We had a great time shooting these lovely Films for legendary Toy & Games brand TOMY. Shot with the wonderful people at Sassy Create up in their studio space, and then aired just in time for the Christmas present buying flurry!
Director: Chris Strong
Creative Director: Sarah Morgan
Senior Producer: Becca Smith
Copywriter: Ryan Goodge
DOP: Paul Mortlock
1st AC: Ben Worthington
2nd AC: Lawrence O'Brian
Playback Operator: Liam Coles
Gaffer: John Joe Besagni
Spark: Chay McGill
Spark: Jorge Higgins
Sound Operator: Simon Cross
Art Director: Millie Wilkie
Art Depart Assist: Liberty Scarlett c/o Millie Wilkie
Art Depart: Assist Harrison Clark c/o Millie Wilkie
Stylist: Caterina Ospina
Photographer: Katie Rollings
MUA: Sara Clark
Production Coordinator: Briony McMahon
Runner: Dario Feddersen-Doyle
TOMY
Tomy: Emily Bibbings
Tomy: Natalie Frow
Tomy: Claire Ridley
ACTORS
Patient: Esop Evard
Surgeon: Jonathan Davenport
Nurse 1: Samantha Russell
Nurse 2: Lauren Coates
Mother-in-Law: Ingrid Evans
POST
Grade: Electric Theatre Collective
Colourist: Andi Chu
Colour Producer: Alex Carswell
It was fantastic to be invited back by the team at Ponderosa and Tungsten to Direct the next instalment in this great TV & Cinema Campaign for KCOM. Shot at Tungstens Studio again, once again utilising stunning Anamorphic Lenses. It was lovely to reassemble the KCOM family again.
Director: Chris Strong
DOP: Andrew Beniston
Producer: Jo Kendall
Production Support: Hannah Grainger
Cam Op/Robot: Simon Sturgeon
Cam Op: Mark Forrer
1st AC: Danny Usman
Gaffer: Tom McGoldrick
Spark: Morgan Shackleton
Spark: Luke Hubbard
Lead Set Stylist: Andrea Thornton
Assistant set stylist: Lisa Lynn
Hair & Makeup: Kirsty Layton
Runner: Maya Sharp
Runner: Mia Ainsley
AGENCY
Creative Lead: Karen Woowat
Account Manager: Elena Stevens
CLIENT
Brand Marketing Manager: Anna Mills
Campaign Marketing Manager: Jamie Young
ACTORS
Dad: Patrick Jeffries
Mum: Rhiannon Jones
Teen: Molly Taylor Collins
Girl: Emma Howarth
Nan: Flloyd Kennedy
Chaperone: Jo Jo Stott
Cousin 1: Leo Stott
Cousin 2: Layla Stott
So… this is a big one for me personally because of the subject matter. It was an honour to be approached by Proper Good Films and Shelter to Direct this campaign.
I LOVE being a Film Director; it’s always been my dream. But, being in a position to make something for a Charity that is not only extremely close to my heart but also has a very important message that can positively impact the lives of many others, is a joy.
I truly understand the profound damage & stress of being homeless myself; the impact of not having somewhere to call a home and what it can do to a person. The lasting damage it does to ones quality of life, the trauma and distress, having experienced it first hand throughout my own life, I am continuing to live in the shadow of it. It can be a terrible cycle with seemingly no end... So I sincerely hope this makes a real difference and goes some way to breaking the cycle and ending it!
As an added bonus I got to work with some lovely old industry friends too (you know who you are you lovely lot!) and make some fantastic new ones. So from the bottom of my heart thank you to all involved and who put that extra bit of effort in for a really great cause. I hope we can all work together again in the near future.... Because, to quote: "Together we can make REAL change happen!"
A Unit
Director / Chris Strong
Creative Director / Matt Cole
Agency & production company / Proper Good Films
Producer / Ben Mann
Producer / Hannah Isherwood
Exec Producer / Bonnie Anthony
Production Manager / Danielle Goff
Casting Director / Ilenka Jelowicki
Locations Manager / BEN CARTER LOCATIONS LIMITED
1st AD / Daniel Castro Garcia
2nd AD / Carmen du Preez
DOP / Matthew Emvin Taylor
Steadicam Operator / Sebastien Joly
1st AC / Lucie Seymour
2nd AC / Charlotte Vernett
B Unit
Camera / Phil Hill
Camera / Khaliq Arif
Photographer / Katherine Needles
Photography Assistant / Tom Hull
DIT / Piers Hambleton
DIT / Jack Hextall
Production Assistant / Bethen Blackabee
Production Assistant / Leonardo Donadio
Gaffer / Sam Crooke
Electrician / Daniel Svilenov
Production Sound Mixer / Greg Hagen
1st Assistant Sound / Joel Carr
Music / Joseph Stevenson
Colourist / Dan Moran
Assistant Set Decorator / Anna Wyatt inkandbleach.folio
Props maker / Charlotte Auste charlotteaustenstudios
Make-up Artist / Sarah-Jane Pucci
Wardrobe Stylist / Emma Rees
Costume Assistant / Natalie Richmond Elvy
Storyboard Artist / Robin Lane Roberts
Offline editor / Mark Aarons
Online editor / Ed Moorhouse
Online producer / Josh Archer
Online post production / Sandstorm
Swim safety / Jude Palmer
Lifeguard / Serena Chauhan
Facilities / The Kit House thekithouseuk
Camera Trainee / Haze Johnson
Catering / Eat the Street
Cast
Margie
Don
Stef
Frank
Margie’s Husband
Dierdera Whelan
David Broughton-Davis
Jolade Obasola
Jim Findley
Martin Wright
Northern Soul Dancers
Keith Robinson
Corrinne Sherwood
Russ Fellows
Jon Marsh
Steve Pierpoint
Darren Sykes
Georgie Scozzi
Angela Mayhew
Jan Webber
Bikers
Graham Draper
Andrew Phillips
Christina Hudson
Claire Louise Lewis
Dave Brown
Allotment people
Jacqui Moore
Bridget Kearns
Janet Ball
Sande Waybill
With additional thanks to:
Sussex Film Office / Debi Carter
Angmering Community Centre / Lucy Sunray
Angmering Allotments Association / Jacqui Moore
Additional catering / Justin & Nina @ Juna Home & Garden
I had a blast shooting this joyful Film for Bluestone Resort in Pembrookshire, Wales.
