Page 9 - Capture Nov 21-Jan 22

a look back at 2021 advertising
Stylistically, Goodall feels that
there has been a shift within the industry back towards a more crafted image.
focusing on another test shoot when you have very little fuel left in your tank. Resilience has been essential.”
Staying afloat and motivated have been dual challenges for Greenaway too. Goodall adds, “Aside from the obvious, I have found that clients are increasingly motivated to capitalise on the resources and time available and make the most out of each shoot. Given the uncertainty, disruptions, and challenges of the past 18 months, I can totally understand that. It just means making more content within tighter time-frames.” For him, shortened pre- and post-production times and jam-packed shoot days have been the obstacles to overcome.
The stop-start nature of the lockdowns in Australia has been challenging for both Sawa and Tovo. “I think for most people it’s that change of momentum that lockdown brings, and how hard we do or don’t hit the ground running when it lifts,” Tovo says. “I remember after the first lockdown lifted everyone on set kind of felt a little less match fit. There was a great feeling that we were all back at work, but it was also very surreal, as though we’d all just walked through a bad dream together.” Sawa adds, “The constant rescheduling has been particularly strenuous for my agent and producers. The uncertainty of the world is creating undue anxiety. But, while it’s our livelihood, right now, we must remind ourselves that we are working in a ‘privileged’ industry, and not an ‘essential’ one. Of course, this notion is hard to swallow, but one we can fully appreciate again when we get to the other side of this pandemic.”
Hitting refresh
2021 made Perfido appreciate the decision he made several years ago to completely convert his studio to digital processes. He still
found it tricky to make the business sustainable and meet the new challenges of a COVID-controlled era, but was already geared to face the change of paradigm that came with it. “Our archives, design, quality control, and communication all travel on the web. This choice has made us more flexible by cutting costs a lot. We have also invested heavily in creating synthetic images in 3D graphics, making us independent in this field,” he explains.
Sawa moved his studio, into his garage, to deal with the strict lockdowns that were imposed. “I set up a ‘home studio’ in my garage so that I could still serve my clients to a degree. I also began shooting solo more often, without my usual crew unfortunately, and taking on more post-production work instead of outsourcing it,” he notes. He also became more active on social media to keep up his presence there. “My content wasn’t work-related for obvious reasons. Instead, I often posted on Instagram album covers of vinyl music I was listening to. Music is my other passion. This kept me connected to my audience, including my client base. Music has always had a way of connecting like-minded people. Some DM me from across the world. It’s genuine human bonding, which we can all do with right now,” he says. Moving forward, he says he has vowed to remain adaptable, flexible, and not plan too stringently ahead. “I’ll keep rolling with the punches because there is too much uncertainty,” he adds.
Remote shooting has been a boon for Peachey. “Livestreaming has become a necessity. Being able to shoot a campaign while the
[capture] nov.21_jan.22
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© HUGH PEACHEY
© TROY GOODALL