Business: JS Collective
Graduating years: 2014 to present
Degrees: BA Digital Media Production, BA Film and TV Production etc.
Location: Sheffield City Centre
Website: http://jscollective.com/
Instagram: JS Collective, Josh Caddick, Joshua Evers
Facebook: JS Collective
Above you can see the Round Sheffield Run 2017 Official Video by the JS Collective team.
Journey
The JS Collective team officially kicked off in summer 2016, after a group of friends realised they were each working individually and freelancing on their own, where they could be working as a team to offer more media services and build a bigger and better portfolio. JS Collective was created so the team would bring together a range of work, resources and skills to meet the requirements of more clients. Joshua Evers, a founding member of the team told me, “In the future we want to branch out even more, go further into digital marketing, web design and social media services by bringing more like-minded people on board.”
Although still in the early stages of the business, JS Collective are building an impressive client list, with companies, charities and clients including the Round Sheffield Run, the Headonist, Peddlers Night Market, Tramlines and more, as well as providing photography and videography work for a range of nightclubs, weddings and other events in Sheffield and beyond.
Whilst chatting to the team it became clear to me that each of them has come to this point in their lives and careers in their own way and through their own path, and they’re now working on carving out a path together. Joshua Evers began by getting stuck into nightclub videography whilst still at university, as well as working on his own projects, such as his fantastic final year project, featuring another member of the team, Josh Caddick in the starring role. From there he built into doing video work for weddings and other events, bringing in friends and now colleagues at times to provide extra footage or photography coverage. In the meantime, Josh Caddick worked on creating music documentaries and videos whilst at University in York (not a Hallam student I know but, we’ll let him off!), taking advantage of the amazing music scene they have there. He now also works as a content creator and blogger at a local company.
JS team member Josh Evers observes, “We’ve all used our skills and developed our own style and improved our equipment whenever possible with new gear etc. always keeping up with industry information and updates. We’re really getting into the swing of things now, sure there are still challenges and things that we need to do but the long-term goals are there. We’ve identified the skills we have, we improve there at every opportunity, we network and communicate with clients and potential clients as much as possible, it’s a case of putting in the work and seeing the positive results.”
Advice
“Find work in the industry, through any means whilst you’re studying, I was doing photo and video in the clubbing industry, do some photography, offer your services to friends and family, look at the music departments, do a photo shoot or video for them, they’ll mention it to their fans and friends, you’ll get some good experience out of it, they’re getting something at the same time.” Sound advice from Josh Caddick here, no matter what industry you’re in, experience is key and you won’t always be paid for it, but you get paid in other ways when one thing leads to another.
“Talk to as many people as you can, people who are in the industry, shadow them, find out what you’re capable of, what routes are open to you, get out and do what you can do, there are jobs in the creative industries out there but, it’s a difficult path, freelancing relies on yourself and you can work to build yourself up. You will do work for free, don’t be snobby about it, it could be the difference between getting work and not getting work. If you don’t get paid for your first job, you’ll get paid for your second. Building a portfolio is so important, it’s worth more than when you’re getting paid lots.” These guys are certainly on the same wavelengths when it comes to building skills and experience, each has their own background and skillset and they’re fantastic at supporting each other and providing each other with new tips and hints. As Joshua Evers says, the creative industries can be a difficult path, especially as a freelancer, which is why it’s so positive to see teams like JS Collective coming out of Sheffield and beyond, to see people working together.
“Treat each job you do as though you’re getting paid. Do your research so you know what people are charging and make sure you’re scaling your prices when you start to build up your portfolio a little more. Just start doing as much as possible, as soon as possible.” More wise words from the team, who observe that as the business grows and develops, it’s important to recognise certain milestones and improvements, and the importance of checking out others within the market, to ensure competitive prices.
Here’s one more snap featuring Joshua Evers and Josh Caddick, this was captured during a recent trip to the North Yorkshire Dales to explore new places, test new skills and improve techniques, these guys are all over it.
If you want to get in touch with the JS Collective team, I’ve included links to their social media pages, website etc. within this post and at the top of the page as well.