Tapping into my 90’s hip-hop roots, this was great fun to work on. Utilising a tongue-in-cheek cinematic head-nod (metaphorically, and literally) to a 90’s MTV Cribs and Yo MTV Raps pop-culture era, complete with subtle 90’s cartoon and Hip-Hop pastiche Sound Effects.And the music was composed by UK Hip-Hop legend Joe Buhdha! The cast and crew all had a wonderful time. It was a lovely shoot to end the year, and a great piece to start the year with!
Agency: Golley Slater
Production Co: Storm + Shelter
Director: Chris Strong
Producer: Jen Russell
DOP: Lewis Jelley
Art Director: Bendy
Storyboarding: Sharpshoot Storyboards
Editor: Josh Bennett
Colour Facility: The Mill
Colour Producer: Dan Hills
Colourist: Katie Dymmock
1st AD: Micki Colker-Pearlman
Assistant Producer: Candice Haydon
Assistant Producer: Matt Smith
Production Coordinator: Louise Bray
Steadicam Operator: Rich Bertenshaw
1st AC: Cami Carlow
2nd AC: Liam Rees
Camera Trainee: Theo Cochrean
Drone: Mighty Sky
Playback Operator: Charlie Gibson (RSVP)
Key Grip: Dave Holliday
Grip Hire: Tom Pittman
Gaffer: Dave Anderson
Spark: Dan Arkell
Lighting Trainee: George Thornton
Sound Recordist: Jake Lee-Savage
Costume Stylist: Pair of Wardrobes
HMUA: Isabelle While
HMUA: Megan Bowes
VFX: Chris Varaies
Sound Mix: Ronroco Audio
Music: Richard Douglas / Joe Buhdha
Lighting Hire: Pace Rentals
Lighting Hire: SR Production Services
It is a universal truth that all of us have at some point in our lives been less than good. It could be the extra biscuit you took from the barrel, pretending to not notice the elderly person who needed a seat on the bus or even pretending to be a veggie for the past 15 years...
But relax! You can be your best person and reverse the wheel of karma by BOOKING GOOD and staying at a Best Western hotel. Where your money supports local, independent, family run businesses and hotels.
Because, no matter what you've done Booking Good makes up for it!
OAB, like many other health conditions, encroaches steadily on people, insidiously becoming ‘part of life’ or ‘something to live with’, rather than a condition worth investigating. However, unlike many other conditions, it is not a matter of life and death.
Myself and the team at The Good Ideas Group wanted to change attitudes with a creative campaign that unmistakably showed the ‘absurdity’ of lifestyle adaptions, conforming and accepting the restrictions OAB places on life, ultimately encouraging people to push for better.
We developed a creative film using humour as a means of cutting through people's ‘acclimatised’ mindsets and encouraging behaviour change. The film followed a day in the life of a professional woman with a novel, surreal, way to deal with her OAB; everywhere she goes, a portable toilet follows her, towed by a genial porter. Each vignette reflected genuine moments of OAB urgency; commuting, presenting at work, walking in the park etc. The film’s narrative was used throughout the campaign, which includes tactics such as Google display ads, Google search ads, Facebook ads, out-of-home posters in service stations and All4 static pause ads.
To avoid audience fatigue, we refreshed our digital ad content four times within a period of 6 months, building on previous learnings to optimise our content and ensure engagement was always prioritised. To reach the full spectrum of patients, individual ads focused on each of the key OAB symptoms. We implemented targeting by age, location, topics of interest and frequently searched keywords, throughout our campaign. Our dissemination tactics, including the creatives and copy, were fine-tuned and updated throughout the campaign with insights from previous learnings.
Shoot challenges included a schedule that required; a shoot in the UK in January (cold, dark, wet); manufacturing a mobile Portaloo; filming nine locations in two days with six hours of usable light. Crew and cast were briefed carefully to ensure their flexibility and goodwill, which proved valuable when production was shifted back a week with two days’ notice to avoid a forecasted snowstorm.
Innovation on a production level for this project was old-school. We created the central prop by purchasing and assembling a real Portaloo, stripping out all unnecessary parts (including the loo), and experimenting with multiple means of conveyance, a palette jack proving the most effective, in tandem with Velcro-tape and cable ties. Testing was extensive so the shoot could be conducted safely and to schedule. Despite a limited budget, key scenes of movement were rehearsed ahead of time to ensure no time was lost on the shoot.
