A global community of underrepresented creators changing the lens through which we look at D&I and production.
FREE THE WORK
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Ariela Dorf is a Brazilian director. She intuitively recognizes characters and stories that orbit beyond the ordinary and her vision seeks to uncover the beauty of truth and the poetry found in the raw and real.
Ariela's films stand out for their cinematic storytelling that connects deeply with everyday themes. An example of this is the award-winning film “Postpartum Under Pressure” for Baby Dove, which delicately addresses the postpartum period and has been recognized at various festivals. Her most recent awards include Cannes Lions, Clio Awards, LIA, Ciclope Latino, El Ojo, and Vimeo Staff Picks.
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Born to Italian opera singer parents, Floria Sigismondi has led an existence forged equally in the theatre, where stories are retold, and in the avant-garde, where futures are envisioned. Even her name bears the stamp of these roots. It is fitting then that in her work she has created a film language, which goes against the grain and challenges convention, while never failing to capture the raw emotional truths of her subjects and of the stories she tells. Her immense influence is felt the world over, in the arenas of music video, photography, film and advertising–in each field she has brought her signature spin and never left a project without leaving a lasting impression in her wake.
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Hoj Jomehri is a cinematic filmmaker and storyteller drawn to the deeply human. An Iranian-American and first-generation immigrant, his work explores identity, emotion, and the quiet tensions that shape us. His first feature-length film, Sound of a Dream, was an official selection at the Doc’n Roll Film Festival, premiering in London and screening internationally.
Before turning to longform narrative and documentary filmmaking, Hoj built a successful career as a commercial and creative director, crafting award-winning films for brands like Absolut Vodka, Nike, Xbox, 2K Sports, and Airbnb.
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HOTTA started making independent films as a self-taught filmmaker during his university years, and spent his twenties producing numerous documentaries. His background in documentary filmmaking shapes his distinctive approach — drawing out the essence of his subjects and creating work that stays deeply connected to social issues. In Japan’s hip-hop scene, he has directed music videos for numerous prominent artists, and his work is closely tied to the country’s street culture.
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The Lucky Twins are a commercial directing duo committed to shattering boundaries through soulful storytelling. As disruptors with a global impact, they infuse art with conscious change, creating content that sparks, unites, challenges, and empowers brands and people worldwide.
Their belief is that a harmonious world emerges when people are prioritized, communities converge, and traditional artistry thrives. They are passionate about elevating women, ensuring fairness, and fostering a sustainable future.
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Paola Kudacki is an Argentinian photographer and director based in New York. Her early years in Buenos Aires and her father, a sign maker and artist, were heavy influences on her vivid imagination. Additionally, Paola’s passion for expression also manifested in her career as a ballet dancer for much of her childhood. The diverse artistic background she brought with her has solidified her role as one of today’s most respected photographers, known for her natural ability to convey powerful emotions within a single shot. Paola’s stylish portraiture has appeared on the covers of publications including Time, GQ, New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker, Elle, Paper, and numerous editions of Vogue. Over the course of her career, she has shot many high-profile performers, actors, and models: Beyoncé, Rihanna, Naomi Campbell, Billie Eilish, Lizzo, Lil Nas X, Angelina Jolie, Jake Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway, Adam Driver, Cindy Crawford, and Adriana Lima. Paola’s extensive career as a photographer propelled her natural progression into directing. She recently directed for brands including Nike, Estée Lauder, L’Oréal, Peloton, Rolex, and H&M – to name a few.
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Smriti Mundhra has been working in the film and television industry for over ten years. With partner Ben Rekhi, she produced Bomb the System, a 2004 Independent Spirit Award nominee for Best First Feature, and the award-winning feature film Waterborne. She also co-produced Punching at the Sun, an official selection of the 2006 Sundance Film Festival, as well as over one dozen award-winning short films, including the 2010 Sundance Film Festival official selection and Women In Film award-winner “New Media.” Her other production credits include Oliver Stone’s Wall Street 2, Spike Jonze’s Being John Malkovich, Neil LaBute’s Nurse Betty and both the Coen Brothers’ O Brother, Where Art Thou? and The Man Who Wasn’t There. Her writing has appeared in Filmmaker Magazine, Latina the New York Daily News, Esquire and Vogue India.
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Talya is a Cape Town-based writer and director who creates immersive worlds by pairing a distinct visual aesthetic with rich and complex characters. She is an observer of specifics and behind her subtle irreverent humor lies the beating heart of a story.
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Alina Montero is a filmmaker based in Mexico. With a mother from the border and family on the other side, she spent summers around the south US. Defining her style as magic realism, she loves working with real people in real places, always bringing a warm fictional twist to the pieces she makes. Her work is infused with reality, and with magic, the magic of cinema.
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Having come up through film art-direction, Beatriz brings a strong aesthetic to her comedic projects. But unlike many, she blends her style with substance. Her characters are always three-dimensional and are cast with great care. Her great reputation as a filmmaker and screenwriter speaks to her ability to tell stories with great sensitivity and success.
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Dana Campanello’s creative journey began in the industrial city of Patagonia, Argentina. Bored and restless, a 12-year-old Dana was handed a Minolta pocket camera by her grandmother–through that tiny lens, she discovered a new way to see beauty in the ordinary, a perspective that continues to define her work today. She still keeps that camera close, a reminder of how far she’s come. As a director, Dana thrives on authenticity, crafting worlds that feel alive with emotion and texture. She loves playing with the camera's ability to capture fleeting moments and elevate the essence of the ordinary into something unforgettable.
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In 2021, Martin directed the Degree Inclusive campaign and won the Innovation GRAND PRIX at Cannes Lions, along with two additional lions at the festival. He was also recognized as the BEST DIRECTOR from the US at El Ojo de Iberoamérica. His work has been celebrated at various festivals, including Clio, The One Show, NY Festival, ADC, Epica, Echo, AdWeek Isaac Awards, Ojo, and Fiap.
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From her beginnings, Michu stood out in the world of art and creativity. After venturing into graphic design, visual arts, and photography, she transitioned into audiovisual directing, making her presence felt with a fresh, fun, and sensitive approach in every project she leads.
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Plastico is a creative project founded by directors Ale Roux and Rama Martinez. They keep a style like no other - their work is unique, fresh and always young. They would be incredible partners on this as they are super creative and collaborative!
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Rocio is a Buenos Aires born film director and photographer. Her work expands from fiction narrative to commercial productions and music videos. She mixes a singular boldness and dreamlike sequences with bold feminine energy.
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Alice Rosati is a performer, photographer and director based in Paris. She is a storyteller, building up constructed universes where her characters play different roles, creating visions where the known and the unknown have no more boundaries.
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With imagery influenced by graphic design and fashion photography yet balanced with a natural quality, almost all of Amilcar Gomes’ life has been focused on the mechanics of visual storytelling. Within his films, Amilcar carefully toes the line between narrative and abstract, which provides an interesting contemplative space for viewers to revel in. The result is an experience that feels emotional, mysterious, intense and beautiful. Amilcar’s is a modern and artful approach, and whether it be a still life studio shoot or a documentary-style piece on the street, there is elegant, cool, confident through-line in all of his work.
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Gracie’s work with prestigious international brands stands out for its bold visual style, empowered female leads and iconic fashion, so it is not surprising that she is one of Australia’s most respected young filmmakers.
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Ricardo de Montreuil is a Feature Film Director, Commercial Director and Creative Director based in Los Angeles, California. De Montreuil recently directed the feature film LOWRIDERS for Universal Pictures, produced by Bryan Grazer and Jason Blum, starring academy award nominee Demian Bichir. His debut feature film, LA MUJER DE MI HERMANO enjoyed both the largest release and opening weekend box-office for a Spanish language film in the USA at the time. His second film MANCORA was selected for competition in the World Drama category at the Sundance Film Festival, where it premiered in 2008. De Montreuil is currently developing a feature version of his short film THE RAVEN for Universal Pictures with Mark Wahlberg producing.
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After getting her degree in History of Art in Barcelona, Yasmina did stints at different agencies in London such as Saatchi & Saatchi and Springer & Jacoby. Very soon she realized that her place was behind the camera, so she enrolled at The London Film School to obtain an MA in filmmaking.
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Kaia Lavender and Gary Ravenscroft are renowned for their stylistic realism, innovative visuals and compelling performances. They began working together after working on a campaign for RAM trucks, after which they collaborated on several films for the active footwear brand, Merrell. Since then, their combined vision has produced many dynamic and arresting films, which have earned them multiple awards.
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Sarah is a director and artistic director based in Paris and working worldwide. Her passion for visuals and stories naturally arise from constant daydreams. With a real taste for surrealist visuals, she is often playing on the fine line between dream and reality. Her work is tinged with technology and dreams, telling subtle and emotional stories through visual narratives.
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Scout is a director duo - Lindsay and Jensen. Their work is filled with magical realism, and they love finding ways to interject their Asian heritage with Hawaiian influences. Lindsay comes from an art direction/ production design background and Jensen started out as a cinematographer.
