Morgan Hutchins Joins The Visionaries

The extraordinarily talented director, Morgan Hutchins has joined The Visionaries!

Throughout his career, Hutchins has gone on to work for many of London’s top advertising production companies including the Mob film company and RSA films, working for an eclectic mix of clients.

From comedy to drama to “real life,” Hutchins is adaptable in style. Equally at home on a sound stage with actors as well as shooting hand-held on the streets, coaching performances out of non-actors, Hutchins captures the most surreal aspects of reality. From milking each and every wacky moment, to focusing on the actor’s power and gaze, Hutchins is able to encapsulate the emotion and essence of each spot, effectively telling its story.

We’re not the only ones aware of Hutchins visual talents. Hutchins has accumulated quite a number of accolades, including the coveted D&AD pencil for his work for DDB London & Guardian Newspapers, as well as a few arrows at the BTAA for Kit Kat through JWT.

Furthermore, Hutchins has done his fair share of charity adverts, which he finds very rewarding. He’s worked with Oxfam, Guide dogs for the Bling and Sport relief, as well as received accolades for his work from David Reviews (Sportsaid receiving 5 stars).

Hutchins has also worked for quite a few big names. He’s created spots for Cadbury, Paddy Power, Budweiser, UBS, Capital One, and Domino’s to name a few!

With an eye for capturing the most out of each moment, and the ability to work in any genre, Hutchins is a force to be reckoned with -- and we can’t wait to see his future work.



Johnny Han writes, directs and produces Crypt TV's 'Terra'

Creative visionary Johnny Han has added another masterpiece to his impressive and diverse repertoire.

Han, a multi-Emmy award-winning director and creator, has recently created a short horror film commissioned by Crypt TV, a well-renowned entertainment company backed by Jason Blum known for “distributing horror themed digital content.”

Han wrote, produced, and directed the short film “Terra,” about a Mother Nature incarnate that possesses the elements and takes revenge on those who have wronged the earth. Released only a little over a month ago, the video has racked up over a million views in its first week in its Facebook release, and now has over 800,000 views on YouTube.

“Terra” is just the latest addition to Han’s ever-growing list of works. Han first made a splash in the industry through his VFX work, lending his unique touch to blockbusters such as 2012, Star Trek: Into Darkness, and Pacific Rim. He’s also won two Primetime Emmy Awards for his work on the TV show, Heroes, as well as a Daytime Emmy last year for his work in, Lost in Oz.

In the past few years, however, Han has started to cross over into live-action directing, primarily working on commercials and the occasional music video. A few notable works include spots for Jaguar, McDonald’s, and the Ghost in the Shell game. Recently, Han shot an ad for Philips Shavers X Star Wars limited collection.

Regarding his shift into directing, Han says that while he will always love VFX work, directing has given him “a more expansive creative playing field to truly dream up stories that go beyond pixels on the screen.” To Han, all the higher stakes are “hands down worth it” when considering his “opportunity to affect people.”

Han states that commercials were perfect to dive into live-action directing since it involves the “same production professionalism” as VFX, involving the ability “to objectively understand [the] client’s intentions… [while] at the same time injecting just enough of [his] own personal creative fervour into the process.” Describing this skill as “the most valuable thing [he] learned in 18 years of VFX,” Han appears to be applying it perfectly to his current works.

A quadruple-threat, Han’s just beginning to show us all the tricks he has up his sleeve.

23lunes directors Jordi&Bor join The Visionaries

Hold the phone, we now represent not one, but two Directors! 

The Visionaries roster continues to evolve, with the addition of 3 other new directors (Jamie Lane, Hardey Speight and Chris Ullens) we can’t contain our excitement about adding Jordi Garcia and Bor Arroyo (Jordi&Bor) to our talented roster.

Known for their studio 23lunes (formerly known as post23), the creative due based in Barcelona, specialise in animation spots, movies and video game cinematics. They have won numerous awards and international acclaim from their two amazing animated commercials for Audi. 

Those two films have won 23 awards at the El Sol Advertising Festival, one bronze at the WARC Awards and a bronze at Cannes Lions, just to name a few. The iconic duo have now collated more than 60 awards, making them the most awarded animation directors in Spain.

They are now looking to make a huge impression in London, when speaking to co-founder Jordi García, he said: “I cannot wait to start working in the UK hand in hand with The Visionaries, we are excited to see what we can bring to the table in this country!” 

