"That was the decade that was" - The Alliance Creative Years.
A freelance Motion Graphics project brief set by Steve Johnstone from the 'virtual' agency Alliance Creative, to celebrate the lead up to and anniversary of their 10th year as an agency in the creative industry.
"Alliance Creative has a pioneering approach to providing creative services by removing the need for traditional and expensive agency relationships. As a ‘virtual’ agency we have the skills, experience and agility to support our clients without the fixed internal overhead or the inflated costs often associated with external creative agencies.
Our services include:
Design; Creative concepts; Motion graphics, video & animation; Website design & development; Online advertising, animated banners, HTML5; Artwork (for print and digital media); Copywriting & content creation; Marketing strategy; Microsoft Office.
With Alliance Creative you only pay for the services you need and not the cost of those you don’t. Our team of over sixty talented individuals have decades of proven experience and expertise, working with the biggest and best brands in Scotland.
With the flexibility to tailor our service offering to suit your individual needs, we are able to integrate our people directly within your organisation or give you direct access to our remote team.
Alliance Creative is trusted by brands such as Standard Life Aberdeen, Clydesdale Bank, VELUX and Edinburgh Napier University, amongst many others. "
A group of 11 video scripts and assets were given. The main task was to export the digital assets using a combination of Photoshop and Illustrator and animate them using Adobe After Effects.
All video captions included here have been written by Alliance Creative.
"That was the decade that was | Pt 1 of 11
The Alliance Creative years.
As we hurtle towards our 10th anniversary, we’re pinching ourselves wondering where the hell an entire decade went. Looking back, our birthdays have marked some quite momentous events.
The first day of business for Artworkers Alliance, as we were then known, was also the first official day of President Obama’s state visit to Britain. Earlier, as Airforce One soared towards Britain, did POTUS sense that something momentous, apart from himself, was in the air? Did the surface of his last inflight coffee before landing ripple slightly, as though a new source of creativity was about to disrupt the status quo? And when meeting the Queen, did he have to fight a mysterious compulsion to squeeze out of a Buckingham Palace toilet window, shimmy down a drainpipe, evade the ever-watchful CCTV cameras, clamber over a security fence into the street, commandeer a passing taxi, turf the passenger out onto the kerb and demand that the cabbie take him to Edinburgh for some great chat, brilliant comms advice and the fanciest biscuits that our local Waitrose had to offer? Almost certainly."
The Alliance Creative years.
As we hurtle towards our 10th anniversary, we’re pinching ourselves wondering where the hell an entire decade went. Looking back, our birthdays have marked some quite momentous events.
The first day of business for Artworkers Alliance, as we were then known, was also the first official day of President Obama’s state visit to Britain. Earlier, as Airforce One soared towards Britain, did POTUS sense that something momentous, apart from himself, was in the air? Did the surface of his last inflight coffee before landing ripple slightly, as though a new source of creativity was about to disrupt the status quo? And when meeting the Queen, did he have to fight a mysterious compulsion to squeeze out of a Buckingham Palace toilet window, shimmy down a drainpipe, evade the ever-watchful CCTV cameras, clamber over a security fence into the street, commandeer a passing taxi, turf the passenger out onto the kerb and demand that the cabbie take him to Edinburgh for some great chat, brilliant comms advice and the fanciest biscuits that our local Waitrose had to offer? Almost certainly."
"That was the decade that was | Pt 2 of 11
The Alliance Creative years.
Birthday no. 1 was a day of glorious weather. Sadly, a number of tabloid journalists seemed to immediately fall victim to sunstroke, causing them to think that the absence of grey clouds should be front page news. OK, it was the hottest day of the year up to that point. And even Bishopton near Glasgow got up to 27.3°C. But no one’s curtains or household pets spontaneously combusted in the heat. The streets weren’t filled with people frantically patting their smouldering eyebrows and charred moustaches. And no one was filling their underwear with flame-retardant foam. Or at least not for the purposes of keeping fire at bay.
Q: Know what really was hot that year? A: Us. We began working directly with Standard Life and handling their all-important pension-reform comms. We also started producing a range of materials, including prospectuses, for Napier University. We continue to work with these clients to this day, come rain, sun or cheeky mid-summer Scottish snowstorm."
The Alliance Creative years.
