Matthew Baxter brand communications

Matthew Baxter
I have been making complex information and important messages quick and simple to understand and
use for nearly 30 years, on television, in the digital environment and in print. I focus on making what I do
appropriate, intuitive, fit for purpose and a pleasure to use and look at, and I create working
environments in which my team can do the same.
I am a creative, commercial, client-facing, team-leader with a lot of experience, energy
and commitment.
My background is long-term digital, but media-neutral in outlook and training, and I am always
looking to do exciting work with good people.
summary
matthewnbaxter@gmail.com m 07785 460247 t 01932 843078 proﬁle http://uk.linkedin.com/pub/matthew-baxter/16/425/574 portfolio http://baxtercreative.carbonmade.com/ blog http://matbax.wordpress.com/

Matthew Baxter
Forensic approach to the brief and understanding of client needs
Conceptual thinking and Creative Direction
Presentation and communication of ideas both in writing and in person
Design for the digital, broadcast and physical environments
Extensive experience of video production, direction and post-production
User Experience and Interaction design
Creative & technical team development & management
Mentoring and development of junior colleagues
Script and copywriting
core competencies

Matthew Baxter experience
December 2012 to present
February 2010 to November 2012
January 2005 to November 2009
January 2003 to November 2004
April 1998 to October 2002
July 1997 to April 1998
1988 to 1997
1983 to 1988
education & training
head of ux & design, Caplin Systems
independent creative consultant
creative director & ux team leader DVA
creative director BDP
creative director Sky News
freelance designer & director
creative and managing director Baxter Hobbins Sides
designer & senior designer, BBC TV
bachelor of arts degree 2.1 in graphic design
BBC general production course
BBC studio direction course

Matthew Baxter
IVCA Clarion commendation
PepsiCo International talent sustainment award
RM Marketing Innovation award
IVCA commendation for video
2 Soho Shorts awards for animation
New York Festivals awards for interactive design and promos
Promax World Class award for virtual reality
RTS News Channel of the Year 2002 & 2003
Promax Gold award for promo campaign
4 CGI awards for computer animation
2 BDA awards for design
Promax Silver and World Awards for promos, titles, stings and design
RTS award for graphic design
Waters Technology award for best web-based development environment 2014
awards & honours

A website for a management consultancy
featuring specially commissioned portrait and
reportage photography
For The Berkeley Partnership
The Berkeley Partnership are not interested in
growing a corporate structure, they care about
the work and their clients.
The presentation of ‘the Berkeley way’ is key to
this website, going as far as ingraining it into the
navigation. There is no corporate voice or
sign-posting, you are guided and informed by
individuals, whilst the philosophy and the
endorsements of are written in the third person,
by an engaged observer.
To show concept visually, I commissioned two
photographic projects: Clean, clear colour
portraiture to accompany the personal voices,
and grittier black and white ‘reportage’ for the
observational pieces.
The content managed site was designed to allow
constant organic development without the need
for technical intervention.
The Berkeley
Partnership

A training video with reference book
introducing customer care to bus drivers
For GoSkills, the sector skills council for
passenger transport
Good communication and the right attitude are
vital in customer service. “The Ride” was
conceived to show, through a drama based on
real experiences, the benefits of getting it right.
Shot over 3 days with a cast of 14, ‘The Ride’ was
post-produced in-house. The script was devised
to work in conjunction with the curriculum
modules for NVQ’s. The message is clearly,
concisely delivered in a way that has relevance to
the intended audience.
The Ride

An interactive guide for employers, staff and
trainers, examining diversity issues within the
workplace and demonstrating the legal,
moral and business case
For GoSkills, the sector skills council for
passenger transport
An IVCA Clarion winner
A group of actors, diverse in ability, ethnicity,
sexuality and faith, play characters in scenes
covering sexuality, gender, disability, age, race
and religion. The menu is a series of ‘red
herrings’; the characters don’t represent the
stereotypical category.
I researched, wrote, cast, designed and directed
the piece. I also commissioned the specially
composed musical score.
Rebecca Harvey, Capability and Capacity
Programme Manager at Government Skills said:
“The DVD challenged my own stereotypes in an
interesting and enjoyable way. The scenarios
made the case for diversity in a sometimes
amusing, but always moving, way. Well done
GoSkills!”
Respect the Difference,
Value the Mix.

