Media Cymru
Design-led
At PDR we are committed to helping more people engage with Research and Development (R&D) and Innovation. One of the ways in which we are currently doing this is through our work on the Media Cymru programme, where we are helping individuals and organisations in the Creative Industries to develop new products and services. Often, these are freelancers or small companies doing R&D for the first time. We’re helping them manage their R&D projects, gain valuable new experience and feel confidence around the language of innovation and collaboration.
Why PDR?
Building on the successes of Clwstwr, a previous project also focussed on R&D in the Creative Industries, Media Cymru started in 2022 and will be running until the end of 2026. We are now firmly into delivery and have supported over 200 projects with Seed and further Development level funding and innovation training. Since then, we have seen projects working across the spectrum of the Creative Industries; from music catalogues to film production process to mental health support. Each one brings a perceived challenge that we aim to help them address as part of their support team. We help these projects in taking a User Centred Design (UCD) approach, providing step-by-step support through the design process of identifying the challenge, understanding who the challenge affects, understanding the needs of end-users, and prototyping potential solutions. Each time, we personalise this support appropriate to the project’s needs. We also act as a connector – where we see an opportunity, we reach out to bring together the network of creatives and relevant individuals who have engaged with us over the years.
For Creative Industry by Creative Industry
We believe that R&D needs to be open to more people and we want to help facilitate that access by building confidence in and supporting the use of a common language for the Creative Industries. PDR have found that lots of Creative companies use some, or variants of, the processes we go through but often don’t have a language or experience to describe them. Too often innovation support is presented through a technology lens; our aim is to help demystify R&D.
In addition to the UCD approach and our vast experiences across multiple industries, we also draw on wider support with specialist knowledge that PDR has to offer in fields such as Circular Economy, Service Design and Product Development, where we work with a wide variety of clients internationally in both the public and private sectors.
PDR’s approach is tried and tested both in and out of creative industries. We are always looking for the next space we can explore with someone, so if you have an idea that you would like to take through a Design-led R&D approach, we would love to speak to you.
A UK Research and Innovation’s (UKRI) flagship Strength in Places Fund, funded through £22m from UKRI, £3m from Cardiff Capital Region, £1m from Welsh Government, through Creative Wales, and £23m match funding from industry and university partners.
PDR is part of this consortium, consisting of 22 partner organisations based across the Cardiff Capital Region.
Further reading
MEDIA CYMRU IN 2024: A Year in Review
Our involvement in Greening the Screen
Engaging with young audiences in Bergen
Collaborative Dialogues with CO:RE Cards
Exploring the challenges facing Cardiff’s creative industries
