the lost agency blog

The Changing Face of Cinema and TV

In the coming months, there will be some major changes to how we view film and TV with a massive shift in the production side, in conjunction with our partners at Nepal Film Production, we have been looking at the different elements we see changing and how you can logically, make the most of your budget and maximize the scope of your work using lower-cost locations and setups.

Naturally, as our partner, we looked closely at Nepal as a potential avenue for us to shoot when we are able to travel again. *Even allowing for travel, accommodation, visa’s, etc it is still a much more cost-effective prospect for us to work abroad than in our home base of the UK as we will get tax breaks and with the Lost team being more thriller/horror based in our plans we can use HOD TV distribution (Nepal also has this option available), we can tackle smaller budget projects with an exotic edge that really does appeal to our team aesthetically.

Taking logical steps toward the future here are the base reasons we work with the team and will be shooting on location in Nepal:

  • Beautiful locations.

  • Lower overall costs.

  • A 24-hour service.

  • The team can arrange any permits required.

The potential of Nepal is astronomical and more details can be found via their own blog by clicking here.

Choosing our Editorial Path

Editorial is often used as a means to test new styles, try new techniques and work with new people but if you are smart it can also be a way to create new business and a smart proactive tool that will draw attention to your business and bring new clients to the table. Which for us is the primary reason we are being selective about the magazines we are choosing and calculating our approach carefully and strategically to ensure we get the maximum from the work. When we look at a magazine we have certain criteria that we are looking for and markers that will put them higher on our list:

  • Branded tears.

  • Covers.

  • Minimal costume requirements.

  • Minimal image requirements.

  • Cost of submission.

Starting with these factors we then spend time pouring over their content and style as part of phase two, of our plans, we prefer simplistic and clean looks with priority going to men’s magazines at a ratio of two shoots for our male models to one for our females. *The reasoning for this is simple, we have core team members who are actors and models and they are our priority in marketing as this will have a knock-on effect in the spread of our work over time with social media advertising. Our preference is for digital magazine first but we will (for certain clients) be working toward print at a later stage. The reason we prefer online is fairly straightforward: reach. A print magazine can have an overall reach of 20,000 in terms of people buying the magazine whereas digital can move into the millions of views between social feeds and website stats, which for us makes it a more profitable and farreaching prospect.

At this point we have it broken down to a total of 2 magazines that are being marked as priority for us and will be used to promote the business overall building to what will be a series of shoots with our remote team headed up by creative director JamesC.

Choosing our editorial path is in truth is 1 part art and 2 parts commercial with our team plotting out how we can maximize the potential of the work undertaken.

Using Editorials and Tears To Market The Lost Concept

Creative frustration is starting to kick in for many of us in the arts and while we are all on hold it is a good time to plan for the future and marketing your business once the restrictions are lifted and we can submit fresh work to the various online and print publications out there. For us, we do have several concepts that are part of a larger-scale and ultimately long-term project around The Lost concept.

Our goals are split into two areas:

  1. Photo Stories and editorials.

  2. Single image and portrait.

There are magazines that we are looking at with very specific designs and concepts, thankfully we have talked to a few of them and they have opened up the single image option (tears and covers) that will be integral to our marketing over the coming months along with our partners.

For us its the single image option that is the biggest challenge as we want that image as a standalone to tell a story or at least inspire the imagination which is the intellectual challenge part that we are eager to get into, none more so that our creative director JamesC who has been instrumental in much of the marketing planning underway and has offered insight based on his experience of the industry both good and bad.

Our style of work is going to change dramatically and we will have a more refined and focused look that is a different creative stream than what we would do for our private sector and commercial clients. Conceptually The Lost Concept is a mixture of styles and will strangely, benefit from the current lockdown as it has forced us to reassess how we look at images, models and who we will book for shoots especially for our in house projects.

We fully intend to keep the team small on shoots and make the maximum use of the locations around our current base with an emphasis on simplicity of look touching on the more creative with darker touches brought into play.

