Why and how we started Evoke Media Group

Two female film-makers set up their own filming and promotions company after receiving international acclaim for their work.

Daria Nitsche, 34, and Sophie Mei Lan, 28, are best friends as well as co-owners of Evoke Media Group.

Evoke’s production guru Ms Nitsche, who is based in Sheffield but hails from Germany, trained In film and media and has since worked for the likes of NetFlix, Wrigley’s and large feature films.
Mrs Mei Lan, who is from Sheffield but based in Wakefield, focuses on researching, interviewing and PR, using her skills as a multi-award-winning journalist to create dynamic campaigns and corporate videos for their clients.

She said: “It made perfect sense for Daria and I to create a business together as we compliment one another’s skills.
“We’re really passionate about using films and technology to help promote our clients.
“We work with a large pool of people and many are surprised to see a woman behind the camera as well as in front. But we’re very proud of the fact that we offer top-quality packages and we just happen to be women in technology.”
The pair has recently added another string to their bow by offering a range of filming, blogging and PR workshops for people wanting to learn basic skills for themselves.
Ms Nitsche, who has an MA in film, said: “A lot of businesses want to produce content in house but they don’t have the basic skills to do so.
“So we provide training sessions for staff to get to grips with the basics of film-making and also blogging.”

Ms Nitsche and Mrs Mei Lan are particularly passionate about inspiring more females in to film-making and other technology based businesses.

A one-woman-band

Mrs Mei Lan said: “During my time working as a broadcast journalist at the BBC I discovered how important it was for me to be able to work a camera and editing software as well as being able to present and report. 
“Before I met Daria, I was a one-woman-band which was great as it made me flexible. But it was so much easier working as a team utilising both our strengths.
“Not everyone takes us seriously at first but we like to surprise people with the professional work we produce.”

The future for Evoke

And it’s not all just corporate and social media videos, the multi-award-winning duo also deliver workshops for people and businesses who want to get to grips with filming, editing, content writing, PR and social media marketing.
Ms Nitsche said: “Our workshops are a great introduction to people wanting to make their own content.
“We do one-to-one training and group events so they’re ideal for a company of any size.”
Ms Nitche and Mrs Mei Lan are also known for their ground-breaking current affairs content.
They have won awards for their coverage of human trafficking scandals, NHS campaigns and their coverage of mental health issues.
Mrs Mei Lan said: “Our heart is in documentary-making (radio/TV/Film) showcasing issues we’re so passionate about and are in need of exposure.
“We hope to use some of the money we make from Evoke to fund equipment and time for us to break more barriers on issues that are important.”

For more information, go to: evokemedigroup.co.uk
Or follow them on twitter @EvokeMG and facebook.com/EvokeMediaGroup

Daria Nitsche fact-file 
- Born in Munich, Germany 
- Ms Nitsche now lives in Sheffield, South Yorkshire after studying for her MA there
- As well as editing films for the likes of NetFlix, she works on feature films, documentaries and commercials. 

Sophie Mei Lan fact-file
- Born and Bred in Sheffield, South Yorkshire where she met Ms Nitsche
- She now lives in Wakefield with her chef husband and two kids
- Mrs Mei Lan is a trained journalist and has worked for the likes of BBC News, Channel 4 News, ITV News and The Observer and The Guardian
- She is also a professional Blogger, Bellydancer and Dance teacher (You can find her on MamaMei.co.uk and BellydanceBySophieMei.com)

Evoke’s fact-file 
- Launched in Sheffield and Manchester in 2011 (Originally as Verita Magazine)
- Funding from O2 Think Big, UnLTD and Go Think Big 
- Awards won: Amnesty International Media Award, Hearing Unheard Voices Award (UK Youth) at St James’ Palace and NCTJ (National Council for Training of Journalists) Awards for excellence 2014 & 2015
- Shortlisted Awards: IRN Commercial Radio Award an Guardian Student Media Awards