An integrated sales campaign featuring
postcards, email, a microsite and competition
For RM Ltd
An RM Marketing Innovation award winner
RM wanted to create a buzz amongst primary
school teaching staff about their interactive
whiteboards and associated technology and
generate traffic to the main website.
Primary school teachers are an audience who
tend not to respond well to hard-sell tactics or
overly technical communications, and yet are
charged with much of the IT acquisition and
maintenance, as well as being expected to
deliver inspiring lessons using interactive whole
class teaching equipment.
We developed a staffroom-full of characters, in
the form of illustrations and dialogue, and the
audience responded well to the simple,
humourous approach.
Easiteach, whole class
teaching

A promotional drama/documentary ﬁlm for
‘Connexions’ youth employment and careers
centres
For CfBT
The ‘Connexions’ centres bring young people
who, for one reason or another, have lost their
way back into employment, training or
education. This short film begins with a drama
showing the personal story of a teenage girl who
falls into and then recovers from a bad situation
with the help of ‘Connexions’, and goes on to
show real case-workers and clients telling their
stories.
The drama, developed from real case-studies
supplied by CfBT was shot on location in London.
We blended shots in post-production to allow
our character to walk through her past telling her
story in the streets she walked in earlier years
when things were going wrong.
The film has been used to raise awareness, and
funding, for CfBT ‘Connexions’ Centres across
the UK, and as an introduction to the work of the
CfBT further afield.
That’s not me

Subaru sponsorship sequences
A set of opening and closing sponsorship
sequence for Sportsline on Sky News
For Subaru Europe and Sky News
A series of domestic scenes in which the
concluding shot shows the family man acting out
his rallying dreams - wearing a rally helmet and
deranged expression.
The sequences were conceived to be shot on
location on 35mm, and were designed to play on
the unconventional image and sporting heritage
of the Subaru brand.
Rally Dreams

Branding, design and development of an
online community for pet owners featuring
forums and ecommerce
For The Blue Cross
My team created branding that keyed on the
relationships between pet and owner, with a
family of icons rather than a single symbol or
image. The branding has a fresh and friendly
feel with clean typography and strong colours.
The complex, content-managed website
features videos, blogs and forums and free
downloads.
Awareness of the Blue Cross is up, and visits to
the All About Pets site are up 40% over the
previous version, and has gained over 2000 new
members in the first month live.
All About Pets

A presentation campaign using familiar ﬁlm
and television styles and dialogue composed
from song lyrics
For MTV/Vh-1
A Gold Promax award winner
I directed, co-wrote and designed these
sequences (we also made ‘Rom-com’ and police
interrogation pieces) principally created to
re-position Vh-1 as more quirky and less of a
stuffy AOR channel - a critisism raised in
research.
Shot on film with minimal sets, I felt we were still
able to achieve the right ‘look’ for a reasonable
price.
Vh-1 Lyrics

A video-led microsite, to encourage PepsiCo
executives to re-locate to Russia
For PepsiCo International
Winner of the PepsiCo International
communications award
This is a major internal communications
campaign to highlight the career opportunities
in emerging markets like Russia.
I felt that the most appropriate way to address
this was to use video as the information carrier,
and PepsiCo’s intranet as the delivery medium.
Shot on location in Moscow, the film showed the
working and social environments for PepsiCo
people. Employees tell their personal stories
regarding the move, the challenges and the
opportunities.
Inspire: Russia

