all your hard work…We really appreciate it and shows what a good company you are to work with.’ We look forward to continuing to develop our blossoming relationship with TDIC, as they fulfil their role as ‘master developers of major tourism destinations in Abu Dhabi’.

Go to www.tdic.ae to find out more about this innovative client.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

London East Meets the Middle East – UAE Office Now Open

2010-12-03T09:38:00.000-08:00

We are delighted to announce the opening of our first Middle East office, located at twofour54AbuDhabi, which is fast becoming the creative centre for agencies in the region.

The office is ideally located to provide design services to your Middle East operations, ensuring ease of communication, whilst delivering the same high standard of design work that is synonymous with Assembly London.

The office has been working on a variety of projects, from animations and CGIs to email flyers and print material, for local clients that include the Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council, ENEC (Emirates Nuclear Energy Corporation), KEO International Consultants and ADAC (Abu Dhabi Airports Company).

To find out more about working with Assembly Studios Abu Dhabi, or if you would like to arrange a visit, contact Jon Wells in Abu Dhabi or Matt Fairman in London.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Talented 3D Artists Wanted

2010-11-30T04:25:00.000-08:00

We are on the lookout for talented 3D Artists to fill both freelance and contract/permanent roles. 3D Studio Max, VRAY, Photoshop and After Effects skills are essential. Experience with animation, compositing and post-production would be beneficial. If that sounds like you please send a C.V. and showreel and/or portfolio to jobs@assemblystudios.com (6MB Max)

We are recruiting.............Freelance Senior Account Manager, (London-based contract role)

2010-11-30T04:06:00.000-08:00

We are currently seeking a Freelance Senior Account Manager to work from our London studio, for 1-2 months with an immediate start.

Ideally you will have experience of project and account management in the creative industries, exceptional communication and organisation skills with a proven ability to deliver medium to large scale projects and build lasting client relationships - ranging from Identity & Print, Web & Interactive to CG illustration & Animation - both on time and to budget.

You will be managing a small but growing team across our three offices, taking a proactive leadership role as the company expands.

You will be required to liaise with our design, new business and marketing teams and report into the Directors and Board.

Knowledge of SalesForce CRM, Access Focal Point Project Management, InDesign and Photoshop or similar systems would be preferable.

For further information or to apply for the position, please email richard@assemblystudios.co.uk

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Meet the Team - Ben Tadiar

2010-11-29T01:50:00.001-08:00

Name:

Ben Tadiar

Role within Assembly:

Junior Developer

What’s your favourite Assembly job you’ve worked on and why?

The ongoing development of our PHP framework and having a hand in its continuous improvement.

What’s your favourite typeface / artist / building and why?

“Banksy“ – I admire his no fear attitude towards causing controversy and his almost ninja like persona.

What’s your favourite thing to do on a weekend?

Sit at a harbourside pub/restaurant with my partner and daughter, enjoying the good weather and time with my family.

What’s your favourite dance-move?

“The Running Man”

What’s your favourite place and why?

Unsure... I’ve never really pondered on this.

What makes you laugh out loud?

Lolcats.

What makes you cry?

Chopping onions.

If you had to sum yourself up in 140 characters twitter style, what would you say?

Web designer/dev hybrid with a passion for all things design related. Enjoy cooking and stuff too, and I'd really like a Dribbble invite!

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

We are recruiting…Project Manager with Marketing, Abu Dhabi

2010-11-26T08:57:00.000-08:00

We are currently seeking a Project Manager to work from our Abu Dhabi studio, alongside the UAE General Manager.

You will have an eye for detail and accuracy while being able to maintain a high level view of a project, team, department or company as required. You will have exceptional communication and organisational skills, experience within the creative industries and knowledge of computer programmes such as MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), Project & Resource Management (MS Project, Focal Point), CRM (Salesforce) or similar.

The role is pivotal to both internal and external (client) project management. You will have a number of areas of responsibility, including account management (existing and incoming client account maintenance, pre-sales and after-sales), project management (of Abu Dhabi office jobs, including production quality, deadlines, profitability, invoicing and WIP reporting) and marketing management (including managing the database, promotional and campaign activity and all marketing collateral).

If you are excited by the prospect of supporting the growth of the company within the GCC regions and helping to establish our Abu Dhabi studio as both a market leader and a strategic international hub, then we want to hear from you!

For further information or to apply for the position, please email jonwells@assemblystudios.co.uk

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

We are recruiting… Account Director, Abu Dhabi

2010-11-26T08:55:00.000-08:00

We are currently seeking an Account Director to work from our Abu Dhabi studio, alongside the UAE General Manager.

A natural communicator, you will have experience of working in both the Middle East and within the creative industries, and possess exceptional client management and relationship building skills.

We are looking for a highly skilled project and account manager with an eye for detail and proven ability to focus on high quality delivery whilst maintaining a bigger picture perspective. You will have overall responsibility for all aspects of client relationship building in both a business development and an account / project management capacity.

Knowledge of various software will be valuable, including Adobe (InDesign, Photoshop), MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), Project & Resource Management (MS Project, Focal Point), CRM (Salesforce) or other similar systems.

