Before Blast + Aftermath, our Creative Director and founder, Matt J West was a freelance filmmaker. Writing, directing, editing and self-shooting a variety of projects for a broad spectrum of clients, and even before this he was a designer. This history is important to us, because as we’re all evolving, and developing our skills and looking forward to new challenges, we never forget where each of us came from.
From the very beginning Matt created things that centred around communication both in design and in film. This mixture of background can be seen across our work, with an artful sensibility in the live action projects and an understanding of a brands nuances in our motion graphics. Knowing how a brand is built allows us to find the right story and medium that best communicates to their audience.
While working at the design studio The One Off, Matt very gratefully was given the opportunity from the bosses at TOO to create a film for Gordon Ramsay and Royal Doulton. A simple video approach showing part of the process the team went through to create a unique set of tableware inspired by Gordon’s restaurant, Bread Street Kitchen, and showcasing the beautiful detail found in the restaurant that inspired the collections style.
It was a project of humble beginnings. Without a film team and with a low budget, Matt was tasked with self-shooting the project and craft the final video. Looking back, this is now something we could do with little struggle, with increased production value and greater client value across a wider variety of deliverables. But we’re going to be totally transparent with you, this film was what Matt and his team could achieve at the time with little budget.
Skills are always moving. Technology is constantly improving. In the many years we’ve all been in the industry, we know we will always improve, so we should look back with kind eyes. The most important thing we follow, is to put our full effort into every project, for every client, no matter the size. Number one, is creating something relevant and engaging for our client’s audience. Message is first. Production value is important to us, but you know what? In years to come, we’ll look back at our great projects now and think we can do better still, everything is ever evolving, but a good idea remains strong.
B+A