Dischromatics and Breaking Barriers Team up to produce Personalised DVD for Children.

Breaking Barriers Community Arts specialise in producing Digital Storytelling across all spectrum's of society and is a not for profit social enterprise based in Llanilleth, Blaina Gwent. With grants and other funding becoming more difficult to obtain, they decided to create their saleable original children’s Personalised digital stories on DVD.

Chairman of Dischromatics Ltd, Stewart Spencer sits on the board of BBCA as a business adviser through an arrangement with Arts and Business Cymru, Stewart explains “The board of Breaking Barriers have a duty of care towards the social enterprise and decided to approve the production of the personalised DVD project in order to make up for any shortfall in funding and to allow the staff to continue producing high quality digital storytelling to the benefit of the local community and beyond”.

With all things Breaking Barriers produce, the essential characteristic of the final product was that of quality in every aspect, from the original story and graphics to the unique packaging. The project has been professionally managed and controlled by Natasha James who has had to work to extremely tight time-scales in parallel with many other projects in production at the company. Nevertheless there has been no compromising the quality of the final product and anyone purchasing these DVD’s will be extremely satisfied with the result.

Customers will be able to add the name and upload photographs of their child, choosing from different animal outfits within the story. The story itself is based on the well-known nursery rhyme “Hickory Dickory Dock and is about the clocks losing their “Dock”.

It is envisaged that the latest personalised DVD will not be the last and the theme of producing in both English and Welsh languages will continue and fill a void in the market for such unique products. Anyone interested in reading more about the story can visit the Breaking Barriers or for more information about BBCA email natasha@breakingbarriers.org.uk

Is the Creative Industry in the UK getting the Support it deserves from the UK GOVERNMENT?

This is a question very close to my heart, as Dischromatics established Dischro Creative last year in order to exploit the undoubted opportunities available to any forward thinking enterprise with the experience, knowledge and wherewithal available. Dischro Creative offers filming forevents, showreels, testimonials etc., graphic design, web design, and app creation. 

I read an article recently in the Director magazine that absolutely hit a chord with me as it mirrored my own thoughts and experiences. The article was based on the views of ex Dragon Doug Richard who certainly has the credentials and credibility to make anyone sit up and listen. His views are that the UK actually leads the world in this area but the UK government only pay lip service to it without giving credible and tangible support.

He goes on to say that the creative industry generates over £70,000 per minute in this country and accounts for 10% of exports and this is still a relatively young sector with huge potential for growth in this hi-tec area of our economy. Imagine what a significant financial boost from our politicians would do for the future economy, creating huge profits with a significant increase in exports and in high paid employment which would in itself have a positive knock-on effect for the whole economy.

Our own experience of the lack of support from our politicians is commonplace. Here in Wales. the Welsh Government continually pay lip service to how important the creative industry is to Wales and they have run a series of ‘seminars’ in the country to give the impression that they are being proactive but the truth is that they are offering very little tangible support to the creative sector itself. As far as the WG is concerned size I everything, they very rarely recognise small creative enterprises but this is where the most significant opportunities arise. 

The past is a painful reminder of how our politicians in Wales fail to recognise the future lies with indigenous small to medium enterprises. It’s always about headlines with politician. The failed bid to establish LG in Newport is a poignant reminder of their incompetence, paying huge subsidies to LG and others for that matter only for us to see them fail and withdraw. I remember at the time, all the Ministers turned out for the photo call when the company moved in but they were not to be seen or heard when they moved out again.

What is needed is a body that includes leaders from a cross section of the Creative Industry, from large and particularly small enterprises together with politicians appointed by the WG who fully understand or who are prepared to learn, to get together to see how, collectively, we can progress in order to expand this valuable area of our economy. Instead of looking for publicity to boost their own egos, we need people who are genuinely interested in making this a success, to have the patience and understanding to learn what is needed, to offer support in whatever area is required ensuring there is cooperation with our universities so that courses can be adapted to suit what is required by our young and vibrant creative sector to the benefit of us all!

Dischro Creative Explains the Different Types of Films and Videos Available for Advertising and Marketing.

With the advent of short films being used for company marketing and advertising purposes, there is confusion about what some of the standard terms actually means. In this article you will find a short explanation to help you decide on what is best for your business. 

Teaser:

A Video Teaser is for an advertising campaign, which typically consists of a series of short, cryptic snippets, which anticipate a larger campaign for a product or event launch etc. Teasers are usually used in the build-up to a product or event launch.

