Outpost Post-Production: A Journey into the World of TV, Film & Cinema

Outpost Post-Production (opens in a new tab) is a full-service post-production house based in Portview Trade Centre, a creative workspace in Belfast.

So, what does Outpost do?

Outpost works across advertising, television, cinema and radio. The team is handed raw footage and films in a rough state and asked to turn them into something unique that can go out into the world. The finished pieces appear as TV productions and short and cinematic films, made in both in-person and traditional studios.

It all began as a one-man band

Robin Morgan is the founder and director of Outpost Post-Production, and it has been a long rollercoaster to get to where he is now, if you would call more than a decade ‘long’.

Back in 2008, Robin started a production company that fulfilled only the most basic needs, or as he puts it, ‘pointing cameras at stuff and recording it’. Outpost has since grown into a team of three, but it began as a one-man band producing a variety of projects, including generic PR and advertising pieces.

It didn’t all begin at Portview, though. As a one-person production house, Outpost started out in a small studio in Duncrue. The goal was to grow bigger and bigger, and with all their savings to date, Outpost found itself in a brand-new space at Portview Trade Centre.

Finding a forever home at Portview Trade Centre

Robin first moved into his workspace at Portview Trade Centre in 2016. When they viewed the area, they weren’t quite sure what they were looking for. All they knew was that they wanted a unique space that could grow into something as big and unique as Outpost itself. After seeing what another company had done there, Robin knew this was where Outpost belonged. Being a little outside Belfast city centre was a risk at the time, but it is a risk Robin will always be grateful for taking: ‘always go for the underdog’.

The true sense of community sets Portview apart from other trade centres. Whatever is going on, Robin knows he can call on a neighbour if he needs to. With an array of creative businesses at Portview, it is important that tenants are happy to share, bounce ideas off each other and always be up for a chat.

A lot has happened for Outpost since the move. Its space now includes a number of offline editing suites, a mixing room with spatial audio capabilities, a lounge editing suite and a recording studio for radio. There is also a cinema room, equipped with a 74-inch TV and a cinema screen, which is the perfect space for viewing the team’s projects and the odd movie or PlayStation night.

Where does Outpost find inspiration?

Inspiration can come from every nook and corner of the day, but Robin has drawn a great deal from the sunny shores of Los Angeles. In Outpost’s earliest years he worked in LA, where the production houses are luxurious and of a huge calibre, and there was nothing remotely similar in Northern Ireland. That was when he decided his primary goal was to bring something even better than he had seen to Belfast.

Although Robin is the director of the production house, he often oversees day-to-day operations. He still loves to get his hands on a keyboard and do plenty of editing, too. Every day is different, and a lot of his role involves winning new business and making sure current jobs run smoothly. Ultimately, the aim of every day is to cause as little chaos as possible.

Plenty of pinch-me moments

Having worked on some massive projects for Netflix and the BBC, there is little that leaves the team at Outpost starstruck. However, they recently hosted one of the biggest bands in the world, who used the production house to mix some of their music. In previous years they completed a lot of commercial and film projects, namely ‘Old Friends and Other Days’ and some Williams F1 ads. With big names such as Coke and Nike under their belt too, it’s no surprise that the work doesn’t always feel like ‘real work’ to the team.

Working with such big names comes with pressure and stress, of course. They often work 20-hour days to meet deadlines, but it is always a relief to complete another project.

What’s next for Outpost?

Looking to the future, the team at Outpost are aiming for world domination, though there is plenty of work to do before then. In the Northern Irish production industry, many companies do a little bit of everything. Outpost is instead aiming to focus on what it does best, learn more, do more and earn a lot more credits and names under its already very large belt. The best is yet to come.