In this way, an expansive, ambitious shoot was completed on schedule.
It was received to great success and went on to win many awards…
2 x GOLD PM Society Awards, and 1 x SILVER PM Society Award, as well as an Audience Honour at the Shorty’s in the USA.
Client: Astellas
Agency: The Good Ideas Group
Director: Chris Strong
DOP: Oliver Schofield
Writer, Producer at The Good Ideas Group: Tim Gomersall
Producer at The Good Ideas Group: Robin Whitten
Producer & Casting at The Good Ideas Group: Salena Katiyar
Camera at The Good Ideas Group: Jake Humbles
Campaign Signatory at Astellas Pharma: Cathie Barnes
Medical Signatory at Astellas Pharma: Rory Buchan
Pharmacovigilance Manger at Astellas Pharma: Ana Jorge
Legal Lead at Astellas Pharma: Rosie Janaway
Legal Manager at Astellas Pharma: Loriane Colombo O'Brien
Campaign Manager at Astellas Pharma: Sarah Baker
Campaign Lead at Astellas Pharma: Hugh Adams
Director at Anthem PR: Charlotte Maule
Senior Account Manager at Anthem PR: Ellie Duncombe
Senior Account Manager at Anthem PR: Jack Panton
Account Executive at Anthem PR: Sarah Woodburn
Social Media Lead at Anthem PR: Louis De Rivoire
I was approached by the wonderful people at Be The Fox to Direct a series of modern content films for car retailer Cazoo. The purpose of the films was to showcase the other ‘add ons’ that Cazoo can offer after the purchase of a vehicle from them.
Delivering informative yet exciting and stylish films - echoing the excitement of the car buying experience in the films, whilst simultaneously performing a practical ‘explainer film’ function, without feeling too much like all the other dry explainer films.
Showing off the benefits of these more complex products in a clear, simple and engaging way. So we created three fast-paced, modern and engaging videos to reflect the Cazoo brand and stand out from the classic product explainers in the sector.
George Majstorovic, marketing manager at Cazoo, said:
“We are on a mission to transform the way people buy cars and needed a content production team able to produce top quality, modern and engaging content that delivers the enjoyable online car buying experience we want for our customers. Be the Fox were the perfect partner from the outset. They kept our marketing objectives at the centre of creative development and produced content that stands head and shoulders above videos of this sort in the market. On top of this, they were incredibly efficient and easy to work with, and the whole process was seamless."
Client : Cazoo
Production Agency : Be The Fox
EP : Diana Ellis-Hill
EP : Megan Price
Director : Chris Strong
Producer : Laura Richards
Prod Co-Ordinator : Karl Inglis
DOP : Bud Gallimore
Focus Puller : Andreea Gruioniu
DIT & Editor : Chloe Kelly
Gaffer : Noah Furrer
Spark : Sanjay Mistry
Art Director : Sue Ferguson
Runner / Art Assistant : Hannah Thomson
Covid Supervisor : Martyn Jolly
Delightful bunch of films I Directed for Mark Zuckerbergs META Workplace. Each film is showing the various functionalities of the platform for differing purposes. All shot on location in London using a 360 degree camera rig on all our actors.
Client : META
Agency : 1000 Heads
Director : Chris Strong
Producer : Efosa Osaghae
DOP : Liam Morgan
1st AD : Joe Stringer
2nd AD : Kimane Erskine
Runner : Julian Sey
Runner : Sophie Killip
I had the pleasure of working with the lovely people over at Golley Slater to Direct a series of TV Commercials for Mitsubishi's new Hybrid PHEV, the worlds first hybrid SUV.
Agency: Golley Slater
Production Company: Blac Ionica
DOP: Tim Green
1st AD: Julian Higgs
Gaffer: Steve Finberg
Post Production: Blac Ionica
3D Animation & Design: Blac Ionica
Additional Concept Design: Dan Walker
Roto/Tracking: Trace Effects
Colour: Envy
Sound: SNK Media
Voice Over: Paul Reece
3D Animators & Designers:
Tim Marchant
Rodi Kaya
Viktor Berg
Animators, Designers & Compositors:
Melanie Lukhaup
Jamie Howlett
Susana Caldeira
Chris Shone
Kooch Chung
Luis Ribeiro
David Antolini
Delightful bunch of films I Directed for Mark Zuckerbergs META Workplace. Each film is showing the various functionalities of the platform for differing purposes. All shot on location in London using a 360 degree camera rig on all our actors.
Client : META
Agency : 1000 Heads
Director : Chris Strong
Producer : Efosa Osaghae
DOP : Liam Morgan
1st AD : Joe Stringer
2nd AD : Kimane Erskine
Runner : Julian Sey
Runner : Sophie Killip
This is a charming Short Promo/Documentary Film about trailblazing contemporary artist Heath Kane - most famously known for his piece called ‘Rich Enough To Be Batman’, which is an image of Queen Elizabeth in a Batman mask. Heath is a respected figure in his field.
Quote from the Saatchi Gallery about Heath: His approach follows the practice of poster making and design, with a focus on creating simple, iconic and memorable pieces. Within the artwork he tries to distill subtle but often subversive themes.
To give a bit of context, Heath contacted me directly on Insta during the 1st Lockdown last year with the idea of teaming up and working together, as we both follow and like each other’s work. After much discussion we finally got around to shooting something in the 3rd Lockdown. And with the help of a team of lovely people from Cliqq Studios, Family Creative and Academy Award Winning legendary Post Production House The Moving Picture Company - all generously giving their time and expertise to the project.