Birthday no. 1 was a day of glorious weather. Sadly, a number of tabloid journalists seemed to immediately fall victim to sunstroke, causing them to think that the absence of grey clouds should be front page news. OK, it was the hottest day of the year up to that point. And even Bishopton near Glasgow got up to 27.3°C. But no one’s curtains or household pets spontaneously combusted in the heat. The streets weren’t filled with people frantically patting their smouldering eyebrows and charred moustaches. And no one was filling their underwear with flame-retardant foam. Or at least not for the purposes of keeping fire at bay.
Q: Know what really was hot that year? A: Us. We began working directly with Standard Life and handling their all-important pension-reform comms. We also started producing a range of materials, including prospectuses, for Napier University. We continue to work with these clients to this day, come rain, sun or cheeky mid-summer Scottish snowstorm."
"That was the decade that was | Pt 3 of 11
The Alliance Creative years.
If you’re better at Roman numerals than history, you might assume that Malcolm IV came six Malcolms before Malcolm X. Well, you’d be mistaken. Malcolm IV was a 12th century Scottish monarch. Our third year in business began on the 860th anniversary of his becoming king of Scotland while still only a spotty pre-teen. (Sorry, that was a cheap jibe. We’ve seen no credible contemporary reports alluding to His Majesty’s regal acne. For all we know, he had a complexion smoother than a laminated baby’s bottom.) We’d be lying if we said we stuffed the boardroom with helium-filled balloons and bought a Colin the Caterpillar cake in honour of his memory. We’re saving all that for the 900th anniversary in 2053. What we celebrated instead, apart from our second birthday, was that we were starting to make a name for ourselves across Scotland. This was the year that the first of the Karl Pilkington Moaning of Life books we produced for Canongate rolled grumpily, yet hilariously, off the presses."
The Alliance Creative years.
If you’re better at Roman numerals than history, you might assume that Malcolm IV came six Malcolms before Malcolm X. Well, you’d be mistaken. Malcolm IV was a 12th century Scottish monarch. Our third year in business began on the 860th anniversary of his becoming king of Scotland while still only a spotty pre-teen. (Sorry, that was a cheap jibe. We’ve seen no credible contemporary reports alluding to His Majesty’s regal acne. For all we know, he had a complexion smoother than a laminated baby’s bottom.) We’d be lying if we said we stuffed the boardroom with helium-filled balloons and bought a Colin the Caterpillar cake in honour of his memory. We’re saving all that for the 900th anniversary in 2053. What we celebrated instead, apart from our second birthday, was that we were starting to make a name for ourselves across Scotland. This was the year that the first of the Karl Pilkington Moaning of Life books we produced for Canongate rolled grumpily, yet hilariously, off the presses."
"That was the decade that was | Pt 4 of 11
The Alliance Creative years.
When Kayne West and Kim Kardashian got married on our third birthday, it was a modest little affair. It took place at a small motel in an LA suburb with only close family members in attendance. This was followed by a bring-your-own-bottle reception at a nearby branch of Burger King that they’d hired between 13.30 and 17.15 (with a $75 surcharge for any late departures). No, not really. It was actually, as you might expect, terrifyingly lavish. Hundreds of guests were flown to Florence for the ceremony, followed by what we imagine would be an all-you-can-eat buffet consisting of diamond encrusted vol-au-vents, albino tiger steaks and flamingo drumsticks in breadcrumbs. While the cast of the previous year’s hit movie – Iron Man 3 – wearing nothing but aprons, moved between tables to pour vintage champagne for everyone.
This was also the year that we happily, if bigamously, paired up with a couple of wonderful new clients: VELUX and National Museums Scotland. Unlike Kanye and Kim, we’re still together."
The Alliance Creative years.
When Kayne West and Kim Kardashian got married on our third birthday, it was a modest little affair. It took place at a small motel in an LA suburb with only close family members in attendance. This was followed by a bring-your-own-bottle reception at a nearby branch of Burger King that they’d hired between 13.30 and 17.15 (with a $75 surcharge for any late departures). No, not really. It was actually, as you might expect, terrifyingly lavish. Hundreds of guests were flown to Florence for the ceremony, followed by what we imagine would be an all-you-can-eat buffet consisting of diamond encrusted vol-au-vents, albino tiger steaks and flamingo drumsticks in breadcrumbs. While the cast of the previous year’s hit movie – Iron Man 3 – wearing nothing but aprons, moved between tables to pour vintage champagne for everyone.
