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AGENCIES Which agency has the best ratings when you add 'em all up and average it out?
DIRECTORS And if you do the same thing with directors, who's top of that list?
CREATIVES Are you one of the twenty-five creatives who's won a coveted place on this list?
AGENCY PRODUCERS Or are you one of the most highly regarded agency producers in the UK?
FILM PRODUCERS You may have worked out that there's a bit of a theme developing by now.
BRANDS Mind you, this one's a bit different as it looks at the brands themselves.
FILM PRODUCTION COMPANIES Another company list - is your place of employment one of those on this list? If so, demand a pay rise - you're obviously doing something right.
POST / EDITING / SOUND COMPANIES We've bundled together all the tertiary companies into a single list. There are a few prominent companies on here that don't subscribe to DAVID. The fools.
DIRECTORS OF PHOTOGRAPHY Are you one of the best twenty-five cinematographers working in advertising? You are? Then you should be on this list.
You can't spell transhumanism without H&M - now that's a phrase DAVID never expected to write.
A bloke discovers his family's military history and immediately regrets it in this amusing, mischievous piece of work for Find My Past.
This pacy commercial from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reacquaints viewers with the nascent refugees team.
Light and sound combine beautifully in this transcendent piece for LG.
Rising British filmmaker Runyararo Mapfumo has joined Academy Films for global representation.
We each live in our own little world according to this Canadian commercial for IKEA which renders this idea in a literal fashion by having people residing on separate floating spheres.
This surreal offering from director Andreas Nilsson uses deadpan performances to underline the value of goPuff - a food and drink delivery service.
This beautiful film by Seb Edwards uses the sheer quality of the director's work to underline the idea that Aviva are a serious financial company who won't let you down when it matters.
The impact of Covid-19 on live music is laid bare in this atmospheric short film which flits between empty venues and housebound raves.
Charlotte Regan directs this stirring piece of work for Ronald McDonald House Charities Canada that underlines the importance of family in a sick child's recovery.
SISTERHOOD
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This beautiful film by Seb Edwards uses the sheer quality of the director's skill to underline the idea that Aviva are a serious financial company who won't let you down when it matters. It follows a woman who is inspired by a vision of children playing in an idyllic Scottish landscape, as she sets about making her dreams come true.
Her journey north to find her imagined paradise serves as a metaphor for a broader journey through life.
Edwards is ably assisted by cinematographer Robbie Ryan in imbuing every single shot with quality, and it is this more than the story itself which expresses the brand values which Aviva want to associate themselves with.
The impact of Covid-19 on live music is laid bare in this atmospheric short film which flits between empty venues and housebound raves. Directed by Sam Davis and Tom Andrew, the film brims with pent-up energy that should be spent in clubs up down and the country. Unfortunately, no-one knows when (or if) these spaces will fulfil their purpose again.
Choice shots of sad disco balls and smoky side rooms are eerily beautiful, as are the strobe lights which resemble distress signals from imprisoned clubbers. The soundtrack (part ambient, part drum and bass) knows when to get the heart pounding though, and these spasms break the silence in cathartic, celebratory fashion.
Charlotte Regan directs this stirring piece of work for Ronald McDonald House Charities Canada that underlines the importance of family in a sick child's recovery. As a boy and his family enter their accomodation late at night, we realise they’re in it for the long haul.
The reality of extended care is well-handled: movie nights are interspersed with hospital visits, kickabouts with convalescence, and laughter with fraught silence. A shot of mum and dad hushed in the laundry room neatly illustrates the emotional toll.
This tactful blend of highs and lows keep viewers engaged thoughout the two-minute runtime, with an assured Regan keeping the schmaltz at bay. Plenty of care has been taken with the subject matter, and it's paid off for all concerned.
Health food enthusiasts Graze introduce a CEO with a twist in this entertaining ad. The brand's new Chief Eating Officer is uniquely suited for her position among the creators of all things nutty, oaty, and otherwise earthy and edible - that is to say, she's a squirrel.