If you are looking to take the next step in a leadership role and are excited by the prospect of supporting the growth of the company within the GCC regions and establishing our Abu Dhabi studio as both a market leader and a strategic international hub, then we want to hear from you!

For further information or to apply for the position, please email jonwells@assemblystudios.co.uk

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

We are recruiting… Business Development Manager, Abu Dhabi

2010-11-26T08:50:00.001-08:00

We are currently seeking a Business Development Manager to work from our Abu Dhabi studio, alongside the UAE General Manager.

A natural communicator, you will have experience of working in both the Middle East and within the creative industries, and possess exceptional client management and relationship building skills. The role could be either full-time or part-time and you will most likely be an accomplished consultative sales executive, account manager or similar, looking for a fresh challenge.

You will be responsible for all aspects of lead generation, client relationship building and the tendering process. If you are excited by the prospect of supporting the growth of the company within the GCC regions and establishing our Abu Dhabi studio as both a market leader and a strategic international hub, then we want to hear from you!

For further information or to apply for the position, please email jonwells@assemblystudios.co.uk

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Meet the Team - William Skates

2010-11-24T07:26:00.000-08:00

Name:
William Skates

Role within Assembly:
Junior Developer

What’s your favourite typeface / artist / building and why?
Inconsolata because it is easy on the eyes and a great programmer’s font. Grayson Perry 'cause he’s crazy enough to make pornographic pottery. The Reichstag because the roof makes you feel like your falling, it’s very surreal.

What’s your favourite thing to do on a weekend?
Play guitar.

What’s your favourite dance-move?
‘The Will’

What’s your favourite place and why?
No clue.

What makes you laugh out loud?
Anything.

What makes you cry?
Anything.

If you had to sum yourself up in 140 characters twitter style, what would you say?
To describe myself: Focused, driven, inquisitive, passionate, goofball, goblin, sceptical, scaredycat, quizzical, truthful, and trustworthy.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Meet the Team - Toby Ritchie

2010-11-16T02:49:00.000-08:00

Name:
Toby Ritchie

Role within Assembly:
CGI Director / Office Handyman

What’s your favourite Assembly job you’ve worked on and why?
Ham Yard (Woods Bagot) – through this project we have overhauled our Verified View methodology and created some great marketing images. We now have a great new relationship with the client.

What’s your favourite typeface / artist / building and why?
Flat Iron NY

What’s your favourite thing to do on a weekend?
Mountain biking, sleeping, undertaking some unnecessary construction project.

What’s your favourite dance-move?
N/A – unless under duress, at a wedding or inebriated.

What’s your favourite place and why?
Garden Route in South Africa – the whole region is amazing and a great place to travel around.

What makes you laugh out loud?
Lots of things – its more a question of what doesn’t make me laugh – see below.

What makes you cry?
A dropped ice cream - not much is worse than that. But then you shouldn’t cry over spilt milk.

If you had to sum yourself up in 140 characters twitter style, what would you say?
Agriculturist. Jack of all trades; master of two. Sleep deprived.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Meet the Team - Carlos Eduardo Bet Carbonar

2010-11-09T06:55:00.000-08:00

Name:

Carlos Eduardo Bet Carbonar

Role within Assembly:

3d Artist

What’s your favourite Assembly job you’ve working on and why?

Ham Yard, because we have been working in several images where we can explore the design of the building and the clients are really good to deal with.

What’s your favourite typeface / artist / building and why?

Tadao Ando, I like the way he uses the light.

What’s your favourite thing to do on a weekend?

Run by the river.

What’s your favourite dance-move?

I cannot dance at all.

What’s your favourite place and why?

I love Venice, is like being in another time.

What makes you laugh out loud?

Children's questions.

What makes you cry?

Home sickeness.

If you had to sum yourself up in 140 characters twitter style, what would you say?

I would describe myself as someone who never regrets what I do, only what I didn’t do.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Meet the Team - Andy Bacon

2010-11-01T03:53:00.000-07:00

Name:

Andy Bacon

Role within Assembly:

Interactive Production Manager

What’s your favourite Assembly job you’ve worked on and why?

Cole Jarman. Wonderful idea, client and creative loved it in equal measure. Technical execution on the button.

What’s your favourite typeface / artist / building and why?
Dinn, Dali, The Colosseum. Technically brilliant / dubious sanity.
What’s your favourite thing to do on a weekend?
Spearfishing with my boys.
What’s your favourite dance-move?
Derulo Rock.
What’s your favourite place and why?The Caribbean, hot, easy, rum, good diving.
What makes you laugh out loud?
Beadles About.
What makes you cry?Toy Story 3 when they’re going into the furnace / others’ self sacrifice.
If you had to sum yourself up in 140 characters Twitter style, what would you say?
Prefer smart work to hard work although they’re not mutually exclusive. Dad, son, big on reading, love football (cmon Argyle), happier hunting than shopping.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

We are recruiting............Business Development Intern

2010-10-26T04:28:00.000-07:00

Internship, London, Expenses Only

We’re looking for an intern with a demonstrable interest in the business side of the creative industries; the position may suit a recent business studies graduate who is interested in a career in new business development or account management. The successful candidate will be a good all-rounder who, as well as carrying out the tasks outlined below, is willing to pitch in with any additional sales and marketing activity as required.

