Peer Review: Freddie Powell

Who are three contemporaries that you admire?

Dougal Wilson. He’s got more integrity in his little finger than most of us other directors have in a lifetime. He’s incredibly picky about who and what he works on, and I respect that massively.

Once I got the chance to direct, I realised I could never go back to being a creative. The floodgates were open.

Sam Brown. His visual aesthetic is rich and delicious, and somehow he pulls it off while being one of the nicest people you’ll ever meet.

Raine Allen-Miller. Anyone who can make the jump to features so effortlessly has my full attention. She’s got something special.

Please share 3-4 pieces of work that exemplify great direction

White Claw – Bring the Wave. Sam Brown. This could have gone in so many directions. The choice to shoot some moments in real time and others in slow motion, and the push and pull toward and away from the wave, feels incredibly considered.

 I still get tingles seeing theoretical ideas turn into real things. It genuinely feels like magic. 

Tonal - Stop Working Out in the Past. Aube Perrie took a script that I’ve heard was relatively “silly” in concept and treated it with absolute seriousness and cinematic love. The result is a complete masterpiece. Huge respect to the agency for trusting his vision. 

Numan - Buffet Boy (Director’s Cut). Steve Ayson. You know what this script probably was on the page, and somehow he turned it into this. It goes so far beyond what was required and ends up dark, hilarious, and totally singular. (Oh and that edit. 🤤 Ben Campbell. The Quarry). 

What has your career journey been like so far? 

I spent 15 years working in an ad agency, Wieden + Kennedy. I started in London, moved to Portland, then came back to London. I loved it. Truly, what a job. But I had no idea there was an even better one out there. