BRITISH GYPSUM: BOOST YOUR SKILLS

What do you get when you mix a live construction site, a studio full of spotlights, and a whole lot of plaster?

A two-day shoot we won’t forget in a hurry…

Back in September 2025, in collaboration with our creative agency Cogent, we worked with British Gypsum to launch the spray plaster campaign, announcing Thistle MultiFinish is now sprayable through tested spray machines. For years, getting plaster onto walls and ceilings has been considered one of the toughest parts of the job. Now, the game is about to change, with a different way to get material onto the walls and ceilings.

Day 1: On location at the iconic Tea Factory in Birmingham (yes, that one - future home of BBC Birmingham).

Shooting in a live building development meant juggling access, timings, and the ever-fun challenge of… plaster physics. Too wet? Too dry? Just right? On top of that, getting camera and lighting kit up to the first floor - with no lift and limited access - took a serious amount of manpower and countless trips back and forth from the production vehicles to the shoot space. Let’s just say we all left with a newfound respect for the craft - and a bit of plaster in our hair for good measure.

Day 2: From site to studio - stepping into J11 Studios.

With a custom-built set from British Gypsum, we got creative - spraying onto perspex, strapping on a wrist cam, and playing with silhouettes and lighting to capture the product in a whole new way. This gave us more control to be playful with our approach whilst showing off the spray guns and plastering techniques in all their glory.

Across both shoot days, cameras, lighting stands and dollies all had to be carefully protected from the plaster using special kit covers, floor coverings and bags - not the most glamorous part of the job, but absolutely essential.

The real stars?

The talent… all genuine employees from CG Reynolds, a British Gypsum client, who brought authenticity (and serious skill) to every shot. Huge shoutout to Dave, Nieve and Josh for smashing it across both days.

And behind the scenes, Paul and the British Gypsum team kept us grounded, making sure every detail stayed true to the craft - and that we always had just the right amount of plaster ready to go (no small feat!).

Directed by Ross Carson, shot beautifully by DOP Tom Martin, and stills captured by J11’s very own Daniel Du Cros!  Art Direction by Cogent’s creative team consisting of Darren Giles, Mark Teece & David Finch - this was a true team effort from start to finish.

Then we were into Post Production!

Film

We edited 10 videos in total and created 2 carousels, plus retouched 6 of the stills shots - shaping the story across formats and platforms to be used in the UK on various online channels (You Tube, Meta etc).

Messy? Yes.

Challenging? Definitely.

Worth it? Absolutely.

CREDITS:

Offline Edits - Rebecca Quinn @ MSE TV

Grade - Jules @ Studio RM

Online Edit/Mastering - Ben Hennessy

Sound - Josh @ I'm Not A Machine

STILLS

Retouching - Daniel Du Cros