An interactive microsite, featuring an
information matrix and ‘drag and drop’ game
for PepsiCo International
This is a tool for self and supervisor assessment
of manager potential. Although it was important
that the activities were fun to do, there was
always an underlying serious function to this
interactive programme.
We designed, developed and created an
interactive information matrix in ‘flash’ that
allows the user to follow potential career paths
and get information about what they will need to
achieve their goal in each case. It tests
knowledge and understanding at the end of the
process.
The visual theme ‘rising stars’ is complemented
by a sound-based ‘pointer’ system that helps
guide the user.
The piece, originally intended only for use in the
UK, is now in use across PepsiCo internationally.
The Leadership
Model

A international staff intake and initiation
resource, allowing new starters to receive all
appropriate information about their job and
workplace
The front end of the piece is the ‘new-starter
pack’ consisting of generic printed and video
materials, and an interactive application linking
to an intranet based resource.
The back end allows HR departments to compile
totally personalised online information modules
for each new employee, to accompany the pack.
What’s in Store?

A network-based staff retention and
development resource, designed for
individual employees and line-managers
Winner of a PepsiCo International award for
talent sustainment
This online resource was conceived using video,
interactive information matrices and
downloadable presentations and assessments
designed to let individuals and their
line-managers work together to plan rewarding,
sustainable careers.
I was lead creative, and directed the videos for
the resource. The look, style and tempo of the
piece were important to create the right
relationship between the company, the resource
and the user. It needed to be branded without
being too ‘corporate’ and authoritative without
being dull or distant. Most of all, it had to be
engaging for the user.
C & B & me

A sub-brand to promote the unique nature of
sixth form life at this independent Quaker
school
For Leighton Park School
L P 6

Branding for an online ﬁnancial services
product
For Bureau vanDijk
www.factcreditrisk.com
Fact

Online branding and design for a ‘boutique’
department store
For Living in Store
Living in Store

Re-brand for a secondary school acquiring
academy status; a research programme
leading informing a new brand book,
consultancy and environmental, stationary
and marketing design templates
For Rydens Enterprise School
and Sixth Form College
The brand book is a collection of materials
designed to present the ‘personality’ of the
school both positively and accurately. It
provides guidance, templates and artwork for a
crisp and modern look for all direct and indirect
communication.
The new style is designed to emphasise the most
positive aspects of the school, and according to
the Principal and Bursar has already added value,
and is changing attidudes externally and
internally.
R E S

Video exemplar persona for marketing
concept work
For Realise Consulting and Heineken
International
In UX I have used personas as a user proxy and
focus for design work. This fake “selfie” movie
supposedly found by the senior marketeers on
“You Tube” is designed to do the same thing;
helping marketing teams speak in the right voice
and use the correct media for different target
customers.
A Day in the Life

On-screen branding, including idents and
bumpers and interstitials
For BSkyB
As creative head of Sky News, Sky News Active
and Sky News online, I led the team that created,
promoted, developed and defended the Sky
News brand. I was responsible for all promos
and screen-based design work, including the
world’s first interactive television service.
I was also responsible for managing news
creative services; a team of 28 designers and
promo makers, including the post-production
technicians and the live team, operational 24
hours a day.
Sky News

live graphics styling and news wall
For BSkyB
The on-air graphic grid, palette, typopgraphic
styling, transitions and animation have to cope
with the extreme rigours of 24 hour live news as
well as presenting a crisp modern and instantly
recognisable interpretation of the brand values.
This does that. It also acted as a template for our
competitors rebrands.
Sky News

Promos for Sky News’ general election
coverage using motion-capture and
photo-montage techniques
For Sky News
Winner of a ‘Soho Shorts’ award
To move Sky News to a distinct position for its’
election coverage I chose to play up
personalities rather than create yet another
animated metaphor for the democratic process.
Tabloid newspapers had already taken this
direction to create interest and I felt it suited the
lighter, edgier Sky News approach.
Motion capture married with a very stylised
character design style creates a strange and
memorable effect that gave the promos impact,
and is challenging to direct.
Sky News

Matthew Baxter brand communications

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