From a marketing stance, we are enjoying the plans being put into place and our budget is going to reflect this across our 3 main sites of JameC mua, Lost Project, and of course Lost Creatives.

Marketing and the Lost Concept

While we have been a little quiet over the last few days it has not stopped the work thanks in part to Facebook and Whatsapp we were able to continue meetings and even showcase some of our past work in line with our creative director and founder JamesC. The crux of much of this has been discussing marketing strategies. Many people are unaware of the pages and sites involved in our marketing just for the Lost Concept and our core team and we are now in a place where we feel that the sites and pages (in most cases) are sufficiently “liked” enough that we are collating all the backlog of work into a folio of work and with certain magazines offering open submissions of single images (we are going for exclusive but this is not a requirement for many digital magazines) and once the lockdowns are sufficiently lifted we do have plans to do a full marketing campaign with more work built around the Lost Boys and Lost Girls concept as outlined in the Lost Project blog.

Marketing is something we are really keen on and we do work with our partners in Nepal (the Nepal Film Production team), on campaigns and this will be revised again at the end of this month in line with changes to the market as it stands.

One of the main reasons we are looking at this now is we have time, the blogs are keeping us busy along with various other elements but like many in the creative fields, we really are keen to get back to our real work. The focus of our upcoming campaigns will start with the two lost sites and then the actual artists who are working on the creative side such as actor Raj Srivastava and of course JamesC.

TV Production and Development

As you can well imagine, we are really keen to get back on set and start working properly again, much the same as our partners in Nepal. The Lost Creatives team is working quietly on marketing, planning and with their usual dark minds in motion, we started looking at the horror/thriller script options we have open to us with a view to the future. Taking everything into consideration we are going to be focused on TV projects and have 2 already earmarked with a 3rd being discussed and developed. We want to have a set of projects that can be set up as long term with options for multiple series follow ons and continued creative development.

In the short term, we have been watching the indie magazine world and have decided on a total of 4 photoshoots planned as part of a wider project to be done as soon as we can. With 2 male and 2 female concepts in place and more being discussed collectively by the remote team. *Naturally, we are following current guidelines and our meetings are done over the phone or via Whatsapp/FB messenger to ease the strain on those who are not in the country or cannot risk attending meetings.

Our Creative Director JamesC, is happy to hold for the moment and has agreed that he will begin stock checking so we can order in new materials that are needed for the work planned, blush is going to be a big part of our upcoming beauty shoots.

Stay tuned for further updates and news from The Lost Creative Team.

Nepal Film Production and The Future of Cinema

In a rapidly changing cinematic and TV landscape Nepal Film Productions team is working on new developments in the world market to help augment and support film and TV creators at this time and will continue to do so. Budgets and other constraints are going to be first and foremost in peoples mind and the Nepal team are working around this to ensure that production companies get the best service at the most competitive price without compromising on the quality of the work.

Nepal is a historically beautiful country at the heart of Asia with cultural heritage to be rivaled and documented, however, it is the cinematic potential that is truly appealing and offers filmmakers and TV companies a host of new avenues and potential that is out of this world. With some of the most iconic locations on the planet such as Kathmandu city and of course the Hymilain mountain range, it can and does tailor itself to the needs of a wide range of film projects without losing any sense of its own identity and it is this that the team from Nepal Film Production are there to support, offering a bridge between worlds.

From a purely financial sense, Nepal as a film hub offers a cost-effective location and of course a talent pool of highly skilled actors, models, camera crew and more that can be hired locally reducing the overall need to bring staff in to shoot, a winner when working to a smaller budget or looking to split between another continent and still having the beauty of a natural location in your film/TV project. Multicultural and still traditional there is something special about Nepal as a location that cannot be found elsewhere to a point where crews from Hollywood to Bollywood understand that this is the place to be for stunning visuals and the best creative teams.