This was also the year that we happily, if bigamously, paired up with a couple of wonderful new clients: VELUX and National Museums Scotland. Unlike Kanye and Kim, we’re still together."
"That was the decade that was | Pt 5 of 11
The Alliance Creative years.
We turned four years old on the very day that the up-and-coming boy band The Rolling Stones began their Zip Code Tour in San Diego. During the course of this romp across North America, the leathery yet indestructible Brits were seen – and hopefully heard – by over 730,000 people. They ended up in Quebec City 52 days later. That
happened intentionally, of course. We don’t wish to give the impression that Mick, Keef, Ronnie and Charlie woke up, shivering and bewildered, in a Canadian bus terminus at 3.30 in the morning, huddling for warmth around a smouldering spliff. No, it was all very
tour T-shirt compliant.
Meanwhile, on this side of the pond, we changed our name from Artworkers Alliance to Alliance Creative. And in that same year, we went on to win major new contracts with Standard Life and Zoological Society of London. So we briefly allowed ourselves to puff out our chests proudly and strut about like Mick Jagger would if he were a little more self-conscious and had done a lot less yoga and pilates."
The Alliance Creative years.
We turned four years old on the very day that the up-and-coming boy band The Rolling Stones began their Zip Code Tour in San Diego. During the course of this romp across North America, the leathery yet indestructible Brits were seen – and hopefully heard – by over 730,000 people. They ended up in Quebec City 52 days later. That
happened intentionally, of course. We don’t wish to give the impression that Mick, Keef, Ronnie and Charlie woke up, shivering and bewildered, in a Canadian bus terminus at 3.30 in the morning, huddling for warmth around a smouldering spliff. No, it was all very
tour T-shirt compliant.
Meanwhile, on this side of the pond, we changed our name from Artworkers Alliance to Alliance Creative. And in that same year, we went on to win major new contracts with Standard Life and Zoological Society of London. So we briefly allowed ourselves to puff out our chests proudly and strut about like Mick Jagger would if he were a little more self-conscious and had done a lot less yoga and pilates."
"That was the decade that was | Pt 6 of 11
The Alliance Creative years.
It was all happening at the Thame Town Council meeting on the day we turned five. As revealed in the thrilling online council minutes, the action occurred at 18.30 at the town hall. Some councillors had apologised in advance for their absences. Cllr Cowell, however, was absent without an apology. We can only imagine the fury that would later ensue. On the agenda were the Midsomer Murders plaques. It was agreed that it was OK to put them up in locations where the TV series had been filmed, as long as it was done “sympathetically”. After all, this was Thame, Oxfordshire, daahling; not Southend,
Essex. Answering questions from an audience in a venue rather bigger than a council chamber later that year was our very own Steve, addressing Venturefest at Glasgow Science Centre’s IMAX® cinema. He spoke about how the Alliance embedded an in-house studio at Standard Life. Unwisely left in possession of a fully functional microphone, Steve was hastily discouraged from following up his talk with an impromptu karaoke session. Speaking of ear-splitting shrieking, Dan also got us all to geronimooo our way off the Forth Bridge for charity. Our knuckles were white; our underwear wasn’t."
The Alliance Creative years.
It was all happening at the Thame Town Council meeting on the day we turned five. As revealed in the thrilling online council minutes, the action occurred at 18.30 at the town hall. Some councillors had apologised in advance for their absences. Cllr Cowell, however, was absent without an apology. We can only imagine the fury that would later ensue. On the agenda were the Midsomer Murders plaques. It was agreed that it was OK to put them up in locations where the TV series had been filmed, as long as it was done “sympathetically”. After all, this was Thame, Oxfordshire, daahling; not Southend,
Essex. Answering questions from an audience in a venue rather bigger than a council chamber later that year was our very own Steve, addressing Venturefest at Glasgow Science Centre’s IMAX® cinema. He spoke about how the Alliance embedded an in-house studio at Standard Life. Unwisely left in possession of a fully functional microphone, Steve was hastily discouraged from following up his talk with an impromptu karaoke session. Speaking of ear-splitting shrieking, Dan also got us all to geronimooo our way off the Forth Bridge for charity. Our knuckles were white; our underwear wasn’t."
"That was the decade that was | Pt 7 of 11
The Alliance Creative years.