Campaign Research and Planning:

Maintenance and updating of the CRM Sales System
Research target markets, industries, sectors & compilation of mailing lists
Administrative support to the Business Development Director

Business Development Campaign Implementation:

Execution of telephone-based campaigns to generate appointments for the BD Director
Following up warm leads by phone to give further information or generate appointments
Keeping up-to-date with Assembly product knowledge and services
Assisting with preparation and creation of documents for client pitches

In return, you can expect to get:

The opportunity to grow your business development skills in a ‘live’ environment
Experience of the business side of the creative industries gained within a busy design practice
Opportunity to play an important role in a growing company

For further information or to apply for the position, please email richard@assemblystudios.com

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Meet the Team - David Moëd

2010-10-25T02:51:00.000-07:00

Name:

David Moëd.

Role within Assembly:

Chairman.

What’s your favourite typeface / artist / building and why?

Royal Albert Hall and Albert Memorial – symmetry and location and reason it was built.

What’s your favourite thing to do on a weekend?

Fine Wine and good food with family and friends.

What’s your favourite dance-move?

The rock and roll spin when I turn my partner over.

What’s your favourite place and why?

Lulworth Cove – shows the power of nature and is beautiful.

What makes you laugh out loud?

Matt (only kidding) - sadly slapstick.

What makes you cry?

Matt (only kidding) – soppy stuff like families being reunited after 20 years...

If you had to sum yourself up in 140 characters twitter style, what would you say?

Hard working committed family man who values loyalty and friendship and enjoys good food, company and wine.

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

A Sneak Peak at Our New Abu Dhabi Office

2010-10-21T09:26:00.000-07:00

Here it is - twofour54 Abu Dhabi - our new Middle East office! For more information on working with Assembly Studios Abu Dhabi contact Jon Wells on +971 (0) 2401 2878 or jonwells@assemblystudios.com

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Two years to hand paint 100 million pieces of porcelain… time well spent? By Matt F

2010-10-19T04:03:00.000-07:00

Two years to hand paint 100 million pieces of porcelain to make them look like sunflower seeds. Tip them onto the floor of the Turbine Hall at the Tate Modern and get the public to wander around on them – Turner Prize? Or Turnips n’ rice?

Well, I bet Ai WeiWei, China’s answer to Andy Warhol, is a bit gutted as he couldn’t have known that such was the enthusiasm for such a dynamic and interesting installation (who are these people?) it would cause a harmful toxic cloud to gather only days after its opening, rendering it utterly futile – I mean, it was tenuous at best, before they had to stop people walking on it…

Now you can only view it from about 50 ft away, from the gallery above – which kind of makes it look like Brighton beach. In fact, these pebbles would look great on my terrace, but a provocative art installation? I’m not sure about that.

I appreciate you can’t expect it to stand up now that you can’t experience the installation as the artist intended, but I’m sorry, this is still hand painted gravel tipped on the floor of a room.

Is it really worth the effort?

I get it - it’s a symbol of the mass production that is taken for granted – you see it as a single material rather than each individual seed hand carved by a Chinese artisan. I just think it’s still a load of cobblers - whichever way you look at it, or walk on it - or not as it happens…

Meet the Team - Ross Cunningham

2010-10-18T06:48:00.000-07:00

Role within Assembly:
Creative Director

What’s your favourite Assembly job you’ve worked on and why?
Currently working on a very exciting but confidential film project. The nature of the production enabled us to work for the first time with a choreographer and dance team.

What’s your favourite typeface / artist / building and why?
Typeface – Helvetica – I appreciate that’s the obvious choice but you can’t knock its versatility and longevity. Artist – William Eggleston – for his spontaneous compositions and for pioneering the use of colour in photography. Building – The Barbican – apart from the exhibitions and events, drifting around the building campus offers a rare and surreal moment of calm in the capital.

What’s your favourite thing to do on a weekend?
Taking my kids down to West Wittering beach for a paddle, followed by a healthy portion of fish & chips.

What’s your favourite dance-move?
The Zombie. Technically very challenging… a written explanation wouldn’t do it justice. I’ll have to show you sometime!

What’s your favourite place and why?
Haslemere – my current home town. One of the original founders of the national trust lived there and, as a result, the town is surrounded by acres of national trust forest parks and walks.

What makes you laugh out loud?
My kids’ re-enactments of pivotal Star Wars scenes, performed whilst on the trampoline (with lightsabers).

What makes you cry?
Show no weakness.

If you had to sum yourself up in 140 characters twitter style, what would you say?
Concise & efficient.

Meet the Team - Jon Wells

2010-10-12T09:14:00.000-07:00

Name
Jon Wells

Role within Assembly

Creative Director, UAE

What’s your favourite Assembly job you’ve worked on and why?

Capital District – Abu Dhabi. It was our first commission on setting up the UAE studio and it was an extremely successful project for the client (Abu Dhabi Urban Planning Council) in gaining royal approval for the scheme.

What’s your favourite typeface / artist / building and why?

