Lance Kelleher, the director whose 30 year career and is filled with awarded work from almost every corner of the globe, has found a home at Photoplay. He will be represented by Photoplay in Australia, New Zealand and Asia.

Kelleher made his name as the director who makes the impossible possible with his flair for directing epic commercials. And yet, the director who once made continents move for Heineken, is just as comfortable bringing out the subtle allure of Mila Kunis.

Originally a New Zealand news/documentary and current affairs editor, Kelleher moved to Sydney in 1983 to take a post at Channel 7 as senior film/video editor, before he migrated to London in 1985 to work for the BBC. These early roles helped Kelleher to finesse his understanding of storytelling.

By 1987, he had set up his own production company, True Pictures, where he caught the attention of HLA.

By the mid-1990s, Kelleher had become a fully-fledged commercial director with an impressive reel. He had also returned to Australia and New Zealand was running his own film and television production company, Kinomontage, and had wowed adland at Cannes Lions with his commercial, Engine Room, for Kelloggs Nutrigrain and JWT, which became one of the longest running campaigns in Australia.

Since then, Kelleher has directed commercial throughout the world for Jaguar, Canon, Renault Global, Lexus, Jim Beam, Qantas, Alfa Romeo, Chevrolet, Coca-Cola, IKEA, BMW, Heineken, Sony and Samsung. Kelleher is also the director behind the much awarded TAC commercial, The Ride, with Grey Melbourne, which is a showcase for his talent for dramatic visuals, VFX post, and in-camera stunts.

Kelleher’s most recent includes projects for Herbalife (USA/global), IKEA (Europe), Nationwide Insurance (USA), Jim Beam (Global), VW (China) and Rexona (Australia). He has collected awards at almost all the festivals that matter, including AWARD, D&AD, Mobius, NYF, One Show and Clios.

“It’s been great to get to know Lance over many catch-ups and beers, he’s a truly passionate filmmaker driven to make his work truly stand out,” stated Photoplay executive producer, Oliver Lawrance.

“The production landscape is changing at a rapid pace and Lance is someone who has truly embraced the filmmaking challenges this entails. I’m excited to have Lance back in Sydney and available for local projects.”

Kelleher added, “Meeting Oli and the team at Photoplay, I was immediately drawn to their talent and ethos. As a collective of creative people, I have great respect for their work and for the wonderful relationships they have built up in Australia and further afield.”

Kelleher has also secured the rights to Tim Bowden’s bestselling novel, One Crowded Hour, and will co-produce it alongside Todd Fellman and Sylvia Wilczynski, with writer-director, Kim Mordaunt, and assistance from Screen Australia. One Crowded Hour is the story of Australian combat photojournalist and cameraman, Neil Davis, who documented areas of extreme conflict in South East Asia for over 20 years.

Watch Kelleher’s reel here.