Teasers usually last between 20 and 60 seconds, largely depending on what the product or event is and what the client is hoping to achieve from their campaign. These can also be placed on the specific company page of Facebook or YouTube. 

Trailer or Promotional Video:

A trailer or promotional video is used in a more traditional advertising campaign for a product or event. This usually anticipates some feature or reflects on the quality and success of an occasion. It is ordinarily a more straightforward and to-the-point account of what a product or event is hoping to achieve or what it has achieved. 

Trailers typically last between 90 – 210 seconds; again depending on what the product or event is and what the client is hoping to achieve from the campaign.  Once again, these are ideal for social network site business pages.

 Showreel:

A Business or Company Showreel is designed to cast a spotlight on the best items in your portfolio of services and products, through telling the story of how the results are achieved in a polished and engaging video-format.  A Showreel typically lasts anywhere between 3 and 6 minutes depending upon the amount of footage available which could include archive shots or newly filmed imagery and interviews.  This type of video can also be useful in gaining potential customers trust in allowing them to put names to faces and to understand your company ethos and work ethic.  It could also be used as a customer testimonial video for the website or again on Facebook and YouTube giving companies an ideal marketing tool.

Feature:

A feature is a video lasting anything from five minutes to an hour or more. It could document a recent success story surrounding a product or event.  A Video production is often published to websites or supplied on DVD duplication production as a promotional product. It provides an opportunity to include in-depth demonstrations as well as interviews and additional content that would not usually be included in shorter videos like Teasers, Trailers and Showreels. They are additionally useful to be added to tenders.

How to:

A how to video is an instructional aid used to demonstrate the functionality of a product; and/or to provide information to customers. Popular uses of this type of video are to deliver health and safety information or to create a presentation about the features of a product. This ensures that staff can continue to assist customers in the most effective manner without the pressure of performing a live demonstration. Additional benefits of this type of video include; no over-reliance on a single staff member, especially when that person is unavailable, the ability to show the same scenario from multiple angles simultaneously and the facility to play the instructions more than once - ensuring customers are able to move at their own pace.

The duration of a’ how to’ video is entirely dependent on the complexity of the topic in question.

Dischromatics Sponsors The Charlie Sloth Music Competition at the Riverfront Newport.

 

The legendary Wu-Tang Clan will be performing live during the Big Splash weekend in Newport. With Charlie Sloth the BBC One DJ also performing and other personalities on hand, it promises to be a memorable event. 

The Charlie Sloth Music Competition which is part of the Urban Edge zone at this year’s Big Splash at the Riverfront in Newport, is open to all groups and artists that wishes to enter. Once the finalists have been selected they will have the opportunity to perform their track at Urban Edge to a live audience and more importantly a panel of guest judges. This panel will include Charlie Sloth one of BBC One’s top DJ’s. The groups and artists who are interested in entering must upload a video or audio of themselves performing their track to the Pentalk Lab Recording Studio Presents page.

Five of the uploaded tracks will be selected and announced as finalists. They will then have the opportunity to perform live at the Urban Edge on two occasions.  The first performance will be in front of a live audience followed by a second in front of Charlie Sloth and the rest of the guest panel who will consequently choose the winner. The winner(s) of the competition will gain a fantastic opportunity to record an EP at the Pentalk Lab Recording Studio, at the Riverfront in Newport over two days with their resident DJ and Producer Jamie Winchester.

Following the recording session Dischromatics, a major UK supplier of CD Duplication and DVD Duplication who are based in Abercarn, just north of Newport, will design and print 100 colour copies packed into originally designed 4 page full colour Digipaks which will be presented free of charge to the winners. This professionally produced and manufactured prize is an exclusive opportunity for local musicians and could pave the way for greater success within the music industry. The prize will be presented to the lucky winner(s) by Charlie Sloth. The event itself takes place between 17.00 and 20.00 on Saturday evening.

Dischromatics has for many years, worked closely with a multitude of groups, artists and bands from all over the UK including many locally based performers. They can help with Licencing advice including performing rights and have contacts at MCPS-PRS to make the process easier. They are also a Sony DADC UK partner being the only one in the whole of Wales. Formed in 1989 they have been in the digital media business for many years and have a vast amount of experience to help their customers. This company has recently moved into video, producing Showreels for companies and other organisations. Performing the filming, editing and mastering of the whole production process.