On our birthday four years ago, Pope Francis emphasised his belief in miracles. The pontiff did this during his meeting at the Vatican with President Trump, when he urged Trump to be a peacemaker. Knowing that, like a spaniel or a terrapin, the president responded better to visual things than to words, the Pope presented Trump with a small sculpture of an olive tree. Sadly, the symbolism of this failed to convince the tikkamasala-hued commander-in-chief to run off and join a commune, wear flowers in his “hair” and play protest songs on a ukulele.
Meanwhile, at Alliance Creative HQ, we put our faith not in the miraculous, but in hard work. This was the year we produced the retouching and artwork for Studio Something’s excellent Innis & Gunn campaign. And Steve even appeared in a Whyte & Mackay ad for PUNK Creative without this being followed by a dramatic drop in sales. Now, that was a miracle."
The Alliance Creative years.
On our birthday four years ago, Pope Francis emphasised his belief in miracles. The pontiff did this during his meeting at the Vatican with President Trump, when he urged Trump to be a peacemaker. Knowing that, like a spaniel or a terrapin, the president responded better to visual things than to words, the Pope presented Trump with a small sculpture of an olive tree. Sadly, the symbolism of this failed to convince the tikkamasala-hued commander-in-chief to run off and join a commune, wear flowers in his “hair” and play protest songs on a ukulele.
Meanwhile, at Alliance Creative HQ, we put our faith not in the miraculous, but in hard work. This was the year we produced the retouching and artwork for Studio Something’s excellent Innis & Gunn campaign. And Steve even appeared in a Whyte & Mackay ad for PUNK Creative without this being followed by a dramatic drop in sales. Now, that was a miracle."
"That was the decade that was | Pt 8 of 11
The Alliance Creative years.
While seven stubby candles blazed away on our birthday cake, looking as if Snow White had used a flamethrower on her housemates, countless French football fans were celebrating ecstatically elsewhere. Because, in this particular year, our birthday
coincided with Olympique Lyonnais Féminin (or if you’re in a hurry, call them Lyon) winning their fifth UEFA Women's Champions League title. This was the team’s third CL victory in a row. (In 2020, they extended that, incredibly, to five.)
We wanted to be winners in our own way, too. Which also required first-class training. By which we don’t mean dribbling a ball through a traffic-cone slalom before curling it 30 yards into a net’s top right-hand corner. No, this was about being coached by Alan Smith – not the former Leicester and Arsenal player; nor the identically named chap who once played for Leeds, Man Utd and Newcastle – to be better at what we do and improve our planning for future growth. Preferably without the need for shin pads."
The Alliance Creative years.
While seven stubby candles blazed away on our birthday cake, looking as if Snow White had used a flamethrower on her housemates, countless French football fans were celebrating ecstatically elsewhere. Because, in this particular year, our birthday
coincided with Olympique Lyonnais Féminin (or if you’re in a hurry, call them Lyon) winning their fifth UEFA Women's Champions League title. This was the team’s third CL victory in a row. (In 2020, they extended that, incredibly, to five.)
We wanted to be winners in our own way, too. Which also required first-class training. By which we don’t mean dribbling a ball through a traffic-cone slalom before curling it 30 yards into a net’s top right-hand corner. No, this was about being coached by Alan Smith – not the former Leicester and Arsenal player; nor the identically named chap who once played for Leeds, Man Utd and Newcastle – to be better at what we do and improve our planning for future growth. Preferably without the need for shin pads."
"That was the decade that was | Pt 9 of 11
The Alliance Creative years.
On our eighth birthday, Theresa May – the British PM renowned for dancing like a demonically possessed trouser press – announced that she’d be leaving her role. Brexit negotiations were clearly proving too much fun for her and she felt it was only fair to curb her selfishness and give someone else the chance to enjoy themselves. “I will shortly leave the job […] with no ill will, but with enormous and enduring gratitude to have had the opportunity to serve the country I love,” she sniffled bravely on live TV.
In contrast, far from throwing in the towel, we at Alliance Creative were rolling up not only our sleeves but our trouser legs, too, in preparation for embarking on our busiest year yet. Even though we do say so ourselves, we made some pretty inspired senior hirings. And our “disruptive remote model” and growth were discussed in the press. Unlike many of Mrs May’s media mentions, these were all very positive indeed."
The Alliance Creative years.