Something that is exclusive to the Nepal Film Production company is the deal with HOD TV (Horror and Thriller exclusive online distribution) that offers yet more reason to work with them. *More details on this option can be discussed with the team and it does mean that Nepal has the more to offer than just surface looks, the country is set to become the home of horror and thriller in South Asia.

Overall, Nepal as a location has so much to offer film/TV and Nepal Film Production understands this and offers a one-stop-shop service.

To learn more about the region or to talk to the team about filming see:

Nepal Film Production Website.

Montarem Mens Grooming

In the world of male grooming, the landscape has changed dramatically with more and more people taking the care of their appearance, working in environments that require HD video calling and of course the current landscape of news presenting and on-camera appearances which is why brands like Montarem are important and offer a solution for the modern man.

The world has and still is in a state of fluctuation and more and more people are working from home, video calling and the media industry is working in the background to find new scripts and concepts for the day we can all start filming again and it will see a rise in the need for products tailored to men and offering options that will work across mediums from a laptop call to the screens of our TV’s. This is where Montarem will come into play offering a good option for solo workers, actors and more to create a more polished look when required.

While Montarem was started as a personal solution and will continue in this way, it is easy to see where the crossover to other areas of life are, simplifying the day to day and giving confidence back to the general populous, they have opened the door to the commercial, fashion and of course media world with their easy to use products that are solution-based.

“TV presenters take note if a makeup artist is unavailable for your show/newscast then Montarem will be able to help with their BB cream and concealer offering a way to ensure you are camera ready.” JamesC professional makeup artist.

To learn more about the range see:

Montarem Website (sign up for the newsletter).

Montarem Facebook.

Montarem Instagram.

Luminar Photo Editing Software

Something that we have talked about frequently and have in hand at the moment is our editorial work since much of this is done in house, we wanted a simple, easy to use photo editing software that would make the flow of work easier for the team and we found Luminar. Designed to work independently or as a plugin with other photo editing software, the Luminar Photo Editing Software is a dream for someone like our creative director JamesC, who likes the control aspect of being able to work with a small team which in the long term may be a good thing.

Naturally, at the moment we are holding back on further work (we do have some work in the can for publication later), the time we have has been set into doing other elements of business and the process of editing images, in some cases reedits has allowed us a little flexibility and changed the dynamic of what we offer. Which is positive all around for the creative process. Based on artificial intelligence the Luminar Software is designed to smooth the flow of work and reduce time spent on editing and will change the game for many people not just for the ease of use but the cost factor. With a series of deals available at this time and the added bonus of a donation from each sale going to Corona Virus research, the Luminar packages are excellent value and have the bonus of lifetime ownership.

To learn more or to purchase the software see:

Luminar Website.

*Affiliate Link Included in this article/blog.

Bahoma Hand Sanatizer A Professional View

Many professionals know that a good hand sanitizer can make a difference when working with the public. The team at Bahoma understands this and in the current climate, in particular, have come to the table with their range taking priority at this time. It is always a good idea to carry sanitizer when working and if you are planning to go back to the salon, beauty therapy or makeup work in particular where you will be working with the public and your hands its a good idea to have this available. *The Lavender Viel is one to be noted as lavender is often used for its calming properties, in a situation where you are working closely with patients/clients you may want to consider this when purchasing for your staff or own use.

As we move forward in the profession the welfare of our clients Must be front and center of our thinking and Bahoma is offering not just the peace of mind of a hand sanitizer but a touch of perfume to add aromatically to the process.

For those who will be returning to freelance work in the bridal/media/fashion sector, hand sanitizer should be an immediate item in your kit when packing for a job even more so now and from a purely aesthetic stance, Bahoma will look good, smell good and perform giving your clientele extra peace of mind as you work.

With three sizes available:

  • 500ml (£19-99)

  • 250ml (£12-99)

  • 75ml (£4-99)

And a total of 4 scents; lavender veil, ocean spa, original, and pomelo grapefruit there is something to suit your tastes and give you a little sense of relief in troubling times.