The Big Splash weekend promises to be a memorable time in Newport with plenty of live music, theatre performances, film screenings and fantastic street performances along with a giant Bhangra dance-off, as well as drop-in workshops, dance and music competitions, arts and craft  stalls, a sunset fire spectacular, plenty of different foods and drinks to choose from and special guests. The event takes place over a long weekend from Friday 13^th July. Why not come along and join in the fun. Monday the 16^th will have the Wu-Tang Clan minus of course ODB, performing Legend of the Wu-Tang.

Dischromatics Releases its new Company Showreel

With Dischromatics new Showreel available on their web site, showing on YouTube and elsewhere on the web, it will give people an insight into the opportunities available in a relatively short video for company promotion and other uses. It’s an ideal way to display a company’s products and services along with interaction from customers providing testimonials and positive statements to enhance reputations and act as an enticement to prospective customers. Every company is unique and this professional marketing tool will enable anyone to make the most of these attractive and unique aspects of the business. 

When an organisation creates a marketing budget, rarely does it include a Company Showreel; in fact much of the cost related to marketing is still spent on advertising and sending out literature by post. However, as most people are aware, one of the most important areas to find new business is the use of the internet and therefore websites. Unfortunately most companies paying for a website and consequently paying someone to do the SEO, expect to be found on the top pages of the search engines without knowing enough about the process themselves, moreover there is far more to getting to the first page than applying certain SEO techniques. This is critical for successful ROI.  

Companies should be wary of adopting black hat techniques for SEO as it is possible that your site could be downgraded or even sandboxed. A Showreel will not only help your marketing drive and add to the interest of a website it will actually help the SEO as search engines favour sites with video and graphics displayed on the site. There are other advantages for the Showreel, it can also be burnt to CD or DVD and sent as part of an introduction to prospective clients or for a tender process. This is much more likely to be viewed and get the message across to the recipient and is clearly more impressive than great amounts of literature which is unlikely to be fully appraised.

The process of producing a Showreel for companies and other organisations is relatively simple and there are many offering this service but the execution of filming, interviews, voice overs, background music and so on along with the final editing and authoring needs to be carried out by a professional outfit. Dischromatics was established in 1989 and has been in the digital media and creative industries sector for many of those years. They are able to work to a critical path in order to achieve all the goals and can provide all the expertise needed from their own resources. Their own Showreel lasts for just over five minutes but for most companies a length of three to four minutes will be sufficient.

The production and resulting company Showreel needn’t be overly expensive, this will depend on the length of the video and as indicated above, what inclusions there are, whether professional voice over or music is required and so on.  Some websites already feature a Showreel but unfortunately these are a real turn off and effectively detrimental, they create the exact opposite impression to what was anticipated. Typically, you see Business Owner doing it on the cheap; they themselves are featured throughout and the video is taken with a static camera with the same background and with him talking about his own company, going on in a boring manner which interests no-one but himself. Bizarrely, the video is often placed on the home page and starts automatically every time you visit the site.

Clearly Showreels produced professionally with the right balance of positive features and interesting topics along with various inputs from different and staff and customers will give any business an enormous boost. For all enquiries about Showreel video production services why not give a no obligations telephone call to 01495 243222, email sales@dischromatics.co.uk  or simply visit the site where you can request a call back.

Dischromatics Showreel

Company Showreels from Dischromatics

New French Student Arrives today

Dischromatics welcomes Sébastien Viallemonteil to the company, unfortunately he missed the bus! So we will hopefully see him tomorrow. Dischromatics often takes French students for a period of training and for a cultural exchange, which is of great interest to both the student and the staff of Dischromatics.

With so many important changes and additions in products and services introduced over the last twelve months and with further developments on the horizon there is always something of interest happening within the company. No other CD and DVD Duplication and Replication company can boast of the achievements of Dischromatics since its birth in 1989.

Dischromatics has been a Sony DADC partner for over eight years and is now the only one in Wales. With accreditations for ISO 9001 and 14001 along with Investors in People Standard, again no other company of our size and in our field of business has achieved these fine accreditations and awards.

Furthermore, with a Professional Creative Graphic Design department along with DVD and Blu-ray Authoring capabilities in-house and a High end Digital Printer, creasers, folders and guillotines. Leaving this Company with total control of production, costs and lead times. Dischromatics is truly a one-stop shop that can compete on price with any other supplier

With some very prestigious production orders including graphic design and fulfilment completed over the past couple of weeks, Dischromatics reputation for quality and great customer service is expanding not just within the UK but to other countries such as the USA, Malta, Australia and many countries within the EU.

Plans are now afoot for the introduction of new products and services which will further utilise current resources but will also demand further training and knowledge transfer. The workshop will be doubled in size to accommodate the increase in demand and to ensure extra capacity is maintained for all our very important customers, large and small.

