In the East of England, just about tethered to the rest of the Country by a single stretch of tedious road, is the city of Norwich. The name, for many, conjures up unflattering speculations and preconceived notions - most famously aligning Norwich as the land of the rising Partridge. However, what most don't know is that here admittedly a little adrift, Norwich is crafting some of the most effective creative and digital work of the country.

For a 'sleepy' city, Norwich harbors so many companies that are leading the way in certain industries, innovating and pushing boundaries and all without having to face lengthy and tiresome commutes and intense work pressure of larger cities. For instance not many know that Norwich is home to EPIC Studios, one of the largest production and post production studios outside of London. Fully equipped with state of the art, full HD production and post capabilities, EPIC is poised to start producing digital shows with some real production quality. The studio has already resurrected geeky nostalgia show Knightmare for YouTube's Geek Week which included the original cast and local YouTube star Stuart Ashens.

Another hidden gem is FXHOME, a software company that produces professional photo and video editing software that is stirring things up in their industry. More powerful than the big boys such as Adobe and Final Cut, yet reasonably priced for the average amateur filmmaker, FXHOME is hoovering up new and emerging markets with an aggressive online and YouTube focus. Working with YouTube luminaries such as Corridor Digital and Freddie Wong the software company is aligning itself with an incredibly diverse and creative demographic that will stick with the powerful new brand for years to come. It's also worth noting that FXHOME has its primary markets overseas and in America yet still manages to find and attract the talent to the small coastal county of Norfolk. For a glimpse of the capabilities of the awesome company, take a look at the promotional video here.

Joining them online and with a digital delivery across YouTube and social media platforms is Lambda Films. Lambda is a video production and marketing company that creates productions for businesses that are tailored for an online delivery, a social audience and measurable results. The company, while young, has already produced work for the NHS, St John Ambulance, RG Carter, a number of Universities and offshore companies as well as winning a string of awards for their campaign work. For an insight in to the company and their norwich roots, take a look at their Video Production Norwich video.

In the mobile industry, Proxama are pioneering the exciting NFC technology that allows mobile devices to connect with every day objects and points of sale. Infinitely more smart and efficient than QR codes, NFC technology is looking to become one of the most game-changing systems in the mobile device arena. Norwich was also the first city in the country to host an NFC hack due to its ties with Proxama. From the hack came many notable NFC ideas, including Blue Butterfly - a tap-to-wifi company that went on to great things following the event.

We have barely looked beneath the surface when it comes to innovative and industry leading companies in the small region of Norwich and Norfolk. There are many more that we'll be looking to uncover in our series of articles about the local business landscape so stay tuned!