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Sophia Prestwich is a film director from England, currently residing in the states. Her work is founded upon telling stories from the female perspective, with a documentary approach to every film. Her work is largely shaped by her upbringing, constantly being encouraged to express her creativity. Sophia has worked with clients such as Steve Madden, Dolce Vita, Elvie, Rylee & Cru, MixHers, and more.
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Erin Doyle Cooper is a creative-turned-commercial director who makes character-driven, cross-genre films that challenge the status quo. Thanks to a background as a classically trained actor, improviser, and advertising creative, her brand work combines thoughtfully composed images with achingly human stories. Before transitioning to directing full-time, she was VaynerMedia’s first CD, and spent two years in-house at Pepsi, where she and a partner led advertising creative for Lady Gaga’s Halftime Show and the Super Bowl spot starring Cindy Crawford.
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Christo Anesti is a Toronto-based director known for his highly charged visual work with swift, flowing camera moves and distinct sensibility for crafting cinematic portraits of everyday life, where ordinary moments become poetic signals and magnetic feelings. He started out making music videos for some of the industry’s most recognized artists such as The Weeknd, Future, Travis Scott, and Majid Jordan through the directing collective, Kid Studio. After branching out to grow his independent directing career, Christo has become one of the most sought-after directors across commercials, branded content, and music videos, working with some of the world’s top artists, such as, The Chainsmokers’ for their music video “I Love U”, French Montana feat. Drake’s, “No Stylist”, and Big Sean Ft. Post Malone’s “Wolves.”
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Eva Michon is an award-winning director and co-founder of Bad Day Magazine. Known for her creatively daring visuals and playful exploration of character, Eva captures real-life moments with authenticity, accompanied by a sense of irony and absurdity. Born in Johannesburg and raised in Toronto, Eva began her directing career with music videos for bands such as Owen Pallett, Head Wound City, Deap Vally, and Death From Above 1979 before emerging onto the commercial and narrative scene with her stylish and witty films.
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At 15, Melanie’s first job was as an extra for feature films and television. But instead of hating the wait in holding rooms, she instead became fascinated by everything behind the camera, which propelled her to excel in Ryerson University’s Film program. Graduating on the Dean’s List and having her films screen around the world, including an invitation to screen at TIFF Kids International Film Festival before even graduating, Melanie’s ambitions have seen no limits. Foraying into the commercial world, Melanie has racked up clients that include Macy's, Coca Cola, Discover Card, Bank of Montreal, Nike and others.
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Robin Nishio is a multi-hyphenate artist based in Toronto, where he lives and works. The director, illustrator, and graphic artist has been at the helm of mouthwatering food spots for Tim Hortons, Foodland, Schneider’s, and KFC, and a wide breadth of authentic moments for President’s Choice, Home Hardware, OVO Sound, and Samsung. He studied Illustration at Sheridan College before becoming launching his successful graphic art studio and joining Common Good for directorial representation. Robin’s multi-disciplinary background inspires him to inject a touch of whimsy and humour into the everyday with a hypnotizing visual layer. In 2015, he published a comic book titled, Wailed, which chronicles of a group of friends at the vanguard of alternative comics making. His work has been featured in publications such as Arkitip, LoDown, and Color.
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Alfonso is an American film and television director who began his career as a personal assistant to Martin Scorsese, Nora Ephron, Robert De Niro and Alejandro González Iñárritu. Some of his TV credits include episodes of “Glee” and “American Horror Story,” and he received Emmy nominations for directing and producing the mini-series “American Horror Story: Coven.”
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Alison began her career in TV at VH1, MTV, the History Channel, National Geographic, Sundance Channel and Showtime. She is the recipient of a National Endowment for the Humanities Award, a New York Women in Film and Television Award. She has directed numerous critically acclaimed short and feature-length documentaries on art stars, including The Jeff Koons Show and Matthew Barney No Restraint.
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Arielle Pytka is an American and French multi media artist. She resides between Los Angeles and Paris. Her artwork has appeared in multiple solo and group exhibitions in Los Angeles, Miami, Paris, London, and Indonesia. Her exhibitions have featured a wide range of mediums including painting, photography, sculpture, video, and an automobile amongst others. She has worked professionally as a lighting and drum technician for touring bands in the United States, Europe, and Australia. Pytka has also worked as a motion picture cinematographer leading her to direct her own projects. Arielle now directs music videos and commercials. An avid surfer and sailor, she traveled and surfed with the Roxy/Quiksilver team across the globe and has completed three transatlantic crossings crewing on vintage and modern sailboats. Her sailing team has won the 2015 Panerai Transatlantic Classique, Les Voiles De Saint Tropez, 2008 Falmouth Pendennis Cup, Fife Regatta in Scotland, and many others. Arielle still actively works as race crew on several sailboats for various regattas when she’s not working out of her studio in California or France.
