Nike announce partnerships with London Youth Games and Hackney Fitness Festival, these 3 young creatives had a chance to shadow on the campaign shoot.

Nike announce partnerships with London Youth Games and Hackney Fitness Festival, these 3 young creatives had a chance to shadow on the campaign shoot.

In London, Nike is demonstrating its commitment to getting young people moving through a range of long-term partnerships. Today it was announced that the brand would be teaming up with the London Youth Games and Virgin Sport to fuel more young people to get into sport. They have also partnered with smaller groups such as Football Beyond Borders, Croydon-based Gloves not Gunz and London’s biggest girls-only basketball club, Love Basketball.

To launch, Nike created a shoot which celebrated more than 500 of London’s elite athletes, community partners and young people at the historic Crystal Palace National Sports Centre, home of the London Youth Games Finals weekend, to champion the people that are already inspiring and enabling the next generation of young people across the city.

Trying to gain experience in the creative industry can be such a daunting process. To make this process easier, last week we teamed up with Nike to offer a one day work experience to young people, on this shoot. 3 young creative Londoners were selected and offered the opportunity to gain behind the scenes experience of a professional shoot setting, shadowing the shoot crew on the day, and here is an inside look to what went down on the day.

Jemima Munganga shadowing photographer Tom Sloan 

How has it been assisting on such a great campaign?

Working for GUAP magazine and the NIKE company has always been an aspiration of mine. I had the opportunity to shadow the photographer and the creative team on set. My task included a lot of observing. I was able to perceive how a big shoot is orchestrated and recognise various working relationships within the creative industry.

Throughout my time on the set, I gained insight on different creative roles and workflows. It was inspiring to be around other visual practitioners and members from the organisation who have worked together to create such a great campaign. Assisting the campaign has inspired me as a visual artist, I picked up new skills and learned how to work in a fast- paced environment. I had the opportunity to be around various athletes and names from the entertainment industry, who were also apart of the campaign. It was inspiring to see multiple creatives and individuals come together to produce great content.

 

What are 3 things you have learnt shadowing?

I learned a lot about the dynamics of the creative industry. Also, about the Nike organisation and their team. It was interesting to see how the company orchestrates the launches and shoots.

While shadowing the director and photographer, I learnt about the use of equipment and also how to manoeuvre as a director and photographer on set; it was very fast- paced!

What do you think this experience will do for you in the future?

I believe that this experience will open doors for me as a photographer in the future. I learned a lot about myself and the creative industry through this experience. It was a great opportunity to make contacts with GUAP magazine and NIKE. I believe that this experience has inspired me to push myself more and it has motivated me to create more visual content. This experience has definitely allowed me to gain an insight of where I hope to be in the future.

Gina Corrieri shadowing stylist Jenny Kennedy

How has it been assisting on such a great campaign?

It was an amazing experience – seeing how the whole production, from behind the scenes to on-set, involved so many people but the teams seemed to work together really well which felt like it came from a shared motivation to produce something really inspiring.

I feel really grateful to have been able to assist on this campaign as I love how Nike always promotes inclusivity. Meeting some of the young girls involved who had been empowered by sport programs in their communities was really sweet, you could feel there was such a good energy on set from everyone. It was a hectic day, but the styling team were great to work with; they really involved me in the process and were helpful in explaining things to me.

What are three things you have learnt shadowing?

I really noticed how important it was that the styling team made sure the athletes and other people involved in the shoot were comfortable in what they were wearing – even if this meant changing planned looks – so they could feel confident about the shoot.

Also, how any kind of preparation (even small) that you can do before dressing begins helps ease the process. Lastly, meeting and speaking to people was an important thing in this opportunity; I got advice from people on the styling team who came from various fashion backgrounds to get where they are now which was really interesting.

What do you think this experience will do for you in the future?

Not only is it a great experience to add to my CV, but also, I was able to get a few contacts from the shoot that I will follow up for future opportunities. This is important for me because as a student I’m trying to gain as much experience as possible now, so that after I graduate I can move into the professional world with knowledge behind me. Something like this is a real foot in the door and hopefully I can progress further from having such a positive experience. It’s also taught me skills to take forward into the next styling assistant work I get, and tips for when I’m working on my own projects.

 Louisa Boateng shadowing Make-Up artist Dorita Nissen

How has it been assisting on such a great campaign?

Assisting at this great campaign was absolutely amazing, I enjoyed every minute working alongside Ms Dortia and Ms Topaz; learning new things about makeup. Meeting great athletes and different people from the Nike production team.

What are 3 things you have learnt shadowing?

Firstly, how to work during busy times especially in between shoots.

Secondly, I learnt about how to apply makeup application during sport shoots and which products are best to use on both male and female sports models and athletes;

Lastly, I also learnt how important and beneficial shadowing is in any industry, surrounding yourself with qualified and experienced people who share the same passion; whether it be hair, makeup or photography.

What do you think this experience will do for you in the future?

I personally believe that this experience has given more confidence working in the industry of makeup due the knowledge and practical experience I gained from working with other makeup artists.

Stay tuned on Nike.com/London or more information on Nike’s youth sport partnerships.