Great Guns Signs Director James Lawes

Great Guns is pleased to announce the signing of director James Lawes to its roster for UK, Amsterdam, Middle East and Asia representation.

Most notably, James excels in the domain of in-camera visual effects which bring a touch of the unexpected to the everyday, as well as the creation of visceral films that elicit the strongest of performances from actors and non-actors alike. Striving to transfer the art of visual storytelling from cinema to commercials, he aims to embed the audience into an immersive viewing experience. 

This ability to captivate is visible throughout his portfolio, including his dynamic ‘Better Health’ campaign for Public Health England: James’ innovative transitions involve the camera zooming through a fridge, down a sofa, and back up for air through a crisp packet, flooding the film with an energy that transforms the mundane into artful entertainment.

His dedication to the craft shines particularly in Chevrolet ‘RS Moments’, a technical challenge that required the creation of a seemingly single shot to whisk the audience on a head-spinning journey in and out of cars in the city, using drones, Russian arms, motion control and steadicam. With the help of a talented crew – and patient actors – James spent sixteen hours pulling off a four second sequence without an apparent cut. Filmed both on the road and in a studio, the show-stopping shot sees the camera diving into the backseat of a moving vehicle, slide down a passenger’s arm to hit a close-up reflection in their watch and spin off to reveal the driver, before pulling back past the passenger and out the window once more. 

Working globally, James’ previous clients also include Renault, McDonald’s, ITV, Cancer Research UK, Nature Valley, Halifax, Meningitis Now, Accenture, Canon, Royal Mail, Pfizer, and Lexus. These projects have consistently earned awards at Cannes, EvCom and the New York Film Festival, which saw him win Best Charity Film three times, Best Industry Newcomer and Best Director twice.

Outside of the commercials, James is also a keen creator of music videos, TV shows, documentaries, and short films that forge thought-provoking connections between audience and subject. His most recent short, the chilling ‘Be Good’, crowned him Best Director at the British Horror Film Festival and picked up several other nominations from the British Independent Film Festival, Fargo Fantastic Film Festival, and Latitude Film Awards.

James Lawes comments: “Great Guns consistently produces outstanding work. Its roster of directors is at the top of its game and to sit among them is a huge privilege. My hope is to take my experience to date and continue to grow and expand, injecting my particular style as a director into new and exciting projects. I enjoy being creative through transitions and in-camera trickery and I’m keen to see how far we can take it; but I also love emotive pieces where I work closely with actors to draw out heartfelt performances, and combine that with a more traditional cinematic style. Creating an authentic, emotional response is so rewarding, especially when the commercial is designed to raise awareness or support for a charity. Perhaps there’s potential to bring the two worlds together for the right project!”

Laura Gregory, founder and CEO of Great Guns, adds: “James is that rare director that excels not only in the highly technical but also in deeply emotive storytelling. We’ve been huge fans of his for some time so we couldn’t be more excited to welcome him to the Great Guns family.”