How we made ‘The Journey Starts Here’
We’re Blue Stag, a creative impact studio. Since 2021 we’ve worked with Taith on its brand, website and content creation, helping to support its goal of creating life-changing opportunities for people to learn, study and volunteer all over the world.
Throughout the process of working with Taith, we’ve captured the voices of children, young people and adults who have undertaken incredible journeys around the world. But we quickly realised that no single interview could fully capture the breadth and depth of what Taith makes possible.
That’s where ‘The Journey Starts Here’ comes in.
Taith came to us with an exciting creative brief: to create an empowering video that would celebrate Taith and its mission.
Our aim was to share the stories of real-life Taith participants and explore the ways in which the organisation has removed barriers and opened doors, particularly for people who might not otherwise imagine themselves participating in an international exchange.
We saw this as the perfect opportunity to bring together the wide variety of voices and stories we’ve encountered across Wales. Our vision was to produce a powerful video that would resonate emotionally while still staying deeply rooted in real experiences.
Through a moving poem recital overlaid with footage of participating organisations across Wales, we aimed to inspire the viewer to join Taith on their own journey.
At the heart of the video is a poem narrated by a bilingual voiceover artist in English and Welsh.
The poem, written in collaboration with Taith, brings together stories we’ve heard, filmed and shared through case studies over the past year.
The poem reads slightly differently in English and Welsh, allowing each language to tell its own version of the story, not as a literal translation, but as a meaningful interpretation in its own right.
From young people in North Wales who had never left their local area, to a group of adults with lived experiences which included trauma, mental health problems and addiction, these Taith participants saw their horizons expand through their exchange. Each line and visual within the video reflects these real experiences and the powerful impact this had on the individuals.
To enhance the video’s authenticity, we only used crowd-sourced footage captured by Taith participants. This approach allowed us to follow them through significant moments of their exchanges, offering a genuine glimpse into their experiences.
By representing all the sectors Taith supports, including underrepresented groups who benefit most from Taith funding, we wanted to highlight the organisation’s profound impact on individuals and communities.
For additional scenes, we visited Fitzalan High School, Avant Cymru and Ysgol Greenhill, who kindly took part in filming with us.
Take a look at the final product below. We hope you enjoy watching it as much as we enjoyed making it.
Holly Ingram, Strategic Marketing Manager Blue Stag
Latest news from the programme.
