Back on September 6th, 2024, Site officially brought our production capabilities to the next level with an industry-first: a production studio for the industrial sector. Our massive bay doors have officially been open for six months, and our state-of-the-art sound stage has already been through its paces with clients looking to make an impact through creative media. This is new territory, but rich territory for brands in this sector to get creative like never before.
To maximize this space, we’ve grown our creative/production team over the past four years from a lean production crew to a full-fledged creative department with copywriters, designers, videographers, video editors, and animators—and the SiteStudio is now a next-level resource for that team to launch a new era of creativity for the industrial sector. Now, let’s give you a peek behind the curtain into the How’s, the What’s, the Where’s, and the Why’s behind this one-of-a-kind industrial hub.
How Our Studio is a Creative Extension of our Workspace.
Everything about our new SiteStudio and Office is designed to be open, accessible, controllable, and to meet industry standards. Not our industry. The film industry. The giant sound stage has a 36x12 ft. infinity wall with a white floor extending out the length of the studio, giving our creative teams plenty of space to shoot a wide range of projects—from small product shoots to professional interviews to corporate headshots to full-scale creative commercial productions.
We have also made the studio seamlessly flow with our open concept and modular office floor space. This gives our production team even more room to work with than just the dedicated production area—even our equipment storage merges into the space without sacrificing its potential. It may seem like just an “on-brand” thing to use sea-cans as storage, but it also allows us to maximize the studio area with a custom-built mezzanine overlooking the entire space.
Site’s Creative Director, Jono Saye, has spent the past four years pushing the creative potential of marketing for the industrial sector. He says, ”The idea has always been to create a space designed to scale our creative output—not limit it. So it was important that we made the studio suit our immediate needs, while also being forward-looking to make sure it didn’t put limitations on what we can do in the future. Whatever our creative team can dream up, we have the people and now the place to do it.”
What Makes our Studio a Force to Be Reckoned With.
The studio has been designed from the ground up with the latest and greatest in camera equipment—plus built-in and fully mobile lighting equipment. We are running a full RED cinema camera set-up for major productions, backed by top-down studio lighting with all the bells and whistles. Whether it’s simply a clean backdrop, or using colour to change that backdrop, or custom designing more cinematic looks with full set builds, our studio is tailor-made for...anything. Ample space and large bay doors also make bringing in larger equipment and set pieces for shoots easy. So when it comes to creativity, the sky (or our 28 ft. ceiling) is the limit.
Site’s Director of Production, Jadon Plett, says, “The ability to treat each client with unique creative flair has always been part of our DNA. Now, with a curated space with full control, not only do we see ourselves in a position to offer wider ranges of creativity, but we also believe we can provide more comfortable environments to do so. Removing distractions, cleaning up backgrounds and carefully curating sets will allow us to provide professional products in an environment that fosters creativity, uninhibited.”
And what would an industrial studio be without the ability to get on the tools and build a set. We are also able to design and build right here on site, should the project call for it. On bringing set builds into our arsenal, Jono says, “We’re not just a space with a white wall and some coloured lights. A major goal for myself has been to challenge our team to practice what we preach on behalf of our clients and build what’s necessary to make our productions the best they can be. We realize having a space is one thing, and having excellent camera gear is another, but truly thinking about how we can execute productions that elevate our clients' marketing game—that’s why this studio exists: to really set our clients apart.”
Where this Creative Space Can Take Your Brand.
A major part of why our studio merges seamlessly with our open-concept workspace is because our studio isn’t confined by one area. We even have a full podcast area in order to record and film podcasts. “Our creative approach is inherently strategic—not just willy-nilly and random,” says Jono. “As a creative director coming from the advertising industry, I’ve seen some of the successful tactics employed in other brands in other industries, and I believe any industrial sector brand that’s willing to take the risk on larger-scale creative marketing is going to stand out.
"Anyone else not doing that, is going to be playing catch up. Our studio allows us to apply our knowledge and expertise for clients who want to own their segment of the market. Yes, the studio is a creative space for us to do our job better, but, really, it’s a competitive advantage for clients who choose to use it, combined with our creative team’s skillset.”
The studio is also not just confined to our building. Much of our industry-standard equipment and the team who ideates and operates behind the scenes can take high-level creative productions anywhere. Whether it’s filming a broadcast commercial for wildfire awareness on a property or shooting a professional production for a major mining venture, our studio team and gear are capable of producing the highest-level video content anytime, anywhere. Jadon says, “While we are ecstatic about the potential of our studio and the opportunities afforded to our clients, we also know that the physical studio is just one of many high-level production tools in our arsenal.
"Our studio-level production gear allows us to be able to support creative productions anywhere. Sometimes the studio isn’t where the story needs to be told, but that doesn’t mean a studio-level production can’t be produced where the real story is happening: your job site.”
Why We Believe in Creative For the Industrial Sector.
A key philosophy of our agency has always been: the greatest creative comes from the brands you’d never expect. These are the ads, the marketing communications, the brand voices that catch you off guard. Industrial brands are often seen in very specific terms: gritty, tough, bold, big, hardworking. Or: experienced, skilled, trustworthy, etc. Those are all fine ways to define a brand in this sector, but they're well-treaded well-used positions by many brands in the industry. And it's created a homogenous brand landscape. And it's kind of boring. But to us, that's an opportunity.
Our creative director has this to say, “I’ve seen a lot great portfolios in my career featuring brands we all know and love their marketing. Think Geico, Ikea, and McDonald’s—the brands that are already famous for awesome marketing. But it's always important to remember these big exciting brands didn’t start as the big exciting brands. They had to carve out their own niche in their offering and their marketing to get the level of fame they have now.
The new SiteStudio represents this creative philosophy of making “boring” or, better yet, “sleeper” brands famous. I believe the industrial sector is uniquely positioned for a creative golden age. And for anyone who wants to be part of it—well, the good news is Site is here for that very purpose and, best of all, the 15-foot bay doors of SiteStudio are officially open to make it possible.”