To learn more of for quick purchases see:

Bahoma Website.

Bahoma Amazon.

Delilah Cosmetics a Professional Overview

We will be keeping this particular blog shorter than normal but we do want to talk about the Delilah range from a professional stance. Looking at the brand’s heritage and of course the overall professional aspect of the line as a pro makeup artist with ties to the bridal/salon industry in our past and potentially our future. Founded and defining themselves as a much needed British brand in the beauty market it is really easy to see the direction that the brand is taking, the founders all have the kind of credentials that would with just a cursory glance let you see that they are serious about the business and passionate about the cosmetics (quote from The Lost Stories):

“With the passion of a makeup artist (Rupert Kingston), the savvy of a beauty buyer (Hannah Nicholson) and the artistic eye of a photographer (Juliet White), the Delilah brand has some the best and brightest across the industry coming together to create a line that optimizes British Beauty and it is easily seen when you look to the details and consistency of the imaging that is both classic and simple showcasing the beauty and the products without drama.”

In the world of spa’s, salons and bridal artists, retail can be a major plus to your work and income and the Delilah team have taken that into account and offer a retail option (click here for details). A sensible approach to the retail side and allowing artists and salons to offer a range that is designed by some of the top creators in the business, which is immediately visible in the imaging, creative direction and above all the beauty of the makeup itself.

The cosmetics themselves are of high quality and speak to luxury, which when you are working from a salon perspective is a major plus and allows you to incentivize your staff, create a new customer base and if you are a bridal salon give your customers a cohesive experience and heritage brand from the UK that is designed and built to suit a more sedate beauty for the busy woman. *An interesting subpoint is they do have a youtube channel that offers up tricks and techniques based around the line.

A definite range on our watch list for potential future business endeavors, Delilah Cosmetics is a UK brand worthy of note from both a pro and a consumer stance. To learn more about the company and their range see:

Delilah Cosmetics Website.

Delilah Cosmetics Instagram.

Delilah Cosmetics Facebook.

Delilah Cosmetics Twitter.

Delilah Cosmetics Youtube.

*Images courtesy of Delilah Cosmetics website and Facebook.

Commercial Shoots and Editorial Goals

We are really excited about the upcoming photo project we are creating and have been carefully selecting clients to work with to augment this and take it in a more commercial direction, with a deal being worked alongside a Scottish clothing designer and a fashion media house in London that will see The Lost Creatives and The Lost Project, taking massive strides toward the creation of our goal of multimedia work.

Structuring the planned work round behind the scenes capturing the collective work of the Lost Creatives and the brands we will be working with to give an increased sense of cohesion and showcase not just the in house talent but also the brands and creatives we meet on our journey.

Within the next few months, we will be adding to our South Asian Stable of clients and collaborators with a new casting service that will be based out of Mumbai, one of our creative director’s favorite places to work incidentally. We will be continuing to work with the team at Nepal Film Production and pushing boundaries with them in what is set to be a hugely important aspect of the business we do. More on this soon.

Our business is naturally evolving and we are starting to see more and more interest from companies and we plan to offer packages for brand placement within the various behind the scenes for editorial/advertorial shoots, our TV series plans (we have 2 fantastic scripts in place) and on a smaller scale 3 short films we are currently planning for the festival circuit combining our in-house artists and actors with talent from other fields.

If any brands are interested in knowing more then please drop us an email to discuss.

JamesC Makeup artist and Creative Director

It has been just over a year since JamesC took down his website and took a break from the world of media and fashion, focusing his energies on the blogs and building up The Lost Concept (for which the team is extremely grateful) but we all decided that it was long overdue that he came back. With new commercial projects and plans in motion, we needed our creative director standing tall and being showcased.

We have been planning this for several months and carefully selected from his previous work for the new site, showcasing only the pieces we felt were the best illustration of his work creatively and offering a starting point to what will be a resurgence in the commercial aspect of his and our business.