Chrysler Building – I love the Art Deco styling and it reminds me of my first trip to NYC. Favourite Website - http://www.thecoolhunter.co.uk/

What’s your favourite thing to do on a weekend?

Sitting round a camp fire in the desert with good friends and good ‘soft drinks’.

What’s your favourite dance-move?

The Chatham two-step.

What’s your favourite place and why?

London – it will always be home.

What makes you laugh out loud?

Schadenfreude and 30 Rock.

What makes you cry?

E.T. and the current England squad.

If you had to sum yourself up in 140 characters twitter style, what would you say?

Pepperoni pizza/Everton/Hendricks with cucumber/table tennis loving creative Englishman living in the Arabian desert.

More Cattle, Less Class – Matt in United Arab Emirates – Part 4 of 4

2010-10-12T01:42:00.000-07:00

My final day saw me make yet another round trip along death alley, to Abu Dhabi to see some local government guys about a website – this one looks like it will come off and combined with something we are looking at for road safety and a brief for some video and motion graphics production, it was a productive trip from a new business perspective.

Was dreading the return flight in light of how busy the outbound flight was, but to my delight it was absolutely empty and I was able to sleep off the week and, er, the Ryder Cup.

I got talking to the Business Editor of the Economist whose job it is to extract an informed opinion about the world economy, travelling the world to work out which economy is doing what to whom and why.

20 years ago he would have been searching for info that others didn’t have – now his emphasis is sifting through the ridiculous quantities of info and making sense of it so we don’t have to.

That all said, the most obvious indicator to me is that two years ago the outbound flights to the UAE were empty from London and you couldn’t get a standby seat to get home.

If my flight experience was anything to go by, the tide could be showing signs of turning again, for the UAE at least. Here’s hoping.

More Cattle, Less Class – Matt in United Arab Emirates – Part 3 of 4

2010-10-11T02:52:00.000-07:00

On Saturday I ran out of things to do.

I didn’t want to go shopping, didn’t have ski gloves to go skiing (did consider this) and I was sunburnt so couldn’t really go outside. Again, one of our suppliers came to my rescue and took us all to the beach for sunset and a cheeky glass of iced Limoncello – erm I mean Coca Cola, had a swim and enjoyed watching the very cool kite surfing – I reckon about 20 kites out – going to have to try it at some point.

I was amazed to hear how so many ex-pats never ever go to the beach despite it probably being one of the lifestyle benefits in the UAE in the first place – there are an awful lot of people living a fully air-conditioned lifestyle which seems just plain crazy in my opinion, although it does get very very hot out here and it hasn’t really cooled off completely yet.

Well rested for a change, I headed to Cityscape Global early and slipped in to the conference with a bunch of VIPs by striding through with my name badge flipped the wrong way. Had a great time following his highness, Sheikh Mohammed’s son around the show and watching the 60 or so strong entourage crowding around whilst the press snapped his photo at different stands.

It was, however, the smallest show I have seen there in nine years. It wasn’t global – in fact it was hyper-local if anything, main developers and government depts. from Abu Dhabi even electing to not take space. The other notable thing was that most of the projects on display were already completed… Individual buildings were flogging apartments which seriously downgraded the quality of the event.

I don’t know what the organisers expected, but making a switch to “global” last minute meant, from what I could see, that they were able to sell possibly one or two more stands – one from Paris and randomly, Invest in Ireland, who really didn’t look like they should be there, but in fairness they were busy!!

The usual scousers (I’ve seen them every year for nine years albeit there were less of them) were flogging Carribean pipe dreams to unsuspecting investors - it was the Cayman Islands last year. Guys, you really need to stop wearing shiny suits and you might pull in a few more Brits… “Why wait to buy land when you can buy land and wait?” Hmm let me think for a minute - cashflow, no access to funding, it will tie up what little capital you have or perhaps it’s just a plain daft, high risk idea?? Guaranteed they’ll have a viable answer for all but the last one, so I’ll stick with that thanks…

There were none of the usual suspects from the UK or Australia architecture scene – Aedas, Benoy, Hyder, SOM, Woods Bagot, Gensler and Fosters were all notable in their absence – all of which had stands last year.

I did hook up with the directors of RMJM who were attending as delegates and still have a lot on in the region who kindly introduced me to the guys at Davis Langdon, sorry AECOM, well it will be by the time I post this…

I did better at Longs Bar, watching the Ryder Cup finale which was very kindly laid on for us thanks to the weather in Wales extending it to an extra day (who would ever lay on an outdoor, weather dependent event in the middle of October in Wales and think it was a smart move? Maybe it was the same organisers as the Commonwealth games again??) Anyway, met a nice chap who is going to introduce me to some guys at a big property fund I’ve been targeting so that was great and a good round off to the evening.

To be continued....

More Cattle, Less Class – Matt in United Arab Emirates – Part 2 of 4

2010-10-08T03:36:00.000-07:00

After realising the following day that the “map warming party” might not have the impact we collectively and enthusiastically felt it would the previous evening (you should always try ideas out sober first as well) I quickly cancelled said “party” via email, citing “technical difficulties” and that we had appointed the organisers of the Delhi games to rectify the situation – this prompted amused and positive responses and we got a few meetings out of the whole exercise – job done!!