Check out their incredible showreel here. 

Borderland join The Visionaries

Borderland have joined The Visionaries for representation. The outfit, residing on Shacklewell lane, join the roster after paving an impressive launch in 2017. A versatile collective, their work is rich and varied, yet everything they shoot has an edgy feel with a highly crafted aesthetic. 

Hard to define but easy to work with, Borderland is a modern, independent creative collective. Formed by award-winning directors, Borderland draws on over 20 years’ experience at top UK agencies, working with some of the world’s biggest brands. They specialise in a creative and flexible approach to cross platform content, from story development to distribution. Their network of creative talent reaches beyond the traditional advertising arena. They are filmmakers, editors, writers, journalists, and musicians. They are unique in their blended backgrounds, from advertising to story research and development, they are creatives who make each story richer with their individual talents and life experience.

Perhaps they are best defined in their own words... 'We believe our modern approach to filmmaking is not only critical for the current market but also effective in creative integrity and craft. We are confident our unique marriage of nimble and agile teams, along with rigorous craft and attention to detail, is a winning solution for all channels, from high profile TV commercials, to longer form online campaigns, to feature length documentaries.'

You can view more of Borderland's work here.

Sye Allen Directs New Very Spot 'Shake Up'

Visionaries director Sye Allen has directed the latest TVC for Very. The new spot celebrates the spring range in vibrant fashion.

The spot earned four stars from David Reviews, you can read the full review here.

Creative Agency: St Luke's
Creative: Claire Wombell/Laura Stephens
Account Director: Sophia Lane
Account Manager: Emily Gill-Heginbotham
TV Producer: Chloe London
Film Production: Apostle
Director: Sye Allen
Director's Agent: The Visionaries
Producer: Rachel Rumbold
Editor: Sye Allen/Josh Gemmell
Post Production: Electric Theatre Collective
Sound Designer: Ben Leeves @ Jungle

James Morgan Joins The Visionaries

Esteemed documentary director James Morgan has joined The Visionaries for representation. As well as having shot pieces for Vaseline, Grant's Whiskey, Facebook and more, James has made a plethora of short and feature films, including the feature documentary film 'Jago' featured on the BBC and now on Netflix. 'Jago: A Life Underwater' tells the story of Rohani, an eighty year old Indonesian deep sea hunter who descends deep underwater for several minutes on end. James' latest film Seven, a BFI-backed drama shot up in the high Arctic, is due for release this year. 

Known for his breathtaking visuals, James is partnering with The Visionaries to produce groundbreaking cinematic work for the documentary advertising market.

You can view all of James' work here.

Martin Bennett Directs Slick New Spot for Ford Mustang

Martin Bennett has directed a new spot showing off the new Ford Mustang. The ad shows off the Mustang's 'Driving Experience' and was shot on location in the South of France at the Paul Ricard racetrack. Speaking on the spot, Martin said, 'I’m thrilled about this project as the Mustang is a truly beautiful car, it looks fast without even turning a wheel! The Mustang screams fun, so I’m super excited about working with it and bringing it to life.'

You can view the rest of Martin's work here.

Credits:

Director - Martin Bennett
Producer - Keiko Nagai
DOP - Jean-Baptiste Jay
1st AD - Jeremy Kincaid-Smith

Agency - GTB
CD - Nigel Edginton-Amor
CD - Richard Last
Agency Producer -Alison Cummins

Johnny Han Directs New Spot For World Remit

Johnny Han has directed a new spot for the online money transfer service World Remit. The spot shows a wonderfully diverse group of people coming together and building drones and Chinese lanterns before releasing them into the night sky. 

Known more for his VFX heavy work, the video shows a different side to Johnny's directing skills, highlighting a talent for interaction. The ad caps off a great end to the year for Johnny, who since joining The Visionaries in August of this year, has worked with brands such as NFL, Phillips/Star Wars and now World Remit. To see more of Johnny's work, click here.

Sye Allen Directs Bill Nighy In Heartwarming Short For Jo Cox Foundation

Sye Allen directs a Christmas story about a lonely mince pie for the Jo Cox Foundation. Narrated by the great Bill Nighy, the short, highlighting a brilliant initiative inspired by the late MP, encourages anyone who feels lonely over the Christmas period to meet up for a chat over a mince pie.

