Panda says LOVE

We all love a panda



Working with creative people can be a gamble but when you can pull it off, it really does work. To complete our award-winning project "Winning with Social Enterprise" with the support of the OCS - a piece of work designed to promote social enterprise in the context of the 2012 Games - we have produced a video to give voice to the idea that social enterprise and, in particular, its ability to engage and inspire young people, has intrinsic value for the Games.

First of all we collaborated with the fantastic Simon Elliott, perhaps best known for his work with Carlos Acosta the world-class dancer. But as well as working with Carlos, Simon has produced other cutting edge productions and projects that have set new standards in combining visual imagery with choreography. Simon doesn't just think outside the box, he lives there, and the result of this particular moment in time is the fabulous "Panda says Love" video available on our website and YouTube. What you may or may not realise when you watch the video is that somehow Simon and his team have created a digital image that reacts to the speakers that it is projected next to, reacting as they speak. Programmed to be sensitive to key words and gestures, the panda really does decide whether what you say makes him want to dance or be even more demonstrative. It's a fascinating idea that brought out the best in some of our contributors, people like Sophi Tranchell, MD of Divine Chocolate, and Sam Conniff, Co-Founder of Livity, both of whom managed to really work with panda getting him to give off more than a little lurrv. I think our video is as good an illustration of the Olympic spirit as you will get anyway, and even if you don't get it, it's still a bloody good laugh.