Despite the best laid plans, my intended clustering of meetings in Abu Dhabi in the first half of the week, followed by Dubai based ones in the second half went awry. I should know by now that any meeting schedule out here is indicative at best. As a consequence I was back on the highway that makes the Bolivian death road look like a relaxing Sunday morning jaunt.

Cityscape Global was due to start on Monday, so I had the chance to spend a weekend in Dubai on my own for the first time. I was lucky in that I have been over enough to establish some good friends who kindly offered to include me in their weekend frivolities.

Politely turning down a kind offer of accompanying some ex-pats to a hugely popular brunch (have done this before - give some Brits an all you can eat and drink free bar and set the stopwatch to count down – carnage ensues – fun, but seriously messy…)

I elected instead to fall asleep by the pool, get sunburnt and then head out to a birthday party where I met at least 3 other ex-pats who had done just that, so we glowed like tomato beacons around the table and chewed the fat over politics, economics and how much it costs to rent a car out here….

To be continued….

More Cattle, Less Class.... Matt in United Arab Emirates Part 1

2010-10-07T02:12:00.000-07:00

So it would appear that funding for some of our international clients is starting to lazily make its way to the right places to kick start some projects. In the last few weeks we’ve secured work in Belgium, Holland, Moscow, Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

I’m starting to feel like Uncle Travelling Mac (perhaps Matt) from the Fraggles –(showing my age), sending postcards home and dealing with a lot remotely.

This week, I got to travel on the A380 with Emirates for the first time. I’ve been testing ways to get bounced into Business Class and so far the conclusion is offering Cadbury’s Fruit and Nut to the duty manager is the most effective strategy – unless you know a pilot of course…

Sadly on this occasion my efforts were thwarted as I was caught short with just a raisin and biscuit Yorkie which was deemed a sub-standard bribe and did not do the trick…

The other thing to note is that more people, means longer to do everything: checking in, registering at the gate, boarding – it took ages and every single seat on the entire aircraft was taken and there was a long standby list to boot.

Nevertheless, I was excited about the prospect of getting on the most spacious passenger aircraft ever built, that was until I reached my seat to find that the three of us that were due to sit with each other could have played front row for Leicester this weekend. Marvellous, and an overnighter to boot...

What is interesting to note is that 6 months ago, all outbound flights to Dubai were practically empty and all the inbound ones from Dubai were heaving – symptomatic of the exodus of ex-pats fleeing an ailing economy. I was therefore not looking forward to the return journey either.

The main reason for my trip was to assist our Creative Director and General Manager, Jon Wells, launch our long awaited new office in the media freezone within Abu Dhabi, TwoFour54, and to attend Cityscape Global to check out other international opportunities.

Straight from Dubai airport, I travelled to Abu Dhabi by car which is an hour and a half on one of the most aggressively (and badly) driven stretches of motorway you will ever experience. A mixture of locals and ex-pats that choose to live in the livelier Dubai and work in the more prosperous Abu Dhabi, driving at high speed – often on the hard shoulder at 100MPH less than a foot from the car in front. I’ve stopped sitting in the front as I keep imaginary braking – if you try and sleep, you dream about car crashes which really doesn’t help…

The quarterly Twofour54 event was well attended – the media zone itself now has over 90 partners all from the creative services and early indications are proving that this was a good business decision despite the time it has taken to set up there. TDIC (Abu Dhabi’s tourist board) overviewed their museum and cultural development programme which was interesting and we met some great potential partners along the way. I drunkenly dared a PR Consultant to get as many people to our new studio as possible (for a “map warming ceremony”) to view our newly installed world domination map vinyl that we had proudly put up that day…

To be continued….

We are recruiting.............Account Director, London

2010-10-05T05:12:00.000-07:00

We are currently seeking an Account Director to work from our London studio.

You will have extensive experience of project and account management in the creative industries, exceptional communication and organisation skills with a proven ability to win and deliver medium to large scale projects and build lasting client relationships - ranging from Identity & Print, Web & Interactive to CG illustration & Animation - both on time and to budget.

You will be managing a small but growing team across our three offices, taking a proactive leadership role as the company expands.

You will be required to liaise with our design, sales and marketing teams and report into the Directors and Board.

Knowledge of SalesForce CRM, Access Focal Point Project Management, InDesign and Photoshop or similar systems would be preferable.

For further information or to apply for the position, please email
richard@assemblystudios.co.uk

We are recruiting…Business Development Manager, Abu Dhabi

2010-09-14T08:05:00.000-07:00

We are currently seeking a New Business Manager to work from our Abu Dhabi studio, alongside the UAE General Manager.

A natural communicator, you will have experience of working in both the Middle East and within the creative industries, and possess exceptional client management and relationship building skills. The role could be either full-time or part-time and you will most likely be an accomplished consultative sales executive, account manager or similar, looking for a fresh challenge.

You will be responsible for all aspects of lead generation, client relationship building and the tendering process. If you are excited by the prospect of supporting the growth of the company within the GCC regions and establishing our Abu Dhabi studio as both a market leader and a strategic international hub, then we want to hear from you!

