H C Kwong (seated), producer Neo Wong, director cameraman Best Video Limited Photo: Dickie Tam

Home-grown production house goes from strength to strength

As Hong Kong's multimedia industry grows internationally in stature, it is also broadening its local scope through an ongoing drive towards diversity and innovation.

With creative thinking and excellent technical execution paramount, the challenge is to always place client interests first, according to television commercial and promotional video production house Best Video Limited.

Funded by the incubation programme under the DesignSmart Initiative of the Hong Kong government, Best Video has grown from a simple operation that produced digital videos to a thriving multimedia production business that now offers a diverse clientele an array of sophisticated, integrated services ranging from design to post-production functions.

"Today, we employ full high-definition and a variety of other multimedia techniques, computer graphics, 3D and other solutions in the corporate videos and advertisements that we produce," says H C Kwong, producer, Best Video. "Our company has a strong creative element, since we have an outstanding team of designers, editors and copywriters contributing ideas to our projects."

Corporate citizen

The multimedia industry does not measure success only by balance sheets, and Best Video believes that the company's phenomenal growth is partly attributable to its sympathetic attitude towards its staff, clients and the wider community.

Since 2008, the company has been awarded the Caring Company Logo by the Hong Kong Council of Social Services in recognition of its volunteer work for a number of local charities, including The Samaritans Hong Kong.

The production house's commitment to volunteering also has a positive impact on staff morale and creative drive, stresses Mr Kwong. "Considering our hectic working schedules and long working hours, often through the night, our industry doesn't typically have that much chance to serve the community, but we grab the opportunity to work on pro bono projects, which give our work a different dimension," he points out.

For instance, the company produces promotional videos for its charity partners and teach them how to shoot their own videos for future projects.

Best Video's production team currently comprises 10 permanent staff and 6 part-timers, but the company is looking to recruit more people—particularly specialists in post-production and account servicing—as it expands.

To combat clear and present danger presented by the competitive marketplace, the company sets high standards for job candidates, who are expected to possess strong technical skills, a creative flair and a mindset that fits in with Best Video's working philosophy.

"We hope to strengthen our account servicing team to look after our expanding portfolio of corporate clients," says Mr Kwong. "Our industry is service oriented and our people are our most important assets. It's all about tapping into the right talent and enhancing our clients' business interests."

A major highlight for the company has been adopting an eco-friendly approach in the corporate recruitment videos it produces for its clients. "We've shot plenty of footage of greenery around the city and incorporate these images into our clients' advertisements to help promote them as corporations with a deep awareness of environmental protection, helping them to attract high-calibre, intelligent job candidates," he explains.

Breaking new ground

With high-definition technology becoming the norm, there have been tremendous changes in the fast-paced film and video industry, but using an inventive mix of technologies is key to the industry's development, Mr Kwong believes.

"We go beyond the usual formulas when we produce mainstream videos and explore new, different formats to find combinations that will give the most inspiring results. While technology may lead our industry, its application and execution come from our hearts and minds. That's what drives our creativity," he says.

Best Video also has an increasing presence across the border, with assignments including recruitment videos for mainland corporations that carry a message of care for staff and respect for the environment. Mainland professionals and organisations are keenly aware of the importance of these concerns in today's employment market, Mr Kwong notes.

There is often a gap between clients' demand for commercial appeal and designers' vision, he concedes. To bring these two divergent elements together, his team maintains close communication with clients every step of the way.

"We initiate in-depth discussions with our clients about their expectations and our ideas, and subsequently revise our concept and make appropriate edits to the video to achieve the best results for them. We're definitely faced with more sophisticated demands."

The balance is more complicated when it comes to government projects, according to Mr Kwong, which require a high level of accuracy and need to be respectable and appropriate to the specific audience segments. "In the private sector, presentation and timely delivery tend to be the more important considerations," he remarks.

Taken from Career Times 11 June 2010, B12