Aberdeen-based video production company Signal has been honoured in the Scottish Parliament for its contribution to the region’s creative industries.
When Signal won two film industry awards this year, little did they expect that it would lead to a motion being passed in Parliament, and a meeting with their local MSP. This unusual turn of events began a year earlier.
World Beating Projects
In 2025, Signal produced nearly 100 films, for companies in a variety of industry sectors. Two of these achieved international recognition: one showcased the Peterhead-based Thistle Seafoods, who manufacture premium quality seafood meals for some of the biggest supermarkets around the world. The other film was made for Wärtsilä, the Finland-based marine and energy decarbonisation company that took our crews to Las Palmas, The Netherlands, Norway and Curaçao in the Caribbean.
Signal submitted both these projects to the 47th annual Telly Awards in the ‘Best B2B Promotional Film’ and ‘Best Corporate Image’ categories. The Telly Awards is an international event and received 13,000 submissions, including those from household names such as Pepsi and Porsche. Despite this intense competition, and despite being quite different in scale and scope, Signal’s submissions won Gold awards in both categories it entered. But this was just the start.
From left to right: Greg Thom, Mitch Hepburn, Jamie Baikie, Liam Kerr MSP, Mark Turner, Glen Ainslie.
Government Recognition
When Signal posted about their success online, they did not anticipate that their local MSP, Liam Kerr, would see it. He was impressed enough to table a Parliamentary motion to celebrate Signal’s wins. In a speech to Parliament Mr Kerr cited “the talent and expertise of the Signal team in producing ambitious, bespoke media content for an international market”. The motion was read in Parliament, supported by many other MSPs and then published for posterity in the Scottish Parliamentary records.
Subsequently Signal were invited to meet Liam Kerr, MSP in person, to be presented with a copy of the Parliamentary Motion.
Signal’s Managing Director Jamie Baikie said, “Since Signal was founded in 2011, our talented team have won many international awards. But rarely is this acknowledged back home. We’re a proudly Aberdonian company and believe that the creative talent in this region is both impressive and underappreciated. Liam Kerr’s motion shone a spotlight on our international success, and on the talent of the creative sector in this part of the UK. This was a simple gesture, but it means the world to us.”