On our eighth birthday, Theresa May – the British PM renowned for dancing like a demonically possessed trouser press – announced that she’d be leaving her role. Brexit negotiations were clearly proving too much fun for her and she felt it was only fair to curb her selfishness and give someone else the chance to enjoy themselves. “I will shortly leave the job […] with no ill will, but with enormous and enduring gratitude to have had the opportunity to serve the country I love,” she sniffled bravely on live TV.
In contrast, far from throwing in the towel, we at Alliance Creative were rolling up not only our sleeves but our trouser legs, too, in preparation for embarking on our busiest year yet. Even though we do say so ourselves, we made some pretty inspired senior hirings. And our “disruptive remote model” and growth were discussed in the press. Unlike many of Mrs May’s media mentions, these were all very positive indeed."
"That was the decade that was | Pt 10 of 11
The Alliance Creative years.
Our ninth birthday was on a Sunday. It was the day that a sweaty mass of humanity was meant to be racing through the city where we live. Making the rest of us feel like the sedentary, cake-bothering disgraces that we are. But the Edinburgh Marathon, which had been run every year since 2003, was cancelled because of the @?!%ing virus. (Yes, that @?!%ing virus.)
For far too many families, Covid has taken a terrible and tragic toll. We count ourselves very fortunate indeed to have been left, touch wood, largely unscathed. We hope you have been, too. Last year we managed to retain all of our staff and continue to serve our clients; producing ten campaigns for Macdonald Hotels & Resorts alone. We were also finalists for the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce’s Innovation in Business award. And – shucks! – we were outed as being a very nice place to work by becoming an area finalist in the Wellbeing category of the FSB (Federation of Small Businesses) Awards. After all that exertion, we felt like wrapping ourselves in foil blankets. Like oven-ready long-distance runners."
The Alliance Creative years.
Our ninth birthday was on a Sunday. It was the day that a sweaty mass of humanity was meant to be racing through the city where we live. Making the rest of us feel like the sedentary, cake-bothering disgraces that we are. But the Edinburgh Marathon, which had been run every year since 2003, was cancelled because of the @?!%ing virus. (Yes, that @?!%ing virus.)
For far too many families, Covid has taken a terrible and tragic toll. We count ourselves very fortunate indeed to have been left, touch wood, largely unscathed. We hope you have been, too. Last year we managed to retain all of our staff and continue to serve our clients; producing ten campaigns for Macdonald Hotels & Resorts alone. We were also finalists for the Edinburgh Chamber of Commerce’s Innovation in Business award. And – shucks! – we were outed as being a very nice place to work by becoming an area finalist in the Wellbeing category of the FSB (Federation of Small Businesses) Awards. After all that exertion, we felt like wrapping ourselves in foil blankets. Like oven-ready long-distance runners."
"That was the decade that was | Pt 11 of 11
The Alliance Creative years.
Well, here we are. So that’s two landmarks we’ve reached. 1) Our tenth year in business and 2) this: our final post commemorating that. Thank you for not cracking after post number four and taking out a court injunction to prevent us posting a fifth; you’re made of sterner stuff than most. Now that we’ve had a couple of stiff birthday
drinks (with our cornflakes!!!), we’d like to take this opportunity to get in touch with our excessively emotional sides. So our deepest thanks go to the many people who, in their different roles, have helped to make Alliance Creative what it is today: a – hic – temporarily inebriated business with the best employees, freelance talent, collaborators, suppliers, advisors and, above all – burp – clients. And we’d like to thank you if you’ve been a part of our first decade. Hopefully you’ll also be a part of our – hic – shecond."
The Alliance Creative years.
Well, here we are. So that’s two landmarks we’ve reached. 1) Our tenth year in business and 2) this: our final post commemorating that. Thank you for not cracking after post number four and taking out a court injunction to prevent us posting a fifth; you’re made of sterner stuff than most. Now that we’ve had a couple of stiff birthday
drinks (with our cornflakes!!!), we’d like to take this opportunity to get in touch with our excessively emotional sides. So our deepest thanks go to the many people who, in their different roles, have helped to make Alliance Creative what it is today: a – hic – temporarily inebriated business with the best employees, freelance talent, collaborators, suppliers, advisors and, above all – burp – clients. And we’d like to thank you if you’ve been a part of our first decade. Hopefully you’ll also be a part of our – hic – shecond."
