A FILM shoot for a global car brand’s press launch is taking place in a state-of-the-art soundproofed studio, its latest SUV model poised against a white infinity screen.

A voiceover booth regularly hosts survival expert Bear Grylls as he works on shows from far-flung reaches of the planet and the BBC, Dyson, Nationwide Building Society and Intel also make frequent use of the custom-built facilities.

It might sound like the work of a classy studio squeezed into a Soho townhouse or a facility on the outskirts of London. In fact, Sandstorm Studios is set against the ancient hills of the Ridgeway on a gentle lane in Badbury, next to a field which is home to Shetland horses named Harry, Dinky and Pip.

Established in 2000, Swindon’s answer to Pinewood Studios needs no runners, congested Tube journeys or sharpened elbows as it caters for a growing media flight from the capital.

Running up to seven productions at once, activities range from a BBC Pimp My Ride for kids - a four-month project with Endemol Shine due for broadcast later this year – to casting Grylls in digital flames for footage which features in Sandstorm’s showreel.

“The BBC set up a fun garage which was basically a Pimp My Ride for kids,” marketing manager Jason Dollery explains. “They would come in and say things like ‘I want my dad’s car to be a plane’ and they would go away and do it. They say you should never work with children or animals but it’s something we do quite a lot here because of the facilities we offer.

“The kids love the location and the open spaces and we couldn’t be happier with how the project went, it was great fun.

“The only real difference was removing the alcohol from the fridges.”

The children’s motoring show is among numerous stills, crisp motion shots, music videos and films streamed onto televisions, computers and personal devices all around the world from shoots at the former dairy farm near Chiseldon.

While the car brand’s launch is clad in commercial secrecy for the next few weeks, Sony and TRESemmé are also in the portfolio and Hollywood actor Jack Black appeared in a promotional campaign shot for 2010 film Gulliver’s Travels. Electro music duo Chase & Status have also used the production house to create music videos.

“We do everything here from training videos to anything with Dyson, Honda, Intel and Nationwide,” Jason says. “Whenever Dyson have a shoot with animals, kids or anything a bit more tricky they tend to send it here. We have all the film-quality equipment that other companies tend to charge extra for, such as the same type of ARRI Alexa cameras used to shoot The Revenant, right here and we just bring it out as part of the project.”

Another room is a flame-retardant, waterproofed studio where a highly successful Nationwide recruitment campaign using paint-throwing and fire was shot last year.

Edit suites and a licensed cinema mean clients can see their films before they leave Badbury, while chill-out areas with mini-fridges and a jazz playlist offer soothing downtime.

The BBC were so impressed with the reception area, meeting rooms and VIP lounge, which has a log-burning stove, that they were written into the children’s television series.

Grylls is regularly at the hub, including for voiceovers in the Dolby-approved edit suite and vocal booth, and images of the presenter on fire were shot in the green screen.

Managing director Tom Ward oversees a studio that also serves as a brand agency with a presence in London and New York alongside its base at The Old Dairy just outside Swindon.

“A big highlight for me was when we did a job for Sony launching one of their Experia phones,” says Tom. “We were asked to shoot it in London and when the client came in they said, ‘Oh, we were really looking forward to coming to Sandstorm’, so on the second day of the shoot we moved everything back here. People think you’re completely mad moving out of London but we were ahead of the curve in moving away from the city.

“It’s a good balance, we’re close to the motorway and clients have said it’s easier coming here than it is getting into town from West London.

“We believe that by providing the very best studio environment even the biggest brands and companies in the country see the value in moving away from the traditional London studios.”

Tom has the pet project of introducing penguins – which he has been told have to come in threes – and then tigers into a film project.

A more serious aim is a three-year expansion which will ramp up the scale of projects the studio can take on. As the team put the finishing touches to the SUV launch, the tag of Swindon’s Pinewood doesn’t seem so far-fetched in this corner of rural Wiltshire.