It’s often suggested that a managing director of a company should concentrate on working on the business rather than working in it. And as time’s gone on and our business has grown, I’ve increasingly come to recognise the value of this. Sales forecasting, profitability, systems, staffing, strategising for the long term – they all require focus. But it’s also important to retain a creative overview to ensure that the company retains its identity and quality of programming. Besides, much of what we do happens out on location away from the office, working for and with clients. For that reason, I still like to go out on shoots and work in a variety of different crew roles where I have the skills and experience; directing, producing, camera work, art direction. It helps me to stay in touch with the realities of work on the front line as it were, but just as importantly, it allows me to indulge my passion and my reason for setting up this business in the first place: filmmaking!

The last few weeks have seen me involved in a number of very different but personally rewarding projects. At the end of August I was directing the last day of filming for a video celebrating the 45th anniversary of Lancaster University. The video was hosted by the university's charismatic chancellor Sir Chris Bonington and the university team, led by Nick Fragel, have been a dream to work with - model clients who know what they want, and who have worked diligently and thoughtfully with us to help shape their film into something quite special. Were it always thus!
Two days later I revisited one of my original filmmaking roles to work as first assistant director on a studio shoot for a music video. Spectrecom was asked by New York-based Humble TV to produce the UK shoot for the official video of The Uprising, the latest hit single by Muse. The video was completed in the US and the result is a highly imaginative video that you can catch here on YouTube.
 
A week later we were shooting at Abbey Road studios to make the video for the song, All You Need Is Love for BandAged / TOG’s, Terry Wogan’s fan base. And two days after that, I managed to fit in another role, this time as camera operator on a one-man job. I was in Venice to film Cunard’s Queen Victoria sail in, and then off to the Fincantineri shipyard at Monfalcone to record the building of the new Cunarder, Queen Elizabeth.
 
 So, a number of different roles and projects, and the chance to get out and about. And to produce this shamelessly name-dropping blog. But it's now back in the office, overseeing installation of a new CRM, preparing for sales exhibitions and a seminar to be hosted here in the studio next week, and planning for next year. I'm very definitely back to working 'on' the business.