Middlesbrough-based Wander Films are a female led, multi-award winning content marketing agency who are dipping a toe or two into broadcast TV and making a bit of a splash.
2024 has already seen them win a slate of wins including their first BBC documentary commission. This comes hot on the heels of them delivering a BBC Daytime commission of short videos for BBC’s Morning Live, and a Channel 4 digital development commission which saw them supported by Newcastle-based, Northern Child (Jordan North: The Truth About Vaping, BBC), who are the northern base of factual company Middlechild.
Wander’s recent successes haven’t ‘just’ happened. Winning business in the current climate takes more than just good ideas. Delivering commissions well and ensuring duty of care for contributors are not skills that you gain over night. Their unrivalled appetite, determination and passion for working in collaboration with a range of brilliant and experienced TV industry people, grabbing every opportunity that has come their way has helped them learn the ropes and grow in this industry slowly but surely.
Without a doubt, once they have a few commissions under their belt, Wander will be shaking up the industry and making it their own.
North East Screen first supported Wander Films around 5 years ago as part of the Tees Valley Screen Pilot initiative Getting into Business, ran in partnership with Pact, the UK’s screen sector trade body supporting independent production and distribution companies. Wander received six months of free access to global business insights from world class industry leaders, winning the hearts and minds of every person who met them along the way.
Following this, they won a coveted place on the Pact Future 30 scheme, being identified as one of 30 of the UK’s most exciting emerging production and distribution indies. This scheme led them to be contracted to produce Pact’s 30th Anniversary film where they met and interviewed some of the big players in the screen industries including Steven Moffat of Hartswood Films (Wolf – BBC, Sherlock – BBC, The Devil’s Hour – Amazon Prime), Nicola Shindler of Quay Street Productions (Fool me once – Netflix, After the Flood – ITV, The Red King – UKTV) and Jimmy Mulville of Hat Trick Productions (Derry Girls – Channel 4, Mastermind – BBC, Have I Got News For You – BBC).
Wander’s trajectory in the industry continued and they won an opportunity to pitch to BBC England as part of the BBC and North East Screen initiative, NE Voices. Despite not being successful, their idea, access to onscreen talent and their fresh approach really impressed the commissioning panel. Feedback from the pitch enabled North East Screen to support Wander with a REACH award to recruit an experienced Head of Development and Development Researcher who supported the team to develop a broad slate of ideas to pitch to a range of TV commissioners. A year later Wander were announced as a recipient of the BBC Small Indie Fund, providing them with considerably more time with BBC Commissioners.
Lisa Laws, North East Screen’s Development Director, has witnessed Wander’s journey and been by their side every step of the way.
“Wander bring real joy to every pitch they make, and it’s great to see this already successful and thriving business, pivot and bring their experience of digital to the screen sector.
“Rejections are inevitable in this industry. Wander have taken these well and used the feedback to tackle the challenges head on. They’ve taken our advice, guidance and funding to bring expertise to bolster their credibility, formed collaborations with indies with more experience and taken the time to build solid commissioner relationships.”
In the last four years Wander have developed their knowledge of markets, grown one idea on their slate into over 30 pitchable ideas, and have gone from winning opportunities to pitch for paid development to delivering commissionable programmes. Their growth and success is testament to the Tees Valley Screen pilot project and investment in the team. Something Lisa is very proud of. She continued,
“What has been so rewarding is to witness how Wander are navigating pitching and winning contracts whilst finding their true tone and voice. They bring a fresh perspective on how to do and win business, on the North East region as a whole, and the types of stories and characters they want to see more of on our screen. We [North East Screen] are thrilled to have been part of their journey so far, and can’t wait to see what’s next.”
What’s the ambition for the future for Wander? Chief Operating Officer, Lou Tonner, explains, “We want to keep the momentum going. We’re excited for the future and want to place Wander at the forefront of innovative content for TV, digital and social. We want to grow the TV side of our business so it becomes as our successful content marketing side.”
On the support and guidance they’ve received from North East Screen, Lou continued, “We’ve been working with the team at North East Screen for around four years – their support has been invaluable. They’ve commissioned us to create content for them and found opportunities for us. They introduced us to Pact, helped us attend the Creative Cities Convention when it was in Newcastle, introduced us to TV commissioners and provided funding through the REACH programme.
“We definitely wouldn’t be where we are without their support and backing.”
North East Screen is the North East’s screen industries development agency working with businesses and professionals specialising in film, TV and screen-based arts primarily through its talent and business development programme, events addressing the skills gaps in the industry and its experienced Film Office supporting incoming and indigenous TV, film and commercial production in the North East. For more information please visit www.northeastscreen.org or email [email protected] to find out how you can get involved in the region’s ever growing screen industry.