For further information or to apply for the position, please email jonwells@assemblystudios.co.uk

Click to visit the Assembly Studios Homepage.

Flash Update - Area Sq Website Finalist in the DADI's

2010-08-24T13:47:00.000-07:00

The Assembly team are very pleased to announce that their website for leading independent office design and interior fit-out company Area Sq has been selected as a finalist in the Professional Services Website category of this years Drum Awards for the Digital Industries (DADI).

“My experience of working with the design team has been fantastic, from the design brief which they interpreted in a very creative way, through to the development stages where they have been flexible and extremely responsive. Our website looks great and the feedback from clients has been extremely positive. I am now looking forward to work with them on another website!” Guenaelle Watson, Marketing Manager - Fourfront Group

To learn more about how we managed to increase site traffic by 200% post launch with a fully flexible user-controlled framework, innovative integration of the PPC technology that has enabled the client to be far more targeted and efficient with their marketing budgets then click on the link below:

http://p0.vresp.com/REo3KK

We are recruiting........ Marketing Intern, London

2010-08-24T13:05:00.001-07:00

We are currently seeking a Marketing Intern to work from our London studio, supporting the Marketing Co-ordinator and Director.

Ideally you will have an understanding of marketing or creative industries and want to develop your knowledge and experience within a young and vibrant creative agency.

You will undertake research, assist with building contacts lists, follow up campaigns, maintain and develop our CRM database and help the marketing team with bespoke activities.

For further information or to apply for the position, please email richard@assemblystudios.co.uk

We are recruiting........ Marketing Intern, London

2010-08-24T13:05:00.000-07:00

We are recruiting........ New Business Executive, London

2010-08-24T13:00:00.000-07:00

We are currently seeking a New Business Executive to work from our London studio, supporting the New Business Manager and Director.

Ideally you will have experience of new business and business development in the creative industries, exceptional communication and organisation skills and a proven ability to provide business development support.

You will be working closely with the New Business Manager and Director in supporting the new business efforts of the company including research, planning, campaign follow-ups, networking and event co-ordination. The role will involve you working closely with the marketing team, project managers and account managers to ensure that all the marketing and sales activities are joined up.

Knowledge of SalesForce CRM, InDesign and Photoshop or similar systems would be preferable.

For further information or to apply for the position, please email richard@assemblystudios.co.uk

We are recruiting........ New Business Manager, London

2010-08-24T12:53:00.000-07:00

We are currently seeking a New Business Manager to work from our London studio, supporting the New Business Director.

Ideally you will have experience of business development in the creative industries, a proven ability to undertake pro-active new business activities, exceptional communication and organisation skills and the ability to manage business development processes and teams.

You will be working closely with the New Business Director in planning and implementing the new business efforts of the company including research, planning, lead generation, campaign development and follow-up, tender submission, networking, event co-ordination, long-term relationship building, and new sector channel development.

The role will involve you working closely with the marketing team, project managers and account managers to ensure that all the marketing and sales activities are joined up.

Knowledge of SalesForce CRM, InDesign and Photoshop or similar systems would be preferable.

For further information or to apply for the position, please email richard@assemblystudios.co.uk

We are recruiting........Senior Account Manager, London

2010-08-24T12:30:00.000-07:00

We are currently seeking a Senior Account Manager to work from our London studio.

Ideally you will have experience of project and account management in the creative industries, exceptional communication and organisation skills with a proven ability to deliver medium to large scale projects and build lasting client relationships - ranging from Identity & Print, Web & Interactive to CG illustration & Animation - both on time and to budget.

You will be managing a small but growing team across our three offices, taking a proactive leadership role as the company expands.

You will be required to liaise with our design, sales and marketing teams and report into the Directors and Board.

Knowledge of SalesForce CRM, Access Focal Point Project Management, InDesign and Photoshop or similar systems would be preferable.

For further information or to apply for the position, please email richard@assemblystudios.co.uk

Meet the Team - Matt Fairman

2010-08-04T15:08:00.000-07:00

Name
Matt Fairman

Role within Assembly
CEO

What’s your favourite Assembly job you’ve worked on and why?
Project Lootch in Moscow for Horus Capital because of the grandeur of the launch event, the success of the project and the genuine friends we met along the way – oh and the fact they had an ice sculpture of the logo we designed.

The one that got away - I missed out on going on film shoot location to a remote Mexican mangrove because our cunning account manager at the time said I needed to speak Spanish to go – which wasn’t true…

What’s your favourite typeface / artist / building and why?
Arial always gets a good reception….

What’s your favourite thing to do on a weekend?
Mixed martial arts with my very own Karate Kid son, Ben followed by touch rugby in the park, followed by an ice cold beer in the bath in the afternoon listening to final score. Or spending time with my better half, obviously. Snowboarding or something on the ocean is the holiday option.

What’s your favourite dance-move?
So many to choose from and never 1 in isolation is the secret. Pink panther, stir the pot, BFLFCB or some eighties numbers such as the windmill into caterpillar (been a while since I could do that one…)

What’s your favourite place and why?
Top of a mountain after a huge snowfall, out to sea, the golden heart pub in Spitalfields – all are a brilliant way to spend a few hours and not really remember how…

What makes you laugh out loud?
My son recreating the Meercat Adverts – simples.

