Jani Guest on Launching Kidspiration

Today marks the launch of Kidspiration TV, a new web series from Independent Films conceived completely in-house.

Working with kids aged 8-12 years old, the channel strives to inspire children to pursue unusual career options by getting them to interview leading industry figures.

Managing director Jani Guest speaks to shots about the project’s inspiration, working with kids but with a brand.

What inspired Independent Films as an advertising production company to create an online web series?

Kidspiration was a congruence of events that came together. The idea itself came out of a conversation I had with Now chairman, John Townshend. We thought it would be great to have a series where kids interviewed the world's leading experts in various fields as a way of inspiring children to engage in the world around them. As a parent, I’ve noticed that the 8-12 year old age bracket is incredibly underserved in terms of the content that exists for them. I restructured the company internally to have our younger staff members become the production team and to lead the creative on this.

Why did Independent Films decide to do this project without a brand’s backing?

We work with amazing directors and producers on a regular basis and I believe we limit ourselves when we work solely with agencies and brands. We have a lot more potential to create our own content and to work within other areas of media. It's good to remind ourselves what skills and talent we have in the company and that can be used beyond just being a content provider. 

What were the main differences that you encountered when approaching the project and how did you have to change your style to suit this new format?

Obviously the crew was a bit smaller than what we’re used to on commercial or content projects but the basics of filmmaking were still there. What was driving this was the conversation between the guest and the kid; it’s the nature of that interaction that we really wanted to capture. Commercials require a very strict mandate about what the deliverables are whereas in this case, it was purely a conversation that was leading the way.

What was the casting process like for the children and professionals?

For the kids, we went to many schools and youth clubs in and around London, where we selected children to participate over a three month period. We picked kids that had a genuine interest in certain topics and wanted to learn something. While for the professionals, my co-executive producing partner Laura Galloway was responsible for connecting the kids with the guests. They were all really keen to get involved because they all believed that there’s not a lot of great content on offer for this generation that can teach them and give them cause for inspiration.

What do you want people to take away from the series? 

I hope it’s both entertaining and engaging, regardless of whether you’re an eight year old or an adult. Children need to be inspired to become something great and there isn’t much talk for kids of that age group to fnd out what they can become.