Lovely animation work on the diminutive boss helps the ad's humour land, as does the sheer difference in scale between her and her bipedal colleagues. The ad strikes a fourth-wall-breaking tone from the start, riffing on The Office's mockumentary style as bemused employees shoot looks to camera.
Director Henry Littlechild has struck a good balance between the absurd and the mundane here, with the weirdness of a cross-species workspace ultimately superseded by the power of a bad pun. Such things are classics for a reason, we suppose.
The water treatment process becomes an adventure in this chirpy commercial for Anglian Water. The ad follows a young girl just learning about what it takes to make the taps run, and charts her rapid acquisition of knowledge around chemical cleaning, conservation, and the more unsavoury aspects of drain maintenance.
Director Greg Hackett keeps the pace brisk, ensuring that the drier technical details never bog down the narrative. Instead we see things through the eyes of a curious child, and feel a little spark of the wonder at figuring out how the world works for the first time again. A charming effort from an unexpected (water) source.
A bloke discovers his family's military history and immediately regrets it in this amusing, mischievous piece of work for Find My Past. The genealogy website boasts exemplary access to British army records, and encourages the public to seek out their forgotten relatives of yore... cuckolded consequences be damned.
While the Tokyo Olympics organising committee bid to make the 2020 Games as safe and, erm, git-free as possible, this pacy commercial from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reacquaints viewers with the nascent refugees team. Argentine directing trio PANTERA depict one woman's escape from an unnamed warzone.
This beautiful film by Seb Edwards uses the sheer quality of the director's work to underline the idea that Aviva are a serious financial company who won't let you down when it matters. It follows a woman who is inspired by a vision of children playing in an idyllic Scottish landscape, as she sets about making her dreams come true.
Charlotte Regan directs this stirring piece of work for Ronald McDonald House Charities Canada that underlines the importance of family in a sick child's recovery. As a boy and his family enter their accomodation late at night, we realise they’re in it for the long haul. The reality of extended care is well-handled
The success of WandaVision and The Falcon and the Winter Soldier on Disney Plus must have brands itching for a piece of Marvel action. Sure enough, Chinese smartphone maker Oppo enter the fray with this nimble commercial directed by Nick Bartleet. What it lacks in character development, it makes up
A chirpy bloke named Bjorn fronts this safety-conscious ad for Volvo. Touting the marque's long history of putting driver and passenger welfare above all else, the film follows its host on a tour of the aptly named Safety Centre, where creative tests take place in order to put each new vehicle through its paces before it hits the road.
This handsomely shot McDonald's commercial portrays breakfast with reverence. Bathed in light as they tuck into McMuffins, hash browns, bacon rolls, and more, each cast member savours their respective happy places. One diner even breaks the fourth wall as she slots a hash brown into her Egg McMuffin and says: "We all do it".
The world's most laid-back hula-hooper stars in this entertaining commercial for Lucozade. Ini Kamoze's dancehall classic 'Here Comes The Hotstepper' provides a fittingly rhythmic soundtrack to the bloke's shopping trip with a twist, as his ever-moving hoop and casual attitude draw curious attention from passers-by. Well, it's one way to keep cardio fun.
The past year has brought many of us a renewed appreciation for the minutiae of life... mainly because it's all we've had while stuck indoors. Yet for families with disabled or seriously ill children, these small instances of togetherness and support can often be much harder to come by - something McCain aim to address with their latest ad campaign.
What if Tesco Mobile took over an entire supermarket? That’s the premise of this light-footed piece work featuring new twists on store staples. Once the foundation has been laid - thanks, in part, to a fleet of lively shopping trolleys - the fun can begin. Familiar aisles and counters are refitted and Blue Supermarket's phone division takes centre stage.
Converse and director Jared Malik Royal shed light on a key moment in basketball history here, with a tribute to the Crispus Attucks High School team from 1954-55. They were the first all-Black team to win Indiana's state championship, and Royal believes they can inspire more impressionable youngsters nearly sixty years later.
Hope springs eternal in this inspiring commercial for B & Q, which celebrates the changing seasons. More than a simple call to appreciate the spring thaw, the film offers a timely allegory for a nation slowly emerging from a year of sacrifice - one of isolation, depression, and anxiety. Game of Thrones alumnus Rory McCann provides a mellifluous voiceover, addressing winter in defiant fashion as imagery of frost and ice slowly thaws.
Actor Shaun Evans narrates this attractive commercial for motors.co.uk, who are curious about the nation’s relationship with four-wheeled "lumps of metal". As the Endeavour star explains, this bond runs deeper than expected. This represents another deft example of advertising's response to the pandemic.
Romain Grosjean's hellish crash at the 2020 Bahrain Grand Prix evoked memories of Ayrton Senna, Jules Bianchi, Niki Lauda, and other Formula One disasters. Four months later, the competition returns to the Middle East with an ironic call for fans to make themselves comfortable. A refreshingly human launch film.
Scummy landlords and outrageous rent may characterise not owning a home for many, but this upbeat ad for Rightmove looks on the bright side of renting. Flexibility and novelty are the key words here, as the film follows an adventurous woman who's able to move wherever—and whenever—the mood strikes.
It's rare for any ad with a romantic angle to spark a shred of warmth in DAVID's jaded husk of a heart, but this rather sweet outing for Heineken proves there's life in the old ticker yet. The film focuses on two couples with a central conflict in common: they support diametrically opposed sports teams. The cast's lovely performances really sell their jovial teasing, ensuring that the ad's playful vibes never veer towards meanness.
This amusing commercial for US insurance firm Progressive sees a free-wheeling bloke cruise down the highway on his own two feet... or wheels, as it were. The half-man half-motorcycle hybrid (far less disturbing than Salvatore Ganacci's model) rolls along to the tune of Culture Club's good-vibes classic 'Karma Chameleon', happily taking in the ambience until disaster strikes.
Elsley Football Club may be a fictional team, but it’s hard not to get swept up by their promotion to the top flight in this 60" Adobe Sign ad. When demand for replica kits and official merchandise dramatically outstrips (pardon the pun) supply, marketing manager Kate Morrison is thrust into action.
Despite the blips and the worries, we are clearly approaching a significant moment in the pandemic and will soon gain the freedom to spend time with friends and family. After all the false starts of the last year, it's difficult to get too excited but, nonetheless, we all have varying degrees of anticipation for what lies ahead, and it's high time that advertising began to reflect that mood.
Billie Razors have taken a confrontational stance on the portrayal of women in commercials since their first outing in 2019, and this latest ad is no exception. Directed by Quinn Wilson, the film addresses the concept of a 'perfect woman' head-on, interrogating what that might mean without letting it up for air.
This entertaining, tongue-in-cheek ad for French mobile network provider Free (no relation to Three) examines the tenuous relationship between price and quality. Beginning in the Stone Age, the film claims consumers have been hardwired to pay over the odds for centuries. Short of offering their services for, erm, free, the brand reckon they have a better deal in store.
Acrobatics have become something of a mainstay for Apple when it comes to marketing their AirPod headphones, and this dynamic film from director Sam Brown makes another worthy addition to that canon. With the rumoured release of a third-generation of the wireless earbuds looming, it's the opportune moment to emphasise their portability.
Toyota take a lyrical dive into the journey of thirteen-time Paralympic gold medalist Jessica Long in this enchanting commercial. Framed around her difficult start in life - adopted as a baby from Siberia with a rare medical condition - the film follows her long road from there to sporting glory. Contrasting dimly-lit water with warm flashes of scenes from her past, the film sees Long literally swim her way to where she is now.
There's a cool vibe to this musical commercial for Facebook, which draws attention to how the social media giant can help boost small businesses. The retro soundtrack has a Pet Shop Boys feel, combining a restrained electro beat with spoken vocals which drop with Eighties-style nonchalance. Good ideas deserve to find the spotlight, it suggests, only if they're truly hip.
Having achieved the impossible by muting former spokesman Brian Blessed, Ladbrokes adopt a new, understated approach ahead of the 2021 Cheltenham Festival. As the high-stakes event looms large, romance is in the air. The well-dressed cast each reveal what attracted them to their respective suitors, be it their confidence, their fashion sense, or their, erm, "lean, muscular build".