I’m Denise Roach, content producer at the BBC College of Production (CoP) website.

Our site is a free online learning resource for the radio, television and online production community offering videos, podcasts and articles from broadcasting innovators and experts.

The College of Production website

It’s been all about innovation on the CoP site this week as we published the first of our films in the This Works… series. These short films from the BBC Academy showcase production innovation and new ways of working that are pushing the boundaries of what is possible creatively and technically.

Visualising radio might sound like a contradiction in terms but it’s a key weapon in Radio 1’s battle to win new radio listeners from an ever growing number of discerning YouTube audiences. Enter 1Xtra presenter Charlie Sloth and producer Sam White who set out on the ambitious challenge to make a TV documentary on a radio budget.

The result: multiplatform documentary It’s Grime Up North following Charlie and Sam on a road trip to find out why rap talent in the UK is dominated by the London scene. Adding a visual layer to a radio documentary meant it could be watched online and on the Red Button as well as listened to like a conventional radio show, and with impressive results.

Documentaries on 1Xtra attract around 30,000 listeners. So far,It’s Grime Up North has attracted 162,000 YouTube viewers and counting.

Charlie Sloth in video It's Grime Up North

As boundaries shift between radio and its audiences broadcasters are increasingly looking to new territory to keep pace with this change. 6 Music Live at Maida Vale is a great example.

We followed video producer Guy Oldfield and presenter Lauren Laverne around the staging of the live radio event, and spoke to Guy about how he sees radio changing.

For him, “Online really is the platform where all content should live. It’s an amazing environment in which to produce new types of broadcasting.”

And while the army of robotic cameras used in the broadcast and funky redesign of the studio have a lot to do with the success of the shows, having a presenter who ‘gets’ how radio and online work has a massive part to play too. You can see Lauren in action on the CoP website.

Staging of a live event on BBC 6 Music

Creativity loves constraint and nothing is more constraining in production than having no money. Stepping away from the radio, CoP entered the world of budget film making this week with the CoP Show podcast: Budget film making, and indie-zombie-film making in particular.

Budding film makers are constantly being told that it’s never been easier to produce, package and market your own film, but where do you really start? Where does the money come from (even if it’s only £45)?

From crowd-sourced funding to maxing out your credit card, distributing your film online and having your moment in the limelight at Cannes, we got a panel of seasoned indie experts to give us their tips.

It was an animated debate and one of our most popular shows, proving that the appetite of the wannabe Bigelows and Boyles out there is as strong as ever.

Denise Roach is a content producer for the BBC College of Production.