Somesuch rode trust in new directors to a Palme d’Or

The roster of directors that helped Somesuch secure the 2023 Palme d’Or—the most coveted award for production companies at Cannes Lions—may surprise you. Many are relatively new signees, which is a rarity in a field that tends to rely on the power of a few well-known directors, especially for high-profile work. But the results of these fresh faces speak for themselves, and reflect a conscious strategy by Somesuch to seek out new talent and develop them into the stars of the future. See all of Ad Age’s 2024 Agency A-List winners here These are creatives such as Tajana Tokyo, who co-directed a viral spot (below) for Apple Music teasing Rihanna’s Super Bowl 2023 halftime show. King She, a duo recently signed by Somesuch, also made waves for work on behalf of eBay and took home Best New Director at the AICP Show. Developing a new A-team is better than relying on a preexisting one, said Sally Campbell, co-founder and chief executive of Somesuch, which is No. 2 on Ad Age’s 2024 Production Company A-List. Of course, Somesuch also depended on powerful work delivered by the stars of today. Kim Gehrig, whose portfolio includes films for Google and Nike, collaborated with Apple’s in-house marketing team to create “The Greatest,” which won the 2023 Emmy Award for outstanding commercial, the Entertainment Lions for Music Grand Prix at Cannes and the Advertising Excellence award at the AICP Show. “The Greatest” focuses on accessibility, showcasing how real people with disabilities use features on Apple’s products to help them conquer the day. “Quite often, ads like that can be disingenuous,” said Campbell. “But for us, the people were everything.” Also for Apple, Somesuch developed the first ads for the Vision Pro headset. The effort was a combination of excitement and intense pressure, given Apple’s huge investment in the product and expectations that it will be the next must-have consumer device. “We couldn’t put people off from the jump,” said Tim Nash, co-founder of Somesuch. Nash was one of four employees at Somesuch who were given advance clearance to look at the Vision Pro, which was kept under wraps until its launch at WWDC in June of last year. Even Campbell, who is married to Nash, was prohibited from knowing anything about the details of the work. Ad Age A-List and Creativity Gala Buy your ticket to the in-person event Click here Because Vision Pro is so high tech, Somesuch focused on grounding the product through the ads, such as showing its use case for a family. The company shot the work in February 2023, following “months of testing” as far back as mid-2022, Nash said. Other top Somesuch spots last year included Raine Allen-Miller’s “Oblivia Coalmine” for Make My Money Matter; Vincent Haycock’s short films for Instagram; Ibra Ake’s “Endless Repetition” for Nike; and CLIQUA’s work for eBay Motors. Looking back, Campbell sees 2023 as the year the company’s expansion to the U.S. finally landed. The London-based company signed a lease in Los Angeles in 2022, but coming to America brought a host of issues, from new rules to high expenses. What the company needed most was endurance and time. “We’ve worked our asses off,” said Campbell. See all of Ad Age’s 2024 Agency A-List winners here

Somesuch rode trust in new directors to a Palme d’Or

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