I'm extremely grateful to Thinkbox for hosting yesterday afternoon's ShopTalk at the Ham Yard Hotel in Soho, and even more grateful to my guests Natalie Rae, Johnny Hardstaff, Rosie May Bird Smith and Simon Ratigan.

In their own way, each of these directors reminded me how lucky I am to spend time with people who are so fascinating and talented... and I was so glad to share that experience with an appreciative audience.

When I established CraftWorks, my mission was to cast a positive light on our industry and as CraftWorks transitions into ShopTalk, that mission remains my priority. Yesterday was a really enjoyable demonstration of the importance of taking opportunities to celebrate what we do... not by handing out quickly-forgotten prizes, but by showing off work and encouraging its creators to express the passion that drove them to make it.

Speaking of passion, yesterday's show centred on the value of projects outside the TVC realm. Not only was it very evident that directors benefit hugely from making features, short films and other creative endeavours alongside their commercials, it was also a reminder to clients and ad agencies that passion projects are a wonderful side-effect of commissioning directors to make advertising.

So, thank-you to those who reached out recently to say they'd like to help me bring back a regular showcase for this sort of thing... you'll be hearing from me.