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A HOST of rats made of card, pipe cleaners, and glue, are the unlikely stars of a short viral film produced for Brunel’s ss Great Britain. |
From left to right: Dan Coomber, Ben White and Sam Coles from Constellation Media.
Up-and-coming production company, Constellation Media, approached the ss Great Britain Trust’s marketing team because of the ship’s iconic status nationally and especially within the southwest.
The company was keen to showcase their creative talent, and to support Brunel’s ss Great Britain, an independent museum and registered charity.
Based in Bath, with staff from Bristol, Chew Magna, and Taunton, Constellation Media wanted to demonstrate how they could make a highly polished film to a tight budget.
Plans to hire in tame ‘performing’ rats – even without Equity status – would have proved costly, so volunteers helped make them out of card, inspired by craft workshops held onboard during school holidays.
The team also drafted in the visitor attraction’s Mr Brunel (actor Martin Williamson), whose only rider was a hot beverage!
The challenge was to create a fun film, with a twist, which could be used to promote the fact that tickets to Brunel’s ss Great Britain allow for FREE unlimited return visits for a year.
Without giving too much away, rats are very much excluded from the offer.
Mark Scoble, Managing Director of Constellation Media, commented: “We were keen to work with the ss Great Britain Trust, to deliver a quality and fun film, whilst raising our profile within the south west and the museums and visitor attraction sector.”
The ss Great Britain Trust was impressed by the company’s approach and creativity.
It also helped that the Trust had previously worked with members of the film crew on the BBC’s ‘Seven Manmade Wonders of the West’, presented by Points West’s Amanda Parr, which featured the ss Great Britain.
Acting Director for Marketing and Communications at the ss Great Britain Trust, Dagmar Smeed, commented: “The film is great fun. Everyone I know who has seen the film has said they enjoyed it and it made them smile – even those who are not fans of rats!
“Working with Constellation Media was also a good experience. All the team have a positive ‘can-do’ approach, they are excellent film-makers, and they understood our budget constraints. Timing couldn’t have been better either, as this is ‘Year of the Rat’ and the pesky creatures feature heavily in our events calendar!”
Constellation Media has also worked on projects for other attractions and heritage sights and clients have included Bath and North East Somerset Council. Most recently the company sponsored and undertook filming for the Bath Life Awards.
In keeping with the ‘Year of the Rat’ theme, visitors to Brunel’s ss Great Britain will be able to make their own card rats onboard as part of the October school holiday events, all included in admission (‘Catsheads! Rats’ tales!’ on October 25 to November 4). The Victorian Surgeon can advise on rat bites on October 25 and 26. The ‘Gruesome Great Britain’ trail for children, available throughout the holiday, features a true story of a rat waking a passenger by nibbling her toenail. Mr Brunel is also onboard, except October 29.
See the Rats film
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