Production company Fela has added multi-disciplinary artist Shaun Collings to its U.S. roster of directorial talent. Fela, which started in Toronto and has since branched out with an office in Los Angeles, continues to handle Collings in Canada and now extends that representation reach into the American ad market. Collings had most recently been freelancing in the U.S.; prior to that he had been repped by production house ArtClass.
Collings is known for his emotive branded storytelling, with an innate ability for eliciting comedic performances from world class athletes.
Hailing from West Texas, Collings began his career in postproduction, specializing in design and animation. As a creative director, he has overseen a wide range of commercials, film titles, and broadcast packages. His passion for directing was born from years of honing his motion design craft, leading him to helm live-action pieces with a design-focused eye.
Collings has over a decade of experience in the commercial landscape with work for brands such as Nike, DirecTV, and the NFL; with prior Fela work including Cheerios and DAZN. He has repeated collaborations with Under Armour under his belt, which involved helping to usher in the brand’s new line of fitness technology focusing on a holistic view of health and lifestyle. His long-standing brand partnership with ESPN, spanning over 30 campaigns and counting, has allowed him to utilize his intense love for sports; and enabled huge successes like the ESPN x State Farm promotion for the 10-part Michael Jordan documentary “The Last Dance.” The work demonstrated early pandemic creative ingenuity, using deep fake technology on longtime ESPN SportsCenter anchor Kenny Mayne and garnered several international awards. Shaun has received industry accolades for his work from the Sports Emmys, Cannes Lion, Clios, and Promax BDA awards for broadcast design.
Taj Critchlow, co-founder and managing partner at Fela, said, “Shaun is not only a talented director but also a great human being. Honest emotion and passion are core to any project he takes on and his deep bench of knowledge in post and design lends itself to his ability to approach every job holistically. I have a ton of respect for him and his process and we’re looking forward to providing outstanding opportunities for his continued creative exploration.”
Collings said, “Taj is a huge reason I’m still directing today. He has pushed for me personally and been an amazing champion for so many artists. Our partnership is one based on reciprocal trust and I’m really excited to work more closely with the Fela team across markets. They break the mold every time, and I’m honored to be a part of it.”
