When Ying-Poi De Lacy joined Spitfire a year and a half ago, EP Liesl Lategan Kyriakou had a feeling she would be very busy. Turns out, she was right.
Spitfire’s Director AK recently used the new VRtuosus studio in Hyde Park on a shoot for Profmed featuring Springbok prop Ox Nche, becoming one of the first South African commercial directors to put VRtuosus through the real test.
Under an absurd apartheid-era law, that keeps rapists anonymous and silences rape victims, women who publicly name their rapists can be prosecuted before a case has even gone to trial. We had to read that twice. We take a look at the new campaign called ‘NXME HIM’, whose sole objective is to get the Minister of Justice, Mmamoloko Kubayi’s, attention and force this long-ignored law into the spotlight.
Big Cannes Lions news: One of the most sought-after Cannes programmes ‘See It Be It’ just dropped its 2026 cohort, and a South African name made the cut. Congrats Liesl Lategan-Kyriakou, founder and executive producer at Spitfire Films.
Thirteen years is a long time in advertising. It’s even longer in production. Which is why Spitfire’s teenage birthday lands with real weight: a fresh reel, a wall of awards, a new generation of women coming up through the ranks, and some of its strongest creative years to date.
Spitfire’s newest signing is no stranger to the craft, with a decade of experience, Director Ying-Poi joins the production house with momentum. And if you ask EP Liesl Lategan Kyriakou, this one was written in the stars.
This month’s IDIDTHAT.co Craft Awards were judged by Verona Meyer, ECD at M&C Saatchi Abel and Mzonke Maloney, Director at Carbon Films. Congrats Directors, Thina Zibi and Thea Small, as well as DOP Josh Levi for your Best in Craft wins this month!
And this for the spitfire intro: With over 24 years of directing 360+ commercials across 32 countries, Spitfire’s Co-Founder AK is one of South Africa’s most experienced directors. Beyond the awards and on-set adventures, his journey is also about family, personal growth, and a deep love of film.
Spitfire has welcomed director Paul Ramaema to its roster, solidifying the production company’s reputation for fostering young gifted talent. Paul’s work ranges from car commercials to music videos and comedy performance spots; a great fit for a production company that embraces multi-talented directors.
Chances are, the name Katlego Baaitse has been ringing in your ears more frequently, and there’s good reason for it. Currently, everything he touches is catching the attention of the top judging talent, who all seem to be playing a game of ‘Katlego Bingo’ because they all agree; that he is a formidable performance and comedy director. With an insatiable appetite for big-scale world-building Katlego is consistently surprising us with work that is as excellent as it is eccentric.
Director Malehlohonolo Ntsooa, better known around Spitfire as Hloni, has very quickly, with the power production support of Spitfire and Executive Producer Liesl Lategan, built an impressive showreel featuring sports, food, music, comedy, finance and visual effects-heavy spots. We found out how this young determined talent rose up in the ranks of a top production company.
Let’s face it, team Spitfire has never quite fit into the traditional production company box. Over the past 10 years they have always approached work with the same attitude of ‘Where there’s a screen, there’s an opportunity’. But hey, a production company that has an in-house Head of Content is a production company that just thinks differently.
Over 4 years ago JT Moatshe joined Spitfire as their in-house sound designer and music composer. Fiercely in love with film, curious and eager to learn, he worked his way up to videographer and photographer and eventually found his seat at the table as a fully-fledged Spitfire director. JT has already built up quite a reel of content and commercials, but what makes this filmmaker such an agile director is his ability to combine his visuals with his ear for music and sound design chops. Here’s why JT Moatshe should be on your radar.
New Spitfire director, Katlego Baaitse, first caught our attention with the recent Chicken Licken ‘Kentucky’ ad that he directed. Yup, you’ve probably already seen it. Hell, it was even awarded IDIDTHAT’s ‘Best of Craft’. We did a little digging to find out what this new full-time director has to offer and how his unique style may just be perfect for one of your scripts.
Need to shoot a totally impossible commercial but only have duct tape and a match? Enter the new Spitfire – rebranded, now with even more mavericks and still ready as ever to make it happen!
We took the graveyard shift and went inside the dark world of Director AK from Spitfire Films and his latest campaign for DStv #HalloweenSleepOver. We learnt one thing, do not disturb AK, because he already is…