News
Read more about Illumina's history and browse our recent press releases and coverage.
For press enquiries please contact Illumina's PR and Marketing Manager, Beth Spencer:
E: beth.spencer@illumina.co.uk
T: 020 8600 3464
2008
November 7, Andrew Chitty joins Digital Britain Steering Board
Illumina Digital is pleased to announce that Andrew Chitty has been invited to join the Steering Board appointed to guide the work of "The Digital Britain Report". The Steering Board will support Stephen Carter, the Minister for Communications, Technology and Broadcasting as the report seeks to create a framework to maximise the benefits, both socially and economically, for a fully digital economy. Andrew is the 'production/new media' expert on the board.
October 29, Focus on Film is nominated for a BAFTA
Focus on Film, the National Archives online learning resource, has been nominated for a BAFTA Children's Award for Learning (Secondary). The awards are to be held on Sunday 30th November. Illumina Digital created Focus on Film Editor's Room for The National Archives using Illumina's eSeq application.
September 18, Illumina Digital joins the ALL3MEDIA group
Illumina Digital is delighted to announce this morning that it has joined the ALL3MEDIA group. Steve Morrison, Chief Executive of ALL3MEDIA, says of the announcement, "Illumina Digital is the leader of the pack in the world of multiplatform content production. Andrew and his team have a very impressive track record of innovation, and they are constantly setting new benchmarks for interactive content as the trend for audience engagement online continues to intensify. We welcome Illumina Digital's talented creators into ALL3MEDIA's family of companies". ALL3MEDIA is an International Group of film and TV production and distribution companies with its headquarters in London.
October 2, V Good joins Illumina Digital
Illumina Digital is delighted to announce the acquisition of V Good, best known for the hit TV programme Tony Blair Rock Star. V Good will continue to create compelling, 'headline-grabbing' TV shows across drama, entertainment and factual entertainment genres but will also create content for audiences across multiple platforms. Andrew Chitty, MD of Illumina comments; "At a time when exciting multiplatform entertainment and drama projects are emerging into the market, Illumina Digital sees this acquisition as a key driver in the development of the business."
August 26, Illumina Digital in Televisual Top 100 list
Illumina Digital has entered Televisual magazine's Top 100 independent production companies at number 43. Andrew Chitty, Managing Director of Illumina is quoted as saying that he has seen "a real sea change" in the way that broadcasters think about multiplatform content in the last twelve months, "It has gone from nice-to-have to absolutely essential." "Televisual states that, "This is good news for Illumina Digital"
August 20, Illumina Digital is ten years old
Illumina Digital is ten years old this year and we celebrated with a party at the National Theatre. The last ten years has seen a revolution in the way television is watched, with audiences spending more and more time on the web and mobile phones. This change has been to Illumina's advantage. Established in 1998 as a convergent media company, Illumina Digital has focussed on developing concepts, content and experiences across the whole range of digital distribution platforms. In the past ten years, we have worked with clients producing award-winning interactive experiences for a wide range of audiences.
For photos of the fun we had at our 10 Year party please go to: Illumina Digital 10 year party pics
August 17, Quizmania Beta goes live
In 2005, a lovable bunch of presenters, production crew and stuffed animals became familiar friends to quizzers and insomniacs across the UK (just type Quizmania into Youtube and you'll see what we mean). Such was its success that local versions were produced in Australia, Poland, Columbia, France and Portugal. And now it's back but this time online which means you can now play interactive quizzes, chat straight to the studio, discuss the quiz with the audience and play with and against friends.
This Illumina Digital production is with Fremantle Media's Quizmania team and we hope to further exploit this successful online broadcast platform.
August 9, New 'Who Do You Think You Are?' website goes live
WDYTYA, produced by Wall to Wall, is one of BBC1's most popular prime time brands. The new website, designed and built by Illumina Digital, to accompany the latest series (featuring amongst others Boris Johnston and Jerry Springer) expands as the series is broadcast on television, revealing the stories, as well as the behind the scenes research, uncovering the celebrities' histories.
July 29, Focus on Film wins FOCAL International award
Focus on Film, The National Archives' editing tool produced by Illumina Digital, won a FOCAL International Award for Best Use of Footage on Non-Televisual Platforms, beating stiff competition from Film Australia's education web portal and the BFI's Mediatheque Centre. Primarily for teachers and students but available to the general public too, Focus on Film allows visitors to browse through and edit together video clips, audio clips and still images taken from The National Archives' fantastic collection. Using our unique eSeq application, Illumina developed features for The National Archives including a rostrum tool so users can pan across still images and bring them to life and a flexible caption feature so they can manipulate titles and captions in the same way. Details of the FOCAL Awards can be found here:
June 18, Illumina Digital wins a Royal Television Society Award
Cliffhanger Studios, a modern foreign language resource produced by Illumina Digital, won a prestigious Royal Television Society Educational Award on Monday night. "Flexible and innovatively packaged..." said the judges as they awarded Illumina Digital in the ceremony's 'Innovation' category. "The winner is a modern language resource which enables teachers to create a personalised approach by suggesting new activities and tailoring the content for their learners", stated the RTS judges as they praised the resource's originality. The 'Innovation' category rewards a project that has made 'a significant educationally innovative use of television or televisual material'.