Creative Graphic Design

Dischromatics Creative Graphic Designers can provide customers with any design requirements. Although this company has been trading succesfully for over twenty years in the digital and optical media duplication and replication category of business, it has now firmly established itself in diverse yet complimentary aspects of service and support.

Applying their professionally acquired skills to the full, Dischromatics designers specialise in logo design giving their customers creative and eye catching designs to reflect the relevant business of each client. With Web Design, branding and re-branding skills on offer, any customer of this company can be confident that a chosen theme can be employed even with diversification to add interest to whatever it is applied to.

Artwork design for face label and packaging for CD, DVD and Blu-ray Replication and CD and DVD Duplication continues to be available and the design department staff are on hand to offer advice and supply templates at any time, although customers will find many downloads for artwork preparation on the company website.

Another opportunity for Dischromatics customers is the facilty to produce Direct Mail using their in-house Digital Printing facility. Again Their Graphic Design team will be able to produce individual graphics for the personalisation of each print, whether it is for postcards, booklets, brochures, leaflets, flyers or even CD and DVD products like digipaks, wallets, inlays and inserts and so on.

If you are interesting in any of the products or services of Dischromatics, why not call them on 01495 243222 or email: sales@dischromatics.co.uk or just visit their website at www.dischromatics.co.uk


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Digital Printing is the Future with Flexibility

Dischromatics offers digital printing for small runs of CD and DVD packaging along with the ability to have personalisation of printed material such as inlays, Digipaks, booklets, brochures, leaflets, flyers postcards etc. The Digital Printing process is absolutely ideal for smaller runs up to a thousand.

Dischromatics is probably the only supplier of CD Duplication and DVD Duplication in the UK that can provide in-house services at the front end like graphic design and authoring of the master, through to the duplication and printing of the CD or DVD, Followed by digitally printing the paper parts for CD and DVD cases, wallets, Digipaks and booklets and finally packing and fulfilment to customers’ clients if required. Digital Printing has the flexibility that lithographic printing cannot match.

At Dischromatics, they strive to satisfy their customers’ changing requirements. They believe any project is best managed by one individual supplier. By continually investing in new machinery and computer equipment along with highly qualified staff, they have maintained an excellent reputation with their customers. The ability of this Company to supply every aspect of the projects they undertake ensures they are always in total control. There is no necessity to rely on third party suppliers like their competitors for CD and DVD Duplication and packing.

One of the most attractive services Dischromatics offers is Direct Mail Marketing using variable data printing with software from Adobe Creo Darwin for the digital printing process. This type of direct mail has many advantages over the previously supplied lithographic printing which requires orders in the many thousands to bring the unit cost to an acceptable figure. Furthermore lithographic printers can only economically produce the same graphic on every print with a sticky address label being the only unique feature. Is it any wonder the majority are quickly tossed into the wastepaper basket?

The real attraction of digital printing for direct mail is, as well as having a different name and address actually printed directly onto the mail out, there is also the opportunity to have individual graphics on every single printed item. It can be provided in small batches up to one thousand if required. This type of direct mail has proven to increase the return on investment (ROI) up to tenfold. This type of digital printing can be applied to flyers, leaflets, postcards, booklets, brochures and even CD and DVD packaging like Digipaks, wallets, inlays etc.

Dischromatics has been in business for over twenty two years, with ISO accreditations for quality and the environment displaying professionalism in business none of its competitors can rival. To enhance and streamline the digital printing process, the company will soon release a new web to print site which will allow customers to choose from a selection of available templates or create their own. With professional Graphic Design available to help with logo design, branding and re-branding.

Dischromatics is aware that many companies have made the claim to be the proverbial one stop shop but with the additional services and staff and state of the art equipment added over the last couple of years their boast can be backed up by facts. With a Digital printing press, Graphic design, DVD and Blu-ray Authoring facilities along with duplication and production and packing departments emphasise this. With links to local universities, working in collaboration with highly talented graduates they will continue to innovate and introduce new and attractive products in the future.

By Johnio Muccles

Graphic Design from Dischromatics for Logo Design and Branding

Dischromatics will provide advice on the logo design process free of charge to any of our customers who require it. If you are thinking of Branding or even re-branding we will be able to help.

Our professional Graphic Design studio personnel will be pleased to supply advice on all aspects of logo design, web design, leaflet and flyer design, brochure or booklet design, postcards including direct mail etc.

