Age?
26. Who is he?
Co-MD of Netronyx.com, an interactive web design and promotion agency going live next week. Previously did 3-D models for a company that designed shops.
What's the clever idea?
"The Ali G Flash promo - how you can use the internet for advertising. Basically, I did it on a Saturday afternoon for a bit of a laugh and emailed it to a few of my mates and places like FHM. People passed it on to friends and colleagues, and it spread around the whole country within about a fortnight. It was really nothing to do with Netronyx; we were setting Netronyx up. But due to the success of the promo, we had so much interest from the media, top record and television companies, including Channel 4, that we're setting up not just promotional advertising but also full websites - the whole package."
What's the thinking behind it?
"Basically, the internet as it stands is quite lifeless. Many of the sites are anyway. We're looking to make the internet more interactive, a lot more interesting, bring life to it - with interactive games, promotional work, advertising, quizzes, anything people can do."
How does it work?
"There's a piece of macromedia software called Flash that a lot of the latest web technologists are using, replacing the static old HTML software. People want to put a much more exciting, interactive image across, and Flash is ideal for that. So on the Ali G Flash promo there was a list of Ali G expressions, like "Boyaka" and "Westside" down the right of the screen and you get real samples each time you roll over them. There's also different loops of music: you click on each one to change the music. Ali G's speaking the words over the top of the music."
Possible shortcomings?
"The Ali G promo happened so quickly, it pushed us into the forefront before we had a chance to build up our portfolio, but we had so many leads, we're obviously using them. In the future, though, because we've got our company name we've got to be careful that we don't upset anyone, copyright-wise for instance."
What's next?
"Off the back of Ali G, we're doing mostly promotional stuff. It's really popular but doesn't demonstrate our talents to our full potential. But we've got some really good offers that are more than just promotional work, people that want us to produce more sites. Channel 4 want us on their list of preferred web developers, we're in the pipeline of doing a promo for a new Sky One television programme and a website for London Records to promote the Artful Dodgers' next single. We'll be producing websites for companies that want an exciting web presence."
