Invest in Dorset; Creative Digital

The Creative Digital Sector continues to thrive in the Dorset Region, with an impressive range of well-known digital and creative organisations and, a highly skilled talent pool. Dorset provides the perfect location for investors and local businesses to support the world-leading digital sector.

Bournemouth and Poole are the UK’s top areas for high growth digital business (Tech Nation Report 2017) supporting over 12,340 digital jobs worth over £588.4 million to the economy, from the Bournemouth, Christchurch, and Poole area alone.

With a variety of creative businesses from Dorset working with worldwide organisations including Netflix, Amazon Studios, Sky Cinema, Warner Brothers and HBO. There is no doubt that Dorset has an exquisite range of creative businesses, which help the region flourish, continuously contributing to the economic growth.

Some of the many organisations’ helping the creative industry flourish include:

• Silicon South: a major contributor to the regional economy and considered a priority sector, employing 12,000 people in BCP alone. Helping to build pathways for talent to enter the industry and enabling people to interact and network.
• The SMART Place: the programme is run by BCP Council and is recognised as a national exemplar, focusing on delivering value for places, businesses, and investors.
• 5G Rural Dorset: an award winning, ground-breaking project aimed at understanding how next generation connectivity can help people lead safer and more prosperous lives in rural communities.
• Digital Dorset: provides opportunities to join events such as Festival of the Future which help to attract investment to Dorset and highlight exciting careers in technology.
• Outpost VFX: creates high-end visual effects for film and episodic productions such as The Lord of the Rings and Thor, with offices around the globe.
• Amuzo: an award-winning game developer based in the heart of Bournemouth, with 25 talented game designers, supporting brands like Netflix, Disney and more.
• TreeHouse: deliver world class Realtime Animation and Virtual Production for Film and Television, working with the likes of Netflix, Amazon Studios, Sky Cinema and more.
• Centre VR: the largest virtual reality arena in the world – allowing 30 people to experience amazing titles, games, challenges, and adventures at once.
• Pop Paper City Ltd: currently producing 52 11-minute episodes of the 3D animated preschool series Pop Paper City.
• 3-Sided Cube: an app development and digital product company with a focus on building tech for good, working with numerous global organisations with the likes of The American Red cross, reaching communities in over 87 countries.
• Intergage: a group of digital marketing services, with a 25-strong team helping B2B businesses grow using marketing strategy and technology for more than 20 years.
• LoveLove Films: an independent production company and animation studio, creating award-winning content across platforms such as Channel 4, BBC Films, ITV, Sky and more.
• Talewind: an award-winning studio and publisher building games and experiences for the open metaverse, starting with Roblox.
• Greenwood Campbell: builds websites, creates metaverses, develops chatbots, makes app and transform organisation using empathy, research, and date to understand the motivations and needs of their clients.
• Global Brand Communications: driven by passion for compelling design, innovation, and strategy, they build brand value by creating engaging customer experiences at every touch point.
• Crowd: provide local, regional, and international promotional expertise to organisations, governments, corporations, and businesses of all sizes.
• You Are the Media: a supportive marketing learning community with a global audience, consisting of podcasts, learning events both online and offline, sea swims every Friday.
• CHS: with their 50^th birthday round the corner, CHS have spent the last 5 decades honing their expertise in advertisement.
• Iceberg Creative: helps customers understand and believe in the power of the latest developments and technology, giving their users experiences they didn’t think were achievable.

Dorset is not shy from providing a unique blend of experienced professionals and new talent, primed especially for the creative and digital sector. With an extensive range of universities and colleges in the region, the talent pool of Dorset is ever growing. An impressive 50% of graduates working in the film, visual effects or video game industries in the UK come from Dorset.

Arts University Bournemouth is fast becoming known for animation and visual effects, Dorset has the largest film school outside of London. Established since 1886, the University offers 23 undergraduate degrees in a wide range of creative subjects that reflect every aspect of the creative industry.

Bournemouth University is home to a thriving national Centre for Computer Animation, and The Centre for Digital Entertainment. With Oscar-winning alumni and excellent academics, the university helps to deliver exceptional programmes. Which are delivered through state-of-the-art facilities, helping to enhance student learning.

Bournemouth and Poole, the college is based at the North Light Centre, they offer courses for students from level 1 all the way through to level 4. These include subjects such as Music, Media, 3D Animation for Film and Games and Esports, performing Arts and Digital and Computing.

Weymouth College is growing rapidly within the creative and visual arts arena, using excellent traditional and experimental facilities. Delivering a range of creative courses, offering the opportunity to study from level 1 through to a foundation degree.

Invest in Dorset is a team of economic development professionals across Dorset dedicated to helping companies and investors identify investment or expansion opportunities in Dorset, ensuring they get all the support they need to be successful here.

To find out more about the Creative sector, and the companies involved. Download our investment guide to Dorset’s Creative Digital Sector.