Alcema: Building a new school at Etone College

Alcema, a construction contractor, was building a new teaching block at Etone College in Nuneaton. They wanted case study films they could use in tenders, on LinkedIn and on their website. We filmed the project over two visits a year apart, and from the same shoots made films for Alcema, for Matrix Academy Trust and for the college itself.

The first visit was in September 2023, with the building halfway up. A live construction site means risk assessments, inductions and full PPE before anyone lifts a camera, plus a drone plan that worked around a railway line and a school full of pupils. It also meant interviewing people who build things for a living and don't usually talk about it on camera. Alcema's director was a bit nervous at first, so we took our time and chatted it through until he was telling the story in his own words.

We went back in June 2024, when the building was finished. This time the pupils showed us round alongside the principal. We made a point of treating them as part of the production, having a laugh with them and talking to them like adults, and they relaxed into it. That's how they ended up being such a big part of showing what the new building is like to learn in.

From the two visits we cut a short film, a full case study, subtitled versions and square edits for social, with the architects' CGIs cut in to show the design. The contractor, the trust and the college each got content that worked for them from one project, and that's how we like to work. When everyone involved gets something useful from the same shoot, everyone sees the benefit.