May 15, Touch Productions and Illumina Digital announce joint venture - TouchIllumina
With five joint projects in development, the new company called TouchIllumina has already secured its first commission from the BBC. Led by Andrew Chitty and Malcolm Brinkworth, the new company will draw on both companies award-winning creative teams to create multi-platform projects across TV, the web and mobile platforms. Based in Bath TouchIllumina will develop projects for both UK and international broadcasters reflecting the widening reach of both companies' business. Details of TouchIllumina's first commissions to follow shortly.
April 2, Illumina launch mass-participation science experiment
During this year's Science Week, Illumina Digital produced a ground-breaking mass-participation online psychology experiment for school children. Led by Teachers TV, the 'Ready to Learn' project provides a huge amount of data about children's behaviour before school and its effect on their mental alertness during school. Completed by 80,000 children over the week, the experiment logged whether the children get a lift to school or walk, eat cereal for breakfast, go to bed early and their physical activity during school. The participants were then all tested on their working memory, cognitive inhibition and planning respectively. Illumina Digital produced the editorial, design and development for 'Ready to Learn' using key research and rigorous user-testing.
January 18, Prize winning film wins Northern Art Prize
Illumina Digital would like to congratulate Karen Guthrie and Nina Pope on winning the first Northern Art Prize last night. Their installation included the acclaimed documentary film, co-produced by Illumina Digital: Bata-ville. Bata-ville follows passengers on an English coach trip to the origins of the Bata shoe empire - the Moravian town of Zlin. Against the backdrop of economic regeneration in their communities, former employees of two, now closed, UK Bata factories are led by Pope and Guthrie on a unique journey through Bata's legacy and across a changing Europe. Illumina Digital worked with Pope and Guthrie co-producing and delivering the final documentary film.
January 11, Focus on Film wins at BETT 2008
The National Archives' online editing tool "Focus on Film" won a prestigious BETT award on Wednesday evening (9th January) for Best Secondary Digital Content (Other Curriculum Areas). The Editor's Room on "Focus on Film", created by Illumina Digital, allows users to browse through and edit video clips, audio clips and still images taken from the national archives collection. Visitors can choose clips of historical events such as Battle of the Somme, The Korean War and The Prague Spring. The BETT awards encourage and recognise outstanding education sector resources and learning solutions. Judges were impressed with the way "Focus on Film" helps teachers and pupils understand the process of filmmaking.
2007
November 26, Random House launch ecommerce website
Illumina Digital worked with Random House to raise the bar for publishing houses online. As well as finding and purchasing books online, visitors to the website can access a wealth of rich media content gaining exclusive insight into Random House publications and associated authors. Whether it's hearing Stephen Hawkin read an excerpt from "A Brief History of Time", watching Jaqueline Wilson describe the idea behind "Girls in Tears" or listening to Betty Boothroyd share her story about what first drew her to politics, there is something to tempt the interests of all readers, whatever age.
November 9, Illumina are delighted to announce the appointment of Carlton Reeve as an Executive Producer
Carlton Reeve joins Illumina Digital from the BBC. A Commissioner for the BBC's ground-breaking £150m education service BBC jam, Carlton was responsible for secondary level Maths, Science, Religious Education and Design & Technology. Before jam Carlton was the Editor of BBC Worldwide Interactive Learning (WIL), the BBC's commercial e-learning department. In this role Carlton led projects with Becta, British Council, BSA, DfES, DfID, NCSL and OU producing resources for children, undergraduates, adult basic skills and Continuing Professional Development.
October 24, Get Cooking received a special mention at the UK Association of Online Publishers
Get Cooking received a special mention at the UK Association of Online Publishers Awards this month which took place on October 3rd at the London Hilton, Park Lane. Acknowledged for its commitment to good design and usability, the judges remarked on Illumina's "excellent use of technology" and said they were looking forward to future developments. Now in their sixth year, the AOP Online Publishing Awards are designed to celebrate and reward excellence in all aspects of digital publishing and are established as a showcase of the most innovative and high-quality online content in the UK.
October 23, Illumina Digital has won a Golden Ladle at Le Cordon Bleu Food Awards
Get Cooking has won a Golden Ladle at Le Cordon Bleu Food Awards for the Best Cooking Website in the World. A prestigious award with A-list company, Nigella won best TV show while Rick Stein received a special Gold Ladle Award for outstanding achievements. The "foodie" equivalent of the Oscars, Le Cordon Bleu World Food Media Awards acknowledges the work of food and drink professionals, writers, educators, TV presenters and producers, and recognises excellence across publishing platforms.
