WORKING WITH KIDS

Everyone says never work with kids or animals, but I have ended up making directing kids something of a speciality. (And I worked with a few animals along the way too). I’ve made ads featuring kids for Lego, Kinder, Next, Astonish, Tommee Tippee, Tesco Mobile and Pokémon, from toy and food brands to family-facing campaigns.

To be a good kids commercials director you need to have patience, imagination and a whole bag of tricks to help coax the best performance. And that’s all part of the system I’ve been building for more than 15 years.

Getting natural performances from kids

There are so many aspects to getting good performances from kids – starting with the casting process itself. I have a tried and trusted way of conducting the auditions to quickly filter out those I don’t think will work. And often that isn’t just about the ability to give the performance, it’s about being able to focus for a full day and respond to direction.

How the kids are looked after on the day, working with parents and guardians and knowing when to rest or when to push them are all vital skills I have developed over a long career of capturing the best kids performances.

Working with the realities of shooting with kids

Filming with children comes with real practical constraints; limited hours, short attention spans, chaperones and licensing – and a calm, well-prepared set makes all the difference. I plan around how kids actually work: keeping the energy up, shooting efficiently when the moment’s right, and never losing the fun, because a child who’s enjoying themselves gives you far more than one who’s being managed. Experience here means fewer surprises and a smoother day for everyone – which is what anyone casting children really wants to hear.

Let's talk about your project

If you’re a brand or agency casting children for a commercial — a toy, a food brand or a family campaign — and you want a director who knows how to get the best from them, I’d be glad to hear about it. Take a look at the work in my portfolio, or get in touch to talk it through.