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Rylee is a Forbes 30 Under 30, Telly Award winning, comedy director and writer. Storytelling is in her DNA; she’s the granddaughter of Hollywood actor Buddy Ebsen, and comedian/advertising creative director Stan Freberg. She’s directed commercials and branded content for some of the world’s largest brands and her recent narrative work has screened at Palm Springs, Brooklyn Film Festival, Dances with Films, Women’s Comedy Festival Chicago (where Rylee won “BEST DIRECTOR”), Just For Laughs (where she won 2nd place for “BEST FILM”), and Hollyshorts.
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Øcean Vashti Jude is an award-winning filmmaker whose stated mission is to unravel the truth of the unseen and unheard through the film landscape. A precise storyteller, Vashti Jude focuses on the human condition and the characters of fiction she creates. “It is my objective to speak truths of my communities and of the characters I place inside my worlds,” she says. “I have always directed from a place of light and precision because I am my mother’s daughter.” Her short Prudence about a grieving elderly queer black WWII nurse has screened in over 20 countries and received 8 best short narrative awards. In 2018 she directed the GLAAD award-winning House of Mamis, a six-part docu series about the queer voguing scene in Mexico City. In the commercial world, Vashti Jude has worked with brands such as P&G, Citi Bank, INTO, Besitos, NETFLIX and more. And she continues to develop her feature and TV projects, including Mexican reality-TV series “The Category Is,” about how ballroom culture has evolved beyond New York City and grown to shape queer communities throughout the world.
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BID/BLACK
A platform devoted to showcasing Black creativity and normalizing representation in the ad industry.
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ALLEN HUGHES is a filmmaker and documentarian rivalled by few, whose canon of work is as electrifying and entertaining as it is challenging and increasingly urgent. Allen’s major leap into the entertainment industry came with his and twin brother Albert’s jolting debut as the 20-year-old creators/directors of Menace II Society. Allen and his brother went on to become successful music video directors for artists including NWA, Digital Underground and Tupac Shakur, followed by a career as a solo director of feature films and documentaries, including the critically acclaimed and award-winning documentary The Defiant Ones for HBO. Allen executive produced and directed Dear Mama, a widely celebrated docuseries based on the life of Tupac Shakur. His next film, a biopic centered around Marvin Gaye’s legacy, is currently in pre-production.
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JAKE NAVA’s visual style & authenticity quickly brought him to work with the music industry’s best and brightest; from The Rolling Stones to Arctic Monkeys; from Britney Spears to Lana Del Rey. Jake is widely known for his diverse work with Beyoncé: 10 music videos including “Crazy in Love” and the iconic “Single Ladies.” This legendary piece continues to be cited as one of the most influential music videos of all time, redefining the ‘viral video’ as something interactive and participatory. Within the advertising world, Jake has collaborated with iconic global brands such as Remy Martin, Puma, Google, and Armani, with some notable success along the way supervising commissioned music and in identifying innovative tracks. Inclusivity and diversity have been a continuous theme throughout his career, as seen in his campaigns for Levi’s, Gatorade, and Guinness. Jake’s work has been recognized with numerous accolades including Clios, Cannes Lions, British Arrows, video awards from MTV, and NAACP.
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With imagery influenced by graphic design and fashion photography yet balanced with a natural quality, almost all of Amilcar Gomes’ life has been focused on the mechanics of visual storytelling. Within his films, Amilcar carefully toes the line between narrative and abstract, which provides an interesting contemplative space for viewers to revel in. The result is an experience that feels emotional, mysterious, intense and beautiful. Amilcar’s is a modern and artful approach, and whether it be a still life studio shoot or a documentary-style piece on the street, there is elegant, cool, confident through-line in all of his work.
〰 see work
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Øcean Vashti Jude is an award-winning filmmaker whose stated mission is to unravel the truth of the unseen and unheard through the film landscape. A precise storyteller, Vashti Jude focuses on the human condition and the characters of fiction she creates. “It is my objective to speak truths of my communities and of the characters I place inside my worlds,” she says. “I have always directed from a place of light and precision because I am my mother’s daughter.”
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