Swedish director Daniel Lundh has landed his first U.S. representation, joining the roster of Eleanor–the production company under the aegis of founder and EP Sophie Gold–for commercials, branded content and music videos. His credits span such brands as Volvo Trucks, adidas, Klarn and Jarlsberg.
Gold said she was drawn to Lundh’s remarkable characters and imaginative execution. She assessed, “Daniel’s films rest on the line between the fantastical and reality, in that his work finds humor in the surreal aspects of life, while staying grounded and relatable. In short, he’s the kind of director that can build rich and believable characters with just a minute or less of screen time and ground them in a world that people can connect with.”
Lundh comes from a creative directing background and defines the central characteristics of his approach as follows. “For me, a director’s work is not merely about executing a script in a beautiful way–well sometimes it is, but mostly it’s not. It’s a challenge. As a commercial director, I think it’s obviously great to know the craft, but it’s equally as important to question the core of the idea, will the communication of this idea work, will people understand? And one thing that’s stuck with me over the years is often to simplify an idea, to strip it down and look at it from another perspective.”
Lundh’s work reflects such attributes as a unique brand of comedic character-centric storytelling as well as a deep understanding and savvy deployment of visual effects.
As for what attracted him to Eleanor, Lundh firstly cited “the opportunity to work for the U.S. market, a market that has been and still is my main source of inspiration when it comes to commercial filmmaking, especially comedy. Secondly, it’s because of Sophie Gold; her track record and her passion for commercial filmmaking made it an easy choice. Thirdly it was Eleanor’s great roster of directors, and I could tell that my work would fit well in here.”
Lundh joins a directorial lineup that includes Adrian De Sa Garces, Alice Waddington, Chris Muir, Dawit N.M., Daniel Lundh, Edson Oda, Elias Ressegatti, Kacper Larski, Kate Cox, Kelsey Taylor, Milo Blake and Woods.
Eleanor is represented on the East Coast by Anya Zander and Jenn Johnson of Hustle, in the Midwest by Matt Bucher of Obsidian Reps, and on the West Coast by Melissa Ross of Melissa Ross Represents.
Lundh also maintains international representation via production companies Spindle in the U.K., Bleck.Co in the Nordics, Gesas in Germany, and Boogie Nights in France.
Eleanor Adds Director Candice Vernon To Its Roster For Spots and Branded Content
Director Candice Vernon has joined production house Eleanor for U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content. She has already wrapped several jobs at Eleanor, which waited to announce her until they had a body of work together.
Via Eleanor, Vernon made history as the first Black director on a Febreze commercial. The “Small Spaces” campaign marks a major departure from Febreze’s typical blue-and-white world. The home of the “Revolving Door” commercial is a beautiful array of bold sunset hues, African prints, and African art.
Vernon said, “I asked myself, what feels right to me? What feels new? I wanted to bring an essence of not just Black Americans but the full diaspora. I wanted to make a statement that we’re not a monolith.”
Following the success of the “Small Spaces” campaign, Febreze brought Vernon back for a comedy-infused trifecta exploring the hilarious situations that call for an air freshening hero.
Febreze Brand VP Angelica Matthews said, “About two years ago, we realized the consumers that were the most loyal to Febreze were the African American consumers. And the more we learned, the more we realized the richness that we were really missing. So we said we have to go beyond just Black casting, we need to get Black directors that truly understand the culture that truly understand how to bring authentic performances out on screen. We really looked around the industry and noticed there’s actually a shortage of African American directors who have experience doing commercials. When we all saw Candice’s reel, we could all tell the passion for the craft, passion for really trying to help us from where we are to where we’re trying to go.”
Vernon brings a unique lens to... Read More