The team is really excited about the prospects of this and with our Lost Photo and Video project being planned strategically (for further details or collaborations please email the team) with a series of editorial shoots, cover images and of course short films to start the ball rolling, it is gratifying to see his work back online and moving toward a goal again.

JamesC has been instrumental in all aspects of the Lost Project and Lost Creatives, making the calls and arranging the meetings so it’s truly a pleasure for us to be able to showcase the work.

Naturally, we will be taking steps toward an increased marketing strategy that will fit all aspects of the work of the Lost Concept and the Lost Team with JamesC leading the charge toward new and exciting areas.

To learn more about JamesC and his work see:

JamesC Website.

JamesC Instagram.

JamesC Facebook.

JamesC Linkedin.

Grand Finale Powders by Lord and Berry

Fresh from fashion week the team at Lord and Berry have been testing the Gran Finale loose powders are designed to be a multipurpose powder that will complete your look and offer a professional finish with minimal fuss.

A savvy powder, Gran Finale comes in three shades and makes a great minimalist addition to a working kit for people who want to keep the weight of a working kit down and for shows where there will be multiple skin tones and a restricted amount of space to lay out your makeup kit.

  • TRANSLUCENT: it is a white-toned powder meant for just about every skin tone because it turns invisible when applied to the skin.

  • BANANA: it is a yellow-toned powder which works its magic to offset any redness, illuminate the skin, neutralizes dark under-eye circles and set makeup – and the best part is that it works on any skin tone.

  • JUST PEACH: it is a peach-toned powder designed to give brightness to a dull complexion, to neutralize blue tones and set makeup. It works on any skin tone.

A skin blurring powder which minimizes pores is a soft-focus finish and is universally suitable to work across mediums: film/TV, print, live event and special occasion thanks to the professionally driven team who test the products and produce makeup that suits not just the consumer but the professional needs of artists. *A pro discount is available click here for details.

To learn more about Lord and Berry and their range see:

Lord and Berry UK Website.

Lord and Berry UK Instagram.

Lord and Berry UK Twitter.

Lord and Berry UK Facebook.

Expanding our Horizons With The Lost Agency

There is a number of different ways to look at the word agency which is partly why we are using it. It can be referenced to a management service or the idea of self-agency which in psychological terms is taking control of your own life, both are apt in the case of the lost agency. We wanted to have some degree of management and self-rule over our work which is overall what the lost concept is and why we are now bringing in The Lost Agency as part of our business future.

We often talk about the changes that have become part and parcel of the industry (both good and bad) and how commercial makeup, in particular, has become something of a “lost art,” instead the salon/party style is taking over and newer artists are focusing on the more personal side of the industry leaving people who want to work on the more film and TV level or commercial media side lost in the mix which we found frustrating as did some of our actors.

Focusing on the in-house staff we will be managing a small number of people and business elements as part of the ongoing work of The Lost Concept building on the creative, artistic and media work we have already done taking things forward and bringing The Lost Vision to new levels.

At the forefront of this will be our creative director JamesC who will be heading up more of the media elements and being central to the staff requirements for upcoming work taking a stronger more managerial stance and running The Lost Agency whilst simultaneously developing editorials and project work such as TV shows and photographic work for the sites portfolio and marketing needs.

What this means for the future of The Lost Creatives is we will be posting on the blog requirements for crew and looking at offering training positions on our work and tackling larger-scale projects. One of which we are close to finalizing at the moment with some fantastic brands/designers supporting the concept giving us a chance to showcase the creative work of our team.

Later in the year and into 2021, we will also be looking to put forward bids to take a team to London for off-schedule events during fashion week:

“Our plans and any work within the confines of The Lost Agency and affiliated sites/companies will be subject to agreed terms and a code of conduct. “

Stay tuned for news and updates on The Lost Agency and more in our blog.