What makes you cry?
R&B and any singers that think that vibrating their voices is a legitimate and entertaining use of their talents. Politicians making short term plans that focus on staying in power rather than making a difference.

If you had to sum yourself up in 140 characters twitter style, what would you say
Proud dad; entrepreneur; Marketer; relationship builder; duracell bunny; communicator; sports, food and people junkie; sometimes funny, often loud and never grumpy...

Assembly Visit the Koolest Haus in Town.....

2010-08-04T14:44:00.000-07:00

Assembly visit the koolest haus in town, check out the leaning façade of Piano and watch a Scottish prototype amphibious coach take to the harbour – all in a day’s work in Rotterdam…

So it would appear that the European markets are picking up a bit and this week saw myself and our London head of CGI Toby Ritchie, heading over to Rotterdam for a couple of meetings – both commercial projects that are starting to get some traction and are looking to move forwards.

Transavia (Dutch no frills airline) was an early start from Gatwick and subject of much amusement that “menu item 3” of the duty free was a set of headphones and a Twix as a combo?? –bizarrely this was exactly what I needed – great stuff.

Clearly the service / airline industry is getting more and more tailored to individual tastes - how did they know?? I wondered if this gets replaced with a kebab and a packet of resolve for the return flight….

As part of our new social media activities I duly tweeted and to my delight got a response almost immediately from Transavia.com cheekily making sure I didn’t get the two combi’s mixed up.

After contemplating setting up a picture of me with the headphones in my mouth and a couple of twix’s in my ears – we fired out an equally cheeky response and decided to get on with some real work…

First stop was Rem Koolhaus’s Office for Metropolitan Architecture which was suitably interesting both in terms of the chat we had with a number of their team leaders about their approach to articulating their projects to wider audiences and because their offices were not what I was expecting – very understated, elegant and engaging. A very Kool Haus all in all so nice one Rem….

After finishing up swiftly we went over to see a high end developer that is heavily involved with some large scale projects in Amsterdam and Rotterdam with lots of big named practices on the masterplans – had a great meeting and potentially great collaborative opportunities there for us.

Very contemporary office space (think Lords Pavillion) which led me to another tweet which to my astonishment resulted in the Lord’s cricket ground taking an interest in our twitter activities – social media knows no boundaries it would seem…

So after watching a Shearings coach take to the harbour full of slightly alarmed tourists (seriously its one of those saga holiday type coaches that floats) and chugged past the excellent hotel New York, an original hotel at the old ocean liner terminal dating back to the turn of the 1900s when the ferry actually went all the way to the big apple - we decided to head into town to check out the town centre.

It’s a buzzing light industrial town, with bikes and everyone is friendly, with bikes. There are several vehicles (and bikes) that we don’t have in London (until today thanks to Boris and Barclays) that can hit you if you don’t watch where you’re walking – crossing the metro / tram / road / bus and bike lane is plain mental and the mopeds can ride down the bike lanes but not the motorbikes, I think??

Confused – we were, so we went for a beer in the highly recommended Café Pol.

People watching was great – people watching people on bikes was even better with their flagrant disregard for road safety. In fact, the only sign of a Helmut was a sturdy looking barman next door.

The conclusion is that Rotterdam – is easy and cost effective to get to, buzzing economy, decent architecture, lots of bikes and definitely good beer – we’re hopeful that the future is bright for us here, the future is not just Orang-e-boom…. Well not after they closed that brewery down anyway…

Matt, CEO

Meet The Team - Rich Conner

2010-08-04T13:45:00.000-07:00

Name
Rich Conner

Role within Assembly
Managing Director

What’s your favourite Assembly job you’ve worked on and why?
Making the tea. Because it’s a job I never actually have to finish – or start for that matter ;-)

What’s your favourite typeface / artist / building and why?
Jon Anderton’s apartment in Minority Report, and / or any Bat Cave. They’re just very cool.

What’s your favourite thing to do on a weekend?
Dancing - Tango

What’s your favourite dance-move?
Medio Corte – look it up on You Tube – you’ll know why.

What’s your favourite place and why?
The top of a deserted snow-capped mountain on a bright sunny day. No obstacles means you can go fast ☺

What makes you laugh out loud?
Uggs (I’m very serious) and going fast.

What makes you cry?
Uggs (I’m very serious)

If you had to sum yourself up in 140 characters twitter style, what would you say:

A fast moving tea round dodging space architect with a GSOH, a healthy appetite for sushi, tango, and snowboarding but not at the same time.

Breaking through the pain barrier letter by copy written letter

2010-07-23T03:42:00.000-07:00

Newsletters have been around for ages. The first I remember was based around a multi-user game played by my older brother called Green Sun. The difference with this game was that it was paper based and mailed in the post and was about 30 years ago. That’s scary I can remember that far back. I’m sure it took an incredible amount of energy and effort to coordinate and maintain this method of client interaction.

As Managing Director of Assembly I’m gradually working my way around areas of our business that need attention on both a system level basis and content creation basis. I’m working in the business on both a strategic level and tactical level which basically means I get a little time to think about what needs to be done and quite often because we are now a much smaller and more focussed and specialised team I get to actually do technical work of the business too – at least until the systems and designs are in place.

