In less than a year the team at Robot have made some pretty major moves, to say the least. Taking the leap from being a service-only company, Robot now also includes a full roster of directing talent. Having established themselves as a production company with an impressive offering in the local market, what’s the secret weapon behind Robot’s rapid rise to success? Meet Callan Paul, with her fitting new title of Managing Director.
Ayanda Duma is an energetic audacious filmmaker with a bold comedic approach to character-driven storytelling. Unapologetically disruptive, hyper-intelligent and hilarious. When not behind the camera Ayanda also produces beats and bars under her rap alias, YANDU and finds the word ‘appropriate’ offensive. Hold onto your pearls folks.
SHE DID THAT is a female filmmakers showcase that shines a spotlight on the women in the South African production industry. Although we will only be featuring women and non-binary people, the goal is that it will encourage the inclusion of more underrepresented filmmakers across all production work created by South Africans. This month features Director Zandi Tisani from Robot, Director duo Mel & Lusanda from they and Editor Amelia Cohen from Priest.
As Gregg Bailey approaches a decade of directing, he has announced that he will be joining the growing roster of talent at Robot. Well established as a performance director and considered storyteller, we know Gregg’s strength lies in crafting heartfelt intimate moments. In fact, you’ll most likely find that when it comes to an onscreen moment that needs space and time to breath, he’ll nail it.
You might know him as the guy who shoots those unconventionally cool music videos or sexy sneaker spots, but with the announcement that Adriaan Louw has joined Robot, we caught up with a filmmaker evolving into a storyteller passionate about bringing his emotive documentary filmmaking mind and visual aesthetic to narrative-driven work.
This month’s IDIDTHAT.co Craft Awards were judged by Thibedi Meso, ECD Partner at Brave Group and Trevor Clarence, Director and Partner at Your Girlfriend. Congratulations to Monde Gumede from The Rudeboy Collective and Ari Kruger from Sketchbook Studios on being awarded IDIDTHAT's Best in Craft.
We find out more about Robot director Meghan Daniels' approach to filmmaking and how it led to Nike calling them up from New York to direct their ad featuring SA icon, Caster Semenya.
Smart wit, eclectic style and undeniable star quality are not the only things that Director Zandi Tisani will be bringing to her new home at Robot. Meet the bold filmmaker packing a seriously edgy punch.
We get up close and personal with the two new directors joining Robot. Paul and Nelis, both armed with a hip aesthetic and a passion for creating edgy contemporary work, might have a lot in common when it comes to style, but who is most likely to master the art of baking banana bread you ask? Yup, it’s everything you didn’t know you needed to know.
Founders of Robot Air, Robin Hook and Liam Johnson, talk all things aerial as they give us the low-down on their new high-flying offering. We find out what a drone company, with years of experience in production and the ad industry, has to offer the commercials world and why you should probably save their number.
Robot announces that their high-octane no-sleep production company is expanding by signing three local and three international Directors - all challenging the traditional way of directing and all available for your booking (and budget) pleasure.