October 17, Illumina Digital has been nominated for three BIMA 2007 awards
Illumina Digital has been nominated for three BIMA 2007 awards. My Mini Movies as part of the Summer of British Film season is on the shortlist for Best Community website or Campaign, Breaking the News II is in the Education and Learning category and Get Cooking is up for the Best Website Award. The BIMAs celebrate creative excellence and best practice in interactive design.
October 16, Empire's Children has been nominated for an RTS Innovation Award
Great news for the project, and the team that worked so hard to produce this already award winning website! A real honour, the RTS Innovation category recognises outstanding achievements in the development of new technologies in video production, manipulation and distribution, and outstanding creativity in the enhancement of content.
September 20, Empire's Children won best Community website at the Y Design Awards 2007
Congratulations Illumina Digital! Empire's Children won Best Community Website at the Y Design Awards 2007. Hosted at the Royal Festival Hall in London on Tuesday 18th September, Empire's Children was up against tough competition from some of the UK's leading design agencies. The awards celebrate creativity and originality in design and technology.
September 10, Get Cooking nominated for the Best Food and/or Drink Website in the world
Nominated for the Best Food and/or Drink Website in the world by the World Food Media Awards, Get Cooking is so HOT right now. A popular website with audiences ranking well in terms of time spent per visit, since it launched in April 2007 users have been spending more and more time on the Get Cooking website, watching our celebrity chefs and getting inspired by food. Yummy stuff!
September 10, Get Cooking nominated for two Online Publishing Awards
Get Cooking has been nominated for two Online Publishing Awards (AOP), 'Design and Usability' and 'Best Video.' Since launching in April 2007 'Get Cooking' has helped boost traffic to the BBC Food site and usage is continuing to rise. Now that's what I call good news.
July 16, Illumina launch Focus on Film
Primarily for teachers and students and available to the general public, this rich media tool enables online visitors to search, view and play around with The National Archives' audio visual content. Including clips from the history of film users can search and engage with otherwise unseen footage and edit their own video sequences online.
June 22, Empire's Children goes Live
A user driven video rich website to accompany the Channel 4 show, Empires Children online offers specialist guides and hints and tips for investigating your family Empire history. With information on the key historical events surrounding Empire countries and 16 celebrity stories about their personal connections, Empires Children is seeded with broadcast quality content that extends the television experience online - allowing viewers to engage further. As well as following their own countries and stories of interest, users can contribute their own Empire chronicles for others to view and comment on.
June 1, BBC Summer of British Film goes Live
A celebration of British film - British Film Forever offers the General British Public the chance to explore, create and share their passion for filmmaking. Inspired by BBC 2's British film season British Film Forever invites budding amateur filmmakers and actors to re-make scenes from their favourite British films and upload them online. A place for people with a passion to share their filmic efforts with an audience of film lovers, British Film Forever is a fantastic platform for new British talent! Did we find the next Ridley Scott or Ken Loach?
May 31, Get Cooking shortlisted for RTS Award
Already shortlisted for a Broadcast Digital Channel Award and BAFTA TV Craft Award, Get Cooking produced by Illumina Digital for the BBC has just been nominated for a Royal Television Society RTS Education award too!
Featuring a team of six leading TV chefs and 20 hours of interactive cookery programming, Get Cooking is a personalized cooking experience for the modern home kitchen. Whether it's Mexican Style Bean Soup with Sophie Grigson, Red Cooked Pork Belly with Mike Robinson or Baked Lime Cheesecake with Lesley Waters - Get Cooking includes culinary delights to tempt all palettes.
April 20, Further awards for Stagework
Stagework, winner of 2 BAFTAs and a UN World Summit Award, has been voted the best education site and best overall website by 800 delegates at the Museums and Web Conference in San Francisco last week.
April 12, Webby Honour for My Science Fiction Life
My Science Fiction Life, developed by Illumina Digital in conjunction with BBC Wales, has been selected as an Official Honouree for the Television category at the 11th Annual Webby Awards. This distinction is awarded to work that scores in the top 15% of all work entered for the Webby awards...
March 26, Two BAFTA nominations for Illumina Digital
Illumina Digital has received two of the four nominations in the New Media Developer category of the BAFTA TV Craft Awards. The nominations are for the Breaking the News project for ITN/Channel 4 and Get Cooking for the BBC.
March 14, Centre of the Cell goes Live
Last week Queen Mary's School of Medicine and Dentistry launched Centre of the Cell, a dynamic online resource for information, quizzes and interactive games about cells and their role in medical research. Content for the site has been provided by more than 60 leading scientists and doctors at Queen Mary, University of London and its Medical School. The site was designed and built by Illumina Digital and will be followed in the new year by the Centre of the Cell interactive science centre.
February 7, La Boheme for English National Opera
This week the English National Opera launches Inside Out a new project designed and built by Illumina Digital to coincide with a new staging of la boheme. The site, which is part of the Sony PlayStation Season, features a behind-the-scenes guide to the life of the opera house and the new production of Puccini's Parisian love story together with an interactive singing lesson featuring actor and playwright Kwame Kwei-Armah.