Heritage in the UK: Using creative video production to explore the past

Paper Films creative leads have deep roots in the cities of the Northwest of England. We are a proud to be a Manchester based film production agency and have made a range of placemaking films exploring the cities of the North. We have a passion for exploring what makes these maverick cities the dynamic, creative places they are today and creating creative films that unpick the people and histories that shaped them.

We have years of experience creating films for the housing sector, with a focus on community outreach films, vision statements, architect films and much more, but a recent project allowed us to bring together these two strands in one powerful heritage film.

We were approached by specialist heritage architects Loop Systems to create a film which showcased some of their incredible work in the field, but also worked as a documentary video that explored the crisis some of Britain’s most vulnerable and important buildings are facing and the challenges our communities are facing in saving them.

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The film, which was shown at UK-REIFF, the most important property and development conference in the country, took us across the UK to locations including:

• Morecambe Winter Gardens
• Ashton Old Baths
• The Mechanics Institute in Swindon
  

We worked with a presenter, expert architect Stephen McCusker, who took us on a personal journey, meeting specialists and exploring these wonderful buildings.

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What did we learn?

Documentary video production for the housing sector requires a sensitive touch, especially when filming in challenging environments – these buildings are dark, dusty and often dangerous. Getting what we needed safely and making them look their best were major considerations.

Property videos can be dull; buildings are nothing without people to give them context. We let our presenter’s personality shine and used motion-graphic techniques to add interest and excitement.

How was it received?

This was not just a history documentary, it was primarily a conference event film, aimed at starting conversations and creating new leads. The film was premiered at UK-REIFF, in front of a large audience of sector-specialists. It was a huge success and set the scene for the client to open a dialogue with a range of key stakeholders, local council and government representatives and possible investors to start a conversation about new opportunities. We created another film for the same Group for the following year’s UK-REIFF looking at the challenges of providing effective social housing.