#MincePieMoments is part of a larger initiative called the Great (Christmas) Get Together that encourages people to build positive connections in their communities. This is the second spot in a row that Sye has teamed up with St Luke's for, after their 'Duty to Delight' campaign for Pol Roger last month. Watch it and more of Sye's work here.

Credits:

DIRECTOR: Sye Allen

DOP: Edward Gibbs

EXECUTIVE CREATIVE DIRECTOR: Richard Denney

COPYWRITER: Mick Brigdale

PRODUCERS: Jenny Busby and Chloe London

CREATIVE AGENCY: St. Luke’s

Sam Washington Directs New Idents For Citroën

Sam Washington has directed the first batch of idents for Citroën and Channel 4. The spots below are Citroën's ads that will sponsor the show First Dates from January onwards.

The four (out of twenty), fifteen second idents show off Sam's talent for tongue in cheek comedy and performance to camera. The spots capped off a great 2017 for Sam, having worked on previous campaigns for Benefit, Netflix, Mountain Dew and Camden Hells to name a few. Check out more of his work here.

Credits:

Creative Director - Elliot Harris

Creative Team - Joe Williams

Director - Sam Washington

Director of Photography - Paul O'Callaghan

Producer - Alex Davis

Executive Producer - Louise Hardy

Gundeep Anand Holds Anniversary Tournament For The Last Stand

Director Gundeep Anand held a commemorative tournament for his Last Stand football event on the 21st of November. This was organised and created by Gundeep as a one year anniversary for his four-a-side street football tournament that exploded onto the London scene last year. You can watch his video of the night below. 

The Last Stand celebrates the skills and talent of street football and the inclusiveness it brings, with people from four different London boroughs taking part, even attracting the likes of Everton Winger Yannick Bolasie (see below).

Gundeep's got big plans to take The Last Stand to a national stage, next up is Birmingham, as he and his team head north.

Sam Washington Directs San-Fran Glam Christmas Spot For Benefit

It's another Christmas ad! This time, it's Sam Washington's take on the festive commercial for cosmetic brand Benefit. With the pun-derful tag line 'Bring on the Winter Wonderglam!', Sam takes a smart idea and elevates it to a great ad. Some good performances combined with a great line 'There's a glamarous 70s Christmas disco party happening in my wardrobe.' makes for a memorable ad.

El Carousel's, Executive Creative Director, Charles Battrick had the following to say on the spot. 'Meshing nicely with the SanFran-Glam range, it is set to boost Benefit [sic] presence this Christmas and undoubtedly extend the fanbase of it’s [sic] cheeky personality online.'

Credits:

Agency: El Carousel

ECD: Charles Battrick
Creatives: Emma Hamilton and Sam Washington
Director: Sam Washington
Producer: Angela Battrick
DOP : Paul O’Callaghan
Editor: Colin Sumsion @ Big Buoy
Art Director: Jakob Grierse
Casting : Lesley Beastall
Composer: Rich Lewis

You can see more of Sam's work here.

Johnny Han Directs Slick NFL Spot

Johnny Han has directed a new spot for NFL Game Pass. The new ad shows off the amazing plays that the NFL has to offer in a variety of different scenarios. You can watch the NFL anywhere thanks to Game Pass and Johnny has really emphasised this in his new spot.

Johnny brings the excitement of the game into the forefront of the ad by imposing the game on the environment around the people watching it. Demarco Murray scores a touchdown on a train, Randall Cobb catches a ball on a building and Dak Prescott gets a touchdown in the trees. You'll know what I mean when you see the ad. Johnny really demonstrates his capability of directing with VFX and it certainly makes for an interesting spot!

To view more of Johnny's work, click here.

Barry Kimber Directs Cute New Spot For Battersea

Known more for his comedy than his dog work, Barry Kimber's latest spot highlights the smiles of dogs for Battersea dogs home. The spot, titled Happiness, talks about the importance of re-homing dogs and cats from Battersea, before switching up the tone and displaying the warmth and loving that comes from a dog's smile.

This isn't Barry's first venture in shooting dogs, he's got a reel-full of stuff. This comes off the back of a recent spot Barry directed for Kronenbourg, watch below.

Take a look at Barry's dog reel here and you can read more about the Battersea ad and re-home and dog or cat here.