A successful run of shows on the digital black music station 1Xtra, has given a huge boost to DJ Swift's career. When the Blast On Tour team arrived in Norwich in July, so came the chance to shoot his first music video. Now I switch on the usual music channels, but I'd never stopped to contemplate the work that goes into recording a three minute piece of film. But as J Swift, his crew and the young film makers worked non-stop throughout two days, I stood up and took notice. Day One - 10:00amDJ Swift, better known as Jamie Wallace to everyone throughout filming, he'd spent the night readying story-boards for the big day. A hefty folder was under his arm. "Despite the early start, we're all in high spirits and eager to get going," he said - showing no sign of the late-night planning.  | | Kiel Richardson aka Kiddy Kiddy |
Jamie introduced himself to the group of students and performed the first single with Kiel Richardson (aka Kiddy Kiddy) and Adil Morrison (aka Just), the trio making up Spoken Drama. The BBC Blast Truck was jumpin' with music already - anyone feeling tired before was wide-awake now. 10:43amFilming begins. The group shuffled through Norwich to the first location. A gang armed with cameras and tripods. Many of the people at the film workshop had never handled a professional video camera before, let alone been faced with filming a music video and editing it within 48 hours! Initial nerves were settled straight away, as experienced picture editor Julian Langham was on hand to make sure the day went smoothly and problem-free. He'd travelled down from BBC Television Centre in London, and offered advice and guidance to the crew throughout the two days. The cameras were set up and the story boards proved to be an invaluable tool whilst the group and extras got in position. Three takes. Two cameras. One shot in the can. 11.12am | | Camera view during DJ Swift video shoot |
The second shot needed the help of unknowing extras - shoppers in the centre of Norwich. A long shot, featuring Jamie walking towards the camera whilst wading through the worried looking passers-by, took numerous attempts to perfect but promised to look spectacular. Onlookers gathered in and around the crew, adding to the pressure to keep up the professional approach they had so carefully kept up throughout the morning. 12.06pmThe latest location was overlooking the castle. A medieval setting for a very modern video – arty! There was plenty of shade, which was a relief for the stars of the video and also provided many interesting lighting effects for some startlingly interesting shots. 3.13pmThe final location for the day is the top floor of a car park, the worst place for someone who is scared of heights - such as myself. Feet firmly on the ground and well away from the edge, I spoke to one of the eager students during a break in filming. Penelope Wood from Norwich applied for the filming course thanks to her eagle-eyed father, who spotted it on the Blast website. "I've learnt how to use a camera. The hi-tech buttons aren't completely impossible now," she said. 3.47pm | | Spoken Drama in action |
The day is almost complete for the camera crew, as we arrive at an underpass for the final shot of the day. A technical shot, featuring the full Spoken Drama line-up and extras, was planned and executed within minutes. An evening of recovery was planned for everyone except Jamie, Kiel, Adil and Julian. As the stars appeared in the night-sky above The Forum, the guys were burning the midnight oil and painstakingly editing the shots from the day. Unbeknown to everyone else, we would see the results less than 12 hours later. Day Two – 10.00amI arrived back to The Forum bleary-eyed but excited. An early cut had already been made, and only a small number of shots were needed to complete the video. The air-conditioned Blast Truck was our home for the first hour of the day, as the students were shown the vast choices of editing packages available to create a video of their own.  | | Shot from I Don't Belong video |
The door opened. All eyes were on Julian as he walked in with a tape, and the promise of a first viewing of the video. All of yesterday's team found their seats, and prepared to see the reward of a days hard work. The video was greeted with a riot of applause at the end, and the group split up. The initial cut had only whet their appetite to create a video of their own! After a day overlooking the students editing and filming a couple of additional shots, Jamie checked back to give his thoughts of the last couple of days. "Thanks to everyone who helped out," he said. "The BBC Blast team have made my dreams come true. The video is amazing." | 
