Meet the Team: Holly Thwaites

Hey everyone

Ready for another meet the team Tuesday?

This week we'd like to introduce you to Social and Video Editor extraordinaire, Holly!

You can check out the rest of the team posts here.

What is your role at Just About?

I'm the Social and Video Editor here at Just About, meaning I look after anything social media or video related. Yes, it is my voice you hear in all of our videos! 🎙️

I work primarily within the Growth team to ensure that we are producing the best social and video content we possibly can for you all to see. If you've commented on our socials or spoken to us in DMs it's me you're speaking with. I'm responsible for anything and everything social related to help the company build a social platform to allow us to grow and build bigger stronger communities.

I also do all of the video for Just About, whether that's making a game of the week video for social, a guide video to go on the site, or working with Roo our Lead Designer to create a bigger community launch video. Everything video-related falls with me 🎥

Why did you join Just About, and where did you work before?

While I am still very early in my career, I've already had the opportunity to work with a variety of companies and for me start-ups are by far my favourite. The different challenges it brings and the rewarding feeling you get is unmatched. The beauty of working within such a small team is you learn so much from everyone around you and you get to see the results of your work in a much more direct way. Not only is Just About a fantastic company to work for, but we are working towards a goal I truly believe in. Being so engrossed in the world of social media myself, I know first hand the issues all across the internet and the chance to join a mission-first company actively making a change was a no brainer.

Prior to Just About, I spent time as a freelance video editor working with a variety of people from Twitch streamers to YouTubers to bespoke custom PC builders. The majority of my work has been centred around gaming, and as that's where Just About is starting, that's another reason I was very interested. I then stopped freelancing once I got a Marketing Executive job at one of the South Coast's largest motor groups, before moving to Just About.

How did you get started in this industry?

Since I was very young I was fascinated by all things photo and video, this led me to teaching myself video editing with any free software I could find; I believe Windows Movie Maker was my first tool of choice before discovering Hitfilm Express. I would edit anything I could get my hands on. Once lockdown hit, with nothing to do I decided to invest in Adobe Premiere Pro, from there I setup my freelancing business and the rest is history 👩🏽‍💻

The non-work stuff

Favourite Game

It has to be The Sims 4 or Minecraft, but Dead By Daylight, GTA V, and CoD are definitely up there. I save those for when I'm playing with friends as I'm not good enough to have much fun without them to carry me! It has to be said, too, that Nintendogs and Cooking Mama on the DS will forever have a place in my heart as my first games 🎮

Favourite TV Show

There's nothing much to say here other than... Grey's Anatomy. They wouldn't be filming their 20th season if it weren't brilliant 🤷‍♀️

Favourite Band/Artist

I've been a die hard One Direction fan for as long as I can remember. I have a very varied music taste so I am a big fan of a lot of artists. If I am in the mood for some indie then The Lathums, Sam Fender, or The Kooks are my go-to. On the folk side of things I'm a huge fan of Noah Kahan and Vance Joy.

If you could live anywhere in the world, where and why?

I spent a few years of my childhood living in Canada and I loved every second of it, so potentially heading back there to live would be great. The idea of living in Australia has always been very enticing; it looks like a lot of fun, with plenty of activities to do and things to see, but the spiders do put me off a little 🕷️

What did you want to be when you were a kid?

I remember telling everyone I was going to be a game developer for years and I'm pretty sure I went through a phase of wanting to be an MI5 Agent 👀

Share a hobby you currently have.

I've played the guitar for most of my life, both electric and acoustic. That's a hobby I will have forever 🎸

I am also very interested in fitness, I am a big CrossFit viewer and I spend most mornings before work in the gym. I've also recently started learning flat-water kayaking with my local canoe club, and the goal next year is to start racing! It's definitely a lot more difficult than it looks and with the weather getting colder I'm hoping I don't go for too many accidental swims in the river, but it's a unique and fun sport that strikes a balance between being part of a team but also racing for yourself, which I love. If you've got a canoe club near you and you love outdoor sports I'd definitely recommended heading down for a taster 🚣‍♀️