The film was a labour of love and all involved did it for free, and in return Heath very kindly gave us all a piece of his fantastic artwork. Which funnily enough felt in keeping with the overall spirit of creativity and overcoming the odds; a really nice bit of positivity amongst the darkness of the Covid pandemic.
Heath Kane
Cliqq Studios
The Moving Picture Company
Family Creative / Family Audio
Director & Editor : Chris Strong
DOP : Oliver Suckling
Camera Operator : Toby Essex
Production Manager: Elizabeth Trustrum
Colour Producer : Edwin Elkington
Colourist : Kennedy Dawson
Account Director / Audio Producer : Jonathan Harris
Sound Design / Audio Producer : Pat Lee
This exciting Cinema, TV and Print Campaign for Citroen through Havas followed on from Citroen’s last outer space themed commercial. We were awarded the honour to unveil the latest seven seater from Citroen; the Grand C4 Picasso. We show an astronaut family making the most of the new Citroen C4’s spacious cabin whilst in, er… space.
This This whole commercial was created using various CG programs including Lightwave, XSI and Maya then all composited together in After Effects. We oversaw all the post production from our studio, ensuring that every element and asset fired together perfectly like a huge visual jigsaw. Designing the spacesuits was great fun and the dog one especially! In addition to the TVC we produced online and youtube banners that were used extensively on the release of this new model. Below is the 360 degree loop used on youtube.
Agency: Havas Worldwide
Director: Chris Strong
Production Company: Blac Ionica
Post Production: Blac Ionica
Lead Animator: Barney Hewlett
Animation/Modelling: Doug Kennedy
Modelling/Texturing: Julia Friedl & Craig Clark
Zbrush Modelling: Will Preston
Lead Compositor: Jamie Howlett
Compositor: Tim Marchant
Colourist: James Banford @ The Mill
Sound Design: Angell Sound
Voice Over: Peter Serafinowicz
This is a story about community, identity and the power of dance to nourish the soul. Jonathon Prestney pursued their childhood passion to become a professional dancer. Their intense career enabled them to tour the world but also led to burnout. In search of respite, Jonathon returned home to Colchester just before the pandemic hit.
Going home gave them the time to truly reflect on friends in the LGBTQ+ community they had lost due to suicide. Jonathon felt compelled to share with others how dance had helped them through their darkest days. They defied the odds during the pandemic to create Movement Space, a thriving business and a supportive community centred around dance.
I had the pleasure of shooting this lovely TVC film up in beautiful Scotland with my wonderful Producer Lucy Frances Ball and all the fantastic team up there at my reps Greenroom Films.
This deals with a subject matter that I feel may resonate with many during this awful time. I sincerely hope that none of you have had to attend any of these recently, but it's about Funeral services, for Scotmid Co-operative.
Some effective and sensitively written creative work here about a difficult topic for us all, by the lovely team at agency PUNK
Agency: Punk
Prod Co: Greenroom Films
Director: Chris Strong
EP: Lucy Ball
DP: David Liddell
Edit: Chris Tuszewski
Colourist: Jess Vile
Sound Mix: John Vick
Production Manager: Katie Welsh
Production Coordinator: Andrew Compston
FP: Michael Neal
Sound Rec: Guy Satchwell
Lighting supplied: Steve Arthur
Stylist: Zoe Radcliffe
Location finder: Rhian Howells
Runner: Danny Strasser
Equipment: No Drama
I Directed these absurd series of ads for the lovely people over at RBH. Making sure people always contact a professional contractor for any electrical work they need doing.
Agency: RBH
Client: NICEIC
Director: Chris Strong
Producer: Josh Boswell
Production: Nathan Miah, Ben Bradley
DOP: Shaun Atherton
1st AC: Ben Oliver
2nd AC: Jan Koblanski
VT Op: Duncan Lees
1st AD: Stevie Fylan
3rd AD: Tom Coulter
Gaffer: Phil Hurst
Sparks: Grant Weir & Shaun Kane
Sound: Adrian Tomlin
Make Up: Louise Meadows
Make Up Assistant: Rutchi Rana
Costume Designer: Emma Parker
Costume Assistant: Zoe Wilson
Set Designer: Mark Wilson
Art Director: Mally Smith
Art Assistant: Alex Thornton
Location Manager: Ian Findley
Wrestler: Alex Warmsley
I Directed these absurd series of ads for the lovely people over at RBH. Making sure people always contact a professional contractor for any electrical work they need doing.
Agency: RBH
Client: NICEIC
Director: Chris Strong
Producer: Josh Boswell
Production: Nathan Miah, Ben Bradley
DOP: Shaun Atherton
1st AC: Ben Oliver
2nd AC: Jan Koblanski
VT Op: Duncan Lees
1st AD: Stevie Fylan
3rd AD: Tom Coulter
Gaffer: Phil Hurst
Sparks: Grant Weir & Shaun Kane
Sound: Adrian Tomlin
Make Up: Louise Meadows
Make Up Assistant: Rutchi Rana
Costume Designer: Emma Parker
Costume Assistant: Zoe Wilson
Set Designer: Mark Wilson
Art Director: Mally Smith
Art Assistant: Alex Thornton
Location Manager: Ian Findley
Wrestler: Alex Warmsley
I Directed these absurd series of ads for the lovely people over at RBH. Making sure people always contact a professional contractor for any electrical work they need doing.