We will tell you why certain colours will not be in your best interest and help you to convey the message within the logo design.

It's not just CD, DVD and Blu-ray projects we can help with but creative graphic design of any type project.

Dischromatics supports GO WALES

GO Wales News

Radio campaign launched to boost graduate opportunities!

GO Wales has launched a Real Radio marketing campaign this week to promote the benefits of graduate Work Placements to businesses in Wales.

The campaign which will be aired during the ‘drive time’ radio show features Gareth Spencer, Managing Director of CD and DVD Duplication and Authoring company Dischromatics in Abercarn who were established in 1989, they have, thanks to GO Wales, successfully introduced a new graphic design service to the business after taking on a graduate Creative Graphic Designer through the programme.

This was Gareth’s first experience of GO Wales; he recruited Graphic Design graduate Gareth Thomas to head up new graphic design and DVD and Blu-ray authoring department for the business; “Gareth allowed us to introduce a brand new Graphic Design service to the company which has also enabled us to expand the range of services we offer to clients and look forward to a future at the forefront of the creative industries in Wales, something we would not have otherwise been able to do without the GO Wales assistance.”

Since the Work Placement, Gareth Thomas has been offered a longer term position with Dischromatics and there are a few more opportunities on the horizon. Gareth Spencer explains; “We have since employed Gareth on a full time basis to head up our Creative Department and develop a new brand for the company which we will launch in 2012. We are currently advertising a placement for a graduate to help us create a ‘Digital Office’ and we may well be looking for another one in the next few months!”

When asked if he would recommend GO Wales Work Placements to other small businesses, Gareth said; “the work placement allowed us to expand into a new area which we had wanted to do for a while, without an extortionate financial risk & commitment. I would have no hesitation in recommending GO Wales to other businesses.”

To find out how your business could benefit from a GO Wales Work Placement call 0845 225 60 50 or email info@gowales.co.uk

Dischromatics Welcomes Gareth Thomas to the Company as Head of the Graphic Design and Authoring Departments.

Dischromatics, the well known CD, DVD & Blu-ray Replication Company are delighted to welcome Gareth Thomas as Head of Department of the company’s Graphic Design and Authoring Suites.

Gareth, a product of Rougemont Independent School, who is now thirty four years of age and lives in Newport in Gwent, is a graduate of the University of Wales where he achieved his BA Honours degree in Graphic Design. Since then he has worked for several organisations in a commercial environment displaying his flair for creative design and contributing heavily to several high profile marketing projects.

Since joining Dischromatics in July, Gareth has not only shown his artistic talents in helping Dischromatics customers achieve their objectives but has also been enhancing the graphics on display on the new company website. Managing Director Gareth Spencer was enthusiastic about the future of Dischromatics when asked about Gareth Thomas joining the business he said

“The addition of Gareth to our management team adds a whole new dimension to our business, enabling us to offer new services to clients such as Graphic Design and Authoring. So far, client feedback has been absolutely fantastic and even in this short space of time we have received several new customers through recommendations. I am extremely confident that making this bold move and expanding during the current economic downtown will prove to be exactly the right decision for Dischromatics."

Gareth is a rare breed amongst Graphic Designers; he is also an artist. He doesn’t just rely on the software at his disposal but is able to use his creative talents by drawing free hand which is an enormous benefit to clients, especially when he is out on-site and the software packages may not be available. He is able to transfer their ideas onto paper and will work with the client to create the best design features to the benefit of the client company.

Dischromatics was established in 1989 and has steadily increased the range of products and services throughout its history. By achieving a world first 20 years ago by producing photographic quality printed floppy disks; it set its stall out early and continues to innovate within the business. Products now on offer range from CD Duplication & DVD Duplication and Replication to Digital Printing and Fulfilment.

The phrase ‘One Stop Shop’ is often used out of context and simply to attract business but the fact that this company can author the CD or DVD to produce a master and create the face label and packaging artwork in the Graphic Design department and then duplicate and print the disc and digitally print and finish the packaging, complete the process in the production area and even carry out the fulfilment really can be appropriately applied to Dischromatics.

One area in which the company is already seeing an increase in production and where Gareth is instrumental is Variable Data Printing where the graphics can be changed to suit each recipient,

Personalization is the key for success with postal marketing and companies wishing to take advantage can call on 01495 24322 or e-mail g.thomas@dischromatics.co.uk or simply visit the website: http://www.dischromatics.co.uk/post-production/

Watch this space as there are even more products and services in the pipeline as Dischromatics continues to innovate and expand.