Gerard de Thame began his directorial career in his native England in the early 80s after graduating from the Chelsea School of Art. His first commercial filmmaking foray was in the music video arena through Helen Langridge and Associates. He won many accolades for his work including a Golden Lion, NY Film Festival Silver and Diamond Award for his 1988 clip Black
Its a Wonderful Life, two D&AD Awards (Music Video of The Year and Best Direction) for his 1989 clip Tanita Tikaram
Cathedral Song, as well as a Diamond Award for Best Female Video for his 1989 clip Tanita Tikaram
Twist In My Sobriety. Gaining more and more recognition through his work, Gerard quickly became a major commercial director in Great Britain and Europe. In 1993 he established his London based production company - Gerard de Thame Films Ltd.
He created a number of memorable campaigns for
Barclays Bank,
British Telecom, and
Pirelli Tires, which won the BTAA Best Commercial of the Year, Best European Advertising, Best Post Production, Best Direction Awards and the Cannes Silver Lion. After this Gerard signed with HSI and burst into the American advertising scene creating internationally recognized campaigns for American Express, Audi, Volvo, VW, Adidas, and many others.
The incredible range of spots has led to Gerards reputation as one of the most versatile directors in the industry. He has swept awards for massive effects driven campaigns -such as
Lincolns Surprising Journey, and is also known for small, ingenious performance driven campaigns - such as Millers Twist and
Weird Guy, which won Cannes and Clio awards.
The Volkswagen Synchronicity spot spawned an unbelievable buzz and swept AICP MOMA awards in three categories, as well as having the great distinction of being included in the new work at the Museum of Modern Art in New York in 1999. It also won Outstanding Commercial at the Emmy Awards. The Mercedes campaign demonstrated Gerards unique ability as a technical innovator and problem solver. With
Falling In Love Again he authentically recreated the aesthetic of many past eras and Artists employed groundbreaking animation techniques to revive historical figures for recent clients like Acura, Nike and Mini. Gerard continues to generate incredible spots, constantly innovating and taking boards in unexpected directions.
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