One of the first areas in Marketing I’ve been looking at is Newsletters – in themselves a very simple and innocuous piece of marketing collateral. But oh how very difficult it has been to actually create, systemise, coordinate – it’s a classic case of your own company being the last place you actually practice what you preach.

It’s amazing how many doubts creep in when you are creating a piece of external communication. You of course want it to work (keep your suspects, prospects, and clients informed and maybe trigger a few enquiries and who knows maybe a sale or two) and you want it to be ‘on brand’ and communicate your offer in the best light but there’s always a worry it will fall flat and your list will unsubscribe in droves. There in lies the rub – we struggled with the purpose of a newsletter – does it just ‘sell’ and communicate how great you think you are so a prospect will agree the same on a regular basis? The only value for the readers here as I see it they may remember how capable we are and that may solve an immediate problem for them – all well and good but my ambition for our first newsletter from the outset was to attempt to make it more educational at the same time as having a voice and opinion about the subject matter for which we profess to be experts.

To be on-brand the newsletter (which in this case focuses on our Visualisation and Animation expertise and is targeted at Architects and designers) had to communicate our values as well as something useful and educational. Given the nature of the 3D work undertaken by the team and our constant strive for perfection in everything we do led us to name the newsletter Virtually Perfect (perfect in the Virtual world – or almost perfect in the real world – never quite there as there’s always room for improvement!). The strap line caused us more difficulty. Although showcasing latest work we want Virtually Perfect to evolve into a piece that educates and comments. To honour this sentiment the strap line shouldn’t be about the company Assembly, or the Visualisation Team, but it should be about the newsletter and what it does. The distinction is subtle but important.

After much re-working we arrived at ‘Exploring the moving image of communication.’

We all believed this reflects the exploration inherent in any creative work and also played on the moving image or animation (3D, movies, animation) vs. the moving image of communication as an ever-changing and evolving medium. We think the content of our first newsletter lived up only in part to its purpose. In future issues we hope to develop our voice and that of the team to enrich the content beyond a simple show-and-tell. No matter how beautiful your work may be you still have to keep a reader engaged. In essence you can’t ignore the fact that you have to communicate with them not at them.

This leads me nicely to the tactical issues one faces pulling together and issuing a newsletter. Once you’ve herded your creatives, marketing consultants, and copywriters (this may be one person or many!) it’s all about creating the HTML document and issuing it. We’ve adopted Salesforce CRM with Vertical Response as an App that integrates nicely with Salesforce to allow you to issue and track all sorts of valuable data. Once you have this kind of control and information you start to ask yourself the oddest questions at the oddest times….

When’s the best time to send an email newsletter? No I mean when EXACTLY is the best time?

Will architects be doing all nighters and just delete or click?

If I send it twice will they think they’re subscribed twice and unsubscribe?

If I’ve sent an email once and the recipient hasn’t opened the mail (computer says so) is it acceptable to send it again…and again….and again…and again….

It’s still early doors on our newsletter – suffice to say that it’s absolutely needed – along with social media. However I do know how many of you have opened and clicked and as a result for the first time in my life boy do I feel powerful. Beware! Our next project is our Agency wide newsletter - names on an e-flyer please.

I’ll finish with a comment about company, business and office culture. I believe any outward communication is a reflection of what’s going on inside your business – ‘you don’t say’ I hear you cry – but wait – if there is no cultural habit of communicating, writing, debating, documenting, analysing, critiquing, educating, your prospects, clients, employees, staff, management, board, department, company, group, no matter what size you are will not have a voice or opinion. Habits are the unseen mechanical subconscious processes that lead to meaningful communication that helps you and your customers solve problems and move forwards. Once you’ve developed the habit, a newsletter that actually has something to say may be in sight!

So to all you unsubscribers out there (9 of you as of 14:07) I say ‘watch AND read this space!’ http://p0.vresp.com/EQFwON

Rich

Dance stars in exciting new Assembly film

2010-07-16T05:46:00.000-07:00

Assembly is currently working on a film to promote a complex of performance spaces in the Far East. Challenging the brief to move away from the typical architectural fly-through we have developed an engaging narrative using a series of connected dance routines that energise the architectural backdrop.

Working with legendary choreographer 'Supple', the castings, rehearsals and film shoot all took place at the beginning of July.

One of the lead dancers is Tommy Franzen, finalist in the BBC show 'So You Think You Can Dance'.

To view Tommy's casting performance click on the link below:

Assembly Dance Casting Session

Hope you enjoy it - we did!

Ross

Creative Director

Two Kingdom Street Making Waves

2010-07-05T04:16:00.000-07:00

Further to hosting the prime ministerial election debates with Jeremy Paxman, the Two Kingdom Street building has been used as a dramatic backdrop for the new Samsung Wave commercial.
View the ad: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zt21Fh6Befc

Assembly Studios produced the complete marketing campaign to promote the building; including identity, cg images, website, three short films and the recently delivered completion brochure.
View the work: http://www.assemblystudios.co.uk/#/portfolio/two-kingdom-street/