Agency: RBH
Client: NICEIC
Director: Chris Strong
Producer: Josh Boswell
Production: Nathan Miah, Ben Bradley
DOP: Shaun Atherton
1st AC: Ben Oliver
2nd AC: Jan Koblanski
VT Op: Duncan Lees
1st AD: Stevie Fylan
3rd AD: Tom Coulter
Gaffer: Phil Hurst
Sparks: Grant Weir & Shaun Kane
Sound: Adrian Tomlin
Make Up: Louise Meadows
Make Up Assistant: Rutchi Rana
Costume Designer: Emma Parker
Costume Assistant: Zoe Wilson
Set Designer: Mark Wilson
Art Director: Mally Smith
Art Assistant: Alex Thornton
Location Manager: Ian Findley
Wrestler: Alex Warmsley
The fantastic team over at HAVAS asked me to Direct a series of films for legendary condiment HEINZ SALAD CREAM to highlight the ‘zingly’ joys the sauce can bring to your meals.
Agency: Havas London
Creative Director: Aaron
Creative: Patrick Comer
Creative: Nick Wavish
Agency Producer: Anya Williams
Director: Chris Strong
Production Co: HKX Productions
Post Production: HKX Productions
Producer: Tom Brandt
Assistant Producer: Tom Lacey
DOP: Matthew Emvin Taylor
1ST AD: Hamish Storey
1ST AC: Philip Heron
Trainee Camera: Nick Randall
Sound Recordist: Paul Zanders
Gaffer: Salvador Gomez-Lopez
Spark: Tom Pittman
Grip: Luke Keafsey
Art Director: Jakob Gierse
Food Stylist: Rob Morris
Hair & Make-up: Hannah Wing
Wardrobe: Emily Pirouet
I co-wrote, Directed & Produced this Music Promo/short film for Black Black Hills’ debut single ‘The Celebration’.
Upon hearing the track I immediately felt inspired to create something that was firmly rooted in British folklore.
‘The Celebration’ is a thematically and emotively dark sounding song. Because of this I wanted to tell a simple but very cinematic and gripping story, focusing on the atmosphere of the track without being a literal translation of the lyrics.
As the track is so evocative, I felt that to do the song any justice I needed to tell a story. I also purposefully wanted to create something that subtly blurred the boundary between ‘Short Film’ and ‘Music Promo’.
The outcome of our efforts was a unique take on the idea of a modern gothic thriller. A story that combines the sort of imagery familiar to ancient folklore, pagan-esque ceremonies and the creepy stuff of ‘pulp literature’ style ghost stories. ‘The Celebration’ purposefully sets out to embrace the notion of a ‘British Mythology’. To create a contemporary fable that celebrates the mystifying forces of nature which lie deep within the ancient woodland and forests of rural England.
The film itself tells a tale of the furtive exploits of an illegal metal detectorist (a ‘Nighthawk’) in a rural English landscape as he sets about trespassing and plundering secluded parts of the land with dire consequences. This allowed us to build a narrative foundation with which we could turn the everyday, the idyllic and the quaint into something far more sinister. I wanted to teeter on the brink of the unknown and play with the primal instincts buried deep within the collective human psyche.
Production Company: Blac Ionica
Story By: Blac Ionica
Producer: Blac Ionica
Production Assistant: Millie Marsh
1st Assistant Director: Isusko Garcia
Director of Photography: Will Bex
Focus Puller: Eva Arnold
Steadicam: Rob Hart
2nd AC/DIT Tech: Lami Okrekson
Casting Director: Jane Frisby
Location Manager: Ben Carter @ Lovely Locations
Stylist: Adelaide Turnbull
Make-Up: Jo-Jo Copeman
Art Department / Props: Rebecca Todd
Art Department Assistant: George Evennett
Catering day 1: Sasha Turnbull
Catering day 2: Ambassador Catering
Runners: Jess Bishopp, Chris Shooter, Daisy Gatehouse
Storyboards: Sally Pring
Editors: Alec Rossiter, Leanne Welham
Head of Production @ MPC: Jonathan Davies
Colourist/Grade @ MPC: Steve Gatti
Producer @ MPC: Glen Purcevil
VFX: Blac Ionica
Additional VFX: Barnaby Hewlett
Compositing: Barnaby Hewlett, Jamie Howlett, Kooch Chung
Sound Design: Blac Ionica
Cast
Metal Detectorist: Frank Jakeman
Woman: Helen Terry
Police Officer: Lee Harris
Shadows: Arno Baernhoft, Christopher Beck, Riyonn Farsad, Michael Tomlinson
The lovely bunch over at Saatchi & Saatchi asked me to Direct a series of films for Visa to celebrate the Fifa World Cup 2018. Highlighting the various ways you can pay like legendary player Zlatan Ibrahimovic using Visa Contactless and not miss a vital second of the World Cup.
AGENCY: Saatchi & Saatchi
AGENCY PRODUCER: Stephen Riera
AGENCY EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Sophie Lee
AGENCY CREATIVES: Gabriel Garcia & Felipe Sampaio
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Inside Job
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
1ST AD: Hamish Storey
DOP: Matthew Emvin Taylor
HAIR & MAKE UP: JoJo Copeman
STYLIST: Kate Forbes
ART DIRECTOR: Lucie Red
SUPERMARKET CUSTOMER: Zephryn Taitte
SUPERMARKET CLERK: Meghan Treadway
The lovely bunch over at Saatchi & Saatchi asked me to Direct a series of films for Visa to celebrate the Fifa World Cup 2018. Highlighting the various ways you can pay like legendary player Zlatan Ibrahimovic using Visa Contactless and not miss a vital second of the World Cup.
