Innovative Siblings Collaborate in Isolation to Say Thanks to the NHS

Thank you. These two simple words can mean so much, with everything going on at the moment. Yet it’s one of the kindest things people can say to all of those putting themselves at risk to help others. During this period of working in isolation, James McLean, director at creative agency Engine, has collaborated on a project with his creative sister, Francesca, to do their bit in supporting the heroes on the front line.

James produced the film, promoting the NHS-based artwork of Francesca, with 100% of the money raised being donated to the NHS. To get a ‘Thank You’ card and support the cause, click here.

"My sister Francesca lives just down the road from here in the New Forest. We are very close and we decided we wanted to do something together to raise money for our heroes in the NHS and all our front line workers", says James. "As she is an illustrator and I'm a filmmaker, we thought we would pool our creative ability’s together to try and raise some money."

James and Francesca's father is a keen amateur photographer and has a GH5 and Ronin S along with an array of different lenses, which is where James got the equipment he needed to make the film due to lockdown. James continued: "We spent three hours filming on the first day, making sure we were socially distanced throughout, and the second day filming we captured all the shots with the finished postcards. We had to wait a week between filming to wait for the postcards, and also due to weather."

Francesca and James produced the script together, describing their ambition and cause for the project whilst also driving home the message about NHS' frontline workers. "Once I had captured the footage, we recorded a VO on a Rode Shotgun mic I bought off amazon the day before, specifically for this project. Francesca came up with the design for the card, and we thought the Nightingale Hospital was a meaningful backdrop to have, given the current situation. Once I had cut the film together, I started to ask around my industry contacts about who was keen to help out on the film regarding the different aspects of post. Ben Rogers from Gramercy Park Studios has been amazing and graded the film for free, whilst working remotely, and James Wilson, Builders Tea, composed the music for the film."

James continued: "Jamie Thodesden (motion GFX), Bradley Morey (audio) and Jakub Pieta (producer) all helped out with the project from Engine Film. Everyone on this has worked remotely and it really shows what you can pull of without seeing anyone face to face."

The sibling duo raised nearly £200 in less than 24 hours, with purchases ongoing. The price of each card is £1, with 100% of the money going directly to the NHS.