AGENCY: Saatchi & Saatchi
AGENCY PRODUCER: Stephen Riera
AGENCY EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Sophie Lee
AGENCY CREATIVES: Gabriel Garcia & Felipe Sampaio
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Inside Job
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
1ST AD: Hamish Storey
DOP: Matthew Emvin Taylor
HAIR & MAKE UP: JoJo Copeman
STYLIST: Kate Forbes
ART DIRECTOR: Lucie Red
I had the honor of working with Ogilvy to create a short promo film for these limited edition candles designed by Coarse for Amnesty International. These “Freedom Candles” depict wax forms of the various injustices that Amnesty campaign against, then once burnt reveal lasting images of hope on their inside in the form of beautifully sculpted bronze figures. Hoping to gain attention from collectors, design fanatics, and supporters of Amnesty alike, the Freedom Candles will be auctioned off on eBay on April 19th 2014.
AGENCY: Digitas LBi
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Matt Watson
CREATIVES: Jonny Palmer & Rachael Kendrick
ACCOUNT MANAGER: Alicja Lloyd
AGENCY PRODUCER: Alice Dunoyer
Food Shoot Crew / UK
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Dark Energy Films
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Matt Brown
PRODUCER: Micki Colker-Pearlman
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jonny Beck
ANIMATION DIRECTOR: Thiago Maia
ANIMATION PRODUCER: Thierry Levy
ANIMATION ASSISTANT:
1ST AD: Jai Lusser
RUNNER: Ollie Morris
DOP: Tony Brown
PHOTOGRAPHER: Amanda Stockley
FOCUS PULLER: Will Willis
DIT: Chris Belcher
GAFFER: Bernie Prentice
ELECTRICIAN: Andrew Duncan
ANIMATION RIGGER: Tim Warren
ANIMATION RIGGER: Josie Corben
FOOD STYLIST: Dagmar Vesely
FOOD STYLIST ASSISTANT: Sophie Hammond
PROPS MASTER: (3rd ONLY) Callum Haden
Live Action Shoot Cast & Crew / South Africa
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
DARK ENERGY PRODUCER: Micki Colker-Pearlman
DARK ENERGY PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jonny Beck
ANIMATION DIRECTOR: Thiago Maia
PRODUCER: Sasha Jurgens
PRODUCER: Tandy Massey-Blake
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Seba Pilane
PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR: Sasha Kriebel
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: Lecuer Viljoen
1ST AD: Hofmeyr Scholtz
DOP: Trevor Brown
FOCUS PULLER: Garth Scholtz
AGENCY: Digitas LBi
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Matt Watson
CREATIVES: Jonny Palmer & Rachael Kendrick
ACCOUNT MANAGER: Alicja Lloyd
AGENCY PRODUCER: Alice Dunoyer
Food Shoot Crew / UK
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Dark Energy Films
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Matt Brown
PRODUCER: Micki Colker-Pearlman
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jonny Beck
ANIMATION DIRECTOR: Thiago Maia
ANIMATION PRODUCER: Thierry Levy
ANIMATION ASSISTANT:
1ST AD: Jai Lusser
RUNNER: Ollie Morris
DOP: Tony Brown
PHOTOGRAPHER: Amanda Stockley
FOCUS PULLER: Will Willis
DIT: Chris Belcher
GAFFER: Bernie Prentice
ELECTRICIAN: Andrew Duncan
ANIMATION RIGGER: Tim Warren
ANIMATION RIGGER: Josie Corben
FOOD STYLIST: Dagmar Vesely
FOOD STYLIST ASSISTANT: Sophie Hammond
PROPS MASTER: (3rd ONLY) Callum Haden
Live Action Shoot Cast & Crew / South Africa
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
DARK ENERGY PRODUCER: Micki Colker-Pearlman
DARK ENERGY PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jonny Beck
ANIMATION DIRECTOR: Thiago Maia
PRODUCER: Sasha Jurgens
PRODUCER: Tandy Massey-Blake
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Seba Pilane
PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR: Sasha Kriebel
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: Lecuer Viljoen
1ST AD: Hofmeyr Scholtz
DOP: Trevor Brown
FOCUS PULLER: Garth Scholtz
AGENCY: Digitas LBi
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Matt Watson
CREATIVES: Jonny Palmer & Rachael Kendrick
ACCOUNT MANAGER: Alicja Lloyd
AGENCY PRODUCER: Alice Dunoyer
Food Shoot Crew / UK
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Dark Energy Films
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Matt Brown
PRODUCER: Micki Colker-Pearlman
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jonny Beck
ANIMATION DIRECTOR: Thiago Maia
ANIMATION PRODUCER: Thierry Levy
ANIMATION ASSISTANT:
1ST AD: Jai Lusser
RUNNER: Ollie Morris
DOP: Tony Brown
PHOTOGRAPHER: Amanda Stockley
FOCUS PULLER: Will Willis
DIT: Chris Belcher
GAFFER: Bernie Prentice
ELECTRICIAN: Andrew Duncan
ANIMATION RIGGER: Tim Warren
ANIMATION RIGGER: Josie Corben
FOOD STYLIST: Dagmar Vesely
FOOD STYLIST ASSISTANT: Sophie Hammond
PROPS MASTER: (3rd ONLY) Callum Haden
Live Action Shoot Cast & Crew / South Africa
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
DARK ENERGY PRODUCER: Micki Colker-Pearlman
DARK ENERGY PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jonny Beck
ANIMATION DIRECTOR: Thiago Maia
PRODUCER: Sasha Jurgens
PRODUCER: Tandy Massey-Blake
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Seba Pilane
PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR: Sasha Kriebel
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: Lecuer Viljoen
1ST AD: Hofmeyr Scholtz
DOP: Trevor Brown
FOCUS PULLER: Garth Scholtz
AGENCY: Digitas LBi
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Matt Watson
CREATIVES: Jonny Palmer & Rachael Kendrick
ACCOUNT MANAGER: Alicja Lloyd
AGENCY PRODUCER: Alice Dunoyer
Food Shoot Crew / UK
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Dark Energy Films
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Matt Brown
PRODUCER: Micki Colker-Pearlman
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jonny Beck
ANIMATION DIRECTOR: Thiago Maia
ANIMATION PRODUCER: Thierry Levy
ANIMATION ASSISTANT:
1ST AD: Jai Lusser
RUNNER: Ollie Morris
DOP: Tony Brown
PHOTOGRAPHER: Amanda Stockley
FOCUS PULLER: Will Willis
DIT: Chris Belcher
GAFFER: Bernie Prentice
ELECTRICIAN: Andrew Duncan
ANIMATION RIGGER: Tim Warren
ANIMATION RIGGER: Josie Corben
FOOD STYLIST: Dagmar Vesely
FOOD STYLIST ASSISTANT: Sophie Hammond
PROPS MASTER: (3rd ONLY) Callum Haden
Live Action Shoot Cast & Crew / South Africa
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
DARK ENERGY PRODUCER: Micki Colker-Pearlman
DARK ENERGY PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jonny Beck
ANIMATION DIRECTOR: Thiago Maia
PRODUCER: Sasha Jurgens
PRODUCER: Tandy Massey-Blake
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Seba Pilane
PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR: Sasha Kriebel
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: Lecuer Viljoen
1ST AD: Hofmeyr Scholtz
DOP: Trevor Brown
FOCUS PULLER: Garth Scholtz
AGENCY: Digitas LBi
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Matt Watson
CREATIVES: Jonny Palmer & Rachael Kendrick
ACCOUNT MANAGER: Alicja Lloyd
AGENCY PRODUCER: Alice Dunoyer
Food Shoot Crew / UK
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Dark Energy Films
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Matt Brown
PRODUCER: Micki Colker-Pearlman
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jonny Beck
ANIMATION DIRECTOR: Thiago Maia
ANIMATION PRODUCER: Thierry Levy
ANIMATION ASSISTANT:
1ST AD: Jai Lusser
RUNNER: Ollie Morris
DOP: Tony Brown
PHOTOGRAPHER: Amanda Stockley
FOCUS PULLER: Will Willis
DIT: Chris Belcher
GAFFER: Bernie Prentice
ELECTRICIAN: Andrew Duncan
ANIMATION RIGGER: Tim Warren
ANIMATION RIGGER: Josie Corben
FOOD STYLIST: Dagmar Vesely
FOOD STYLIST ASSISTANT: Sophie Hammond
PROPS MASTER: (3rd ONLY) Callum Haden
Live Action Shoot Cast & Crew / South Africa
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
DARK ENERGY PRODUCER: Micki Colker-Pearlman
DARK ENERGY PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jonny Beck
ANIMATION DIRECTOR: Thiago Maia
PRODUCER: Sasha Jurgens
PRODUCER: Tandy Massey-Blake
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Seba Pilane
PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR: Sasha Kriebel
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: Lecuer Viljoen
1ST AD: Hofmeyr Scholtz
DOP: Trevor Brown
FOCUS PULLER: Garth Scholtz
AGENCY: Digitas LBi
CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Matt Watson
CREATIVES: Jonny Palmer & Rachael Kendrick
ACCOUNT MANAGER: Alicja Lloyd
AGENCY PRODUCER: Alice Dunoyer
Food Shoot Crew / UK
PRODUCTION COMPANY: Dark Energy Films
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Matt Brown
PRODUCER: Micki Colker-Pearlman
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jonny Beck
ANIMATION DIRECTOR: Thiago Maia
ANIMATION PRODUCER: Thierry Levy
ANIMATION ASSISTANT:
1ST AD: Jai Lusser
RUNNER: Ollie Morris
DOP: Tony Brown
PHOTOGRAPHER: Amanda Stockley
FOCUS PULLER: Will Willis
DIT: Chris Belcher
GAFFER: Bernie Prentice
ELECTRICIAN: Andrew Duncan
ANIMATION RIGGER: Tim Warren
ANIMATION RIGGER: Josie Corben
FOOD STYLIST: Dagmar Vesely
FOOD STYLIST ASSISTANT: Sophie Hammond
PROPS MASTER: (3rd ONLY) Callum Haden
Live Action Shoot Cast & Crew / South Africa
DIRECTOR: Chris Strong
DARK ENERGY PRODUCER: Micki Colker-Pearlman
DARK ENERGY PRODUCTION MANAGER: Jonny Beck
ANIMATION DIRECTOR: Thiago Maia
PRODUCER: Sasha Jurgens
PRODUCER: Tandy Massey-Blake
PRODUCTION MANAGER: Seba Pilane
PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR: Sasha Kriebel
PRODUCTION ASSISTANT: Lecuer Viljoen
1ST AD: Hofmeyr Scholtz
DOP: Trevor Brown
FOCUS PULLER: Garth Scholtz
I shot this commercial on location in Manchester using the RED camera at twilight. This was to advertise Sony Playstation’s latest hand-held extravaganza; the 'pspGO'. A revolutionary hand-held console as it’s gaming functions entirely on downloaded content. The purpose of this International commercial was to indicate that by using wireless connections it is possible to download content onto the pspGO virtually anywhere.
Production Company: Another Film Company
Agency: Love Creative
DOP: Baz Irvine
VFX: Blac Ionica
Sound Design: Blac Ionica
Voice Over: Nicholas Holt
Post: Prime Focus
Victorian Plumbing contacted commissioned me to make this quirky and absurd comedy commercial into a reality. Based on a simple idea taken to extremes to convey the elated feeling one gets from sourcing the dream bathroom at Victorian Plumbing. This one is centred around our hero character Jeff; an average suburban dad, who is transported back in time to the heady days of disco, as he performs an effortless celebratory boogie down the hallway of his typical suburban family home after having a shower. The expertly performed wry voiceover was provided by CH4’s ‘Fresh Meat’ Professor Tony Gardner, whilst the awesomely catchy disco track is by the brilliant disco legends Odyssey.
Production Company: Blac Ionica
DOP: Matt Fox
1st AD: Jai Lusser
Post Production: Blac Ionica
Animation & Design: Blac Ionica
Colour: The Mill
Music Supervision: Ark Music
Music Track: Back To My Roots – Odyssey
Sound: Strings & Tins
Voice Over: Tony Gardner
Animators, Designers & Compositors:
Melanie Lukhaup
Jamie Howlett
I had the pleasure of working with the lovely people over at BMB to Direct a series of TV Commercials for Everline. BMB and Everline Business Credit commissioned me to make a pair of quirky and absurd Commercials. This one is centred on our inner 'Control Freak'.
Production Company: Blac Ionica
Producer: Brigitte Leicht
Agency: Beattie McGuinness Bungay
Copywriter: Christopher Keatinge
Art Director: Dan Bennett
Agency Producer: James Bolton/ Rory O’Connell
Agency Planner: Jamie Inman
DOP: Matt Fox
Post Production: Blac Ionica
Sound Design: 750 MPH
Voice Over: Jon Culshaw
Final Grade: Smoke & Mirrors
Fallon approached me to help with this bonkers project for Cadbury’s. In true Cadbury's style, the vision was to create ridiculous scenarios in deliberately composited backgrounds harking back to Police Squad style compositions. All the films were filmed over a three day period in Malcolm Ryan Studios. The end result is a bonkers combination of styles and concepts all mashed together to form some very silly but watchable Commercials.
Agency: Fallon
Director: Chirs Strong
Producer: Amber Clayton
Creatives: Charli Plant, Laura Saraiva
DOP: Matt Fox
Post Production: Blac Ionica
Sound Design: Unit
Voice Over: Mark Heap
Final Grade: Unit
This film focuses on a business owner’s inner ‘Top Dog’, c’mon people… it’s a French Bulldog wearing a bowler hat and monocle, what’s not to like?!
The distinctive voice over was provided by impersonator extraordinare and ‘Spitting Image’ legend Jon Culshaw.
We really wanted to give the concept a real Art Directed feel and so pushed the look as much as possible. Our Art Director, Rebecca Todd worked wonders with this project. Also we were very lucky to get an extremely well behaved dog. In the end we felt he actually quite liked wearing a bowler hat and monocle.
Production Company: Blac Ionica
Producer: Brigitte Leicht
Agency: Beattie McGuinness Bungay
Copywriter: Christopher Keatinge
Art Director: Dan Bennett
Agency Producer: James Bolton/ Rory O’Connell
Agency Planner: Jamie Inman
DOP: Matt Fox
Post Production: Blac Ionica
Sound Design: 750 MPH
Voice Over: Jon Culshaw
Final Grade: Smoke & Mirrors
This is the Title Sequence for E4’s Chris Addison hosted comedy show “Show & Tell”. We had a great time creating these, the concept was based around the idea of ‘showing’ and ‘telling’. Creating beautifully shot vignettes depicting the act of both showing and telling in a variety of ways.
The concept for these Titles is essentially very very simple; distil the overall idea of the program down into simple yet intentionally heavily art directed series of vignettes. The result of which is that on one side of the screen the viewer can see the act of “showing” and on the the other side of the screen they see the act of “telling”.
Because the idea was so simple it allowed us to be really playful with the content of the vignettes, bending the rules a little with the semantics of “Show & Tell”, and putting a few jokes in there that the viewer may not necessarily pick up on from their first viewing. One of the advantages about this approach is that it means the viewer will hopefully pick up on something new each time they watch the show.
TV Production Company: Avalon Television
Exec Producer: Robyn O’Brien
Producer: Mark Iddon
Production Manager: Lay-ee Quah
Director: Chris Strong
Production Company: Blac Ionica
D.O.P: Will Bex
Editor: Alec Rossiter
Post Production: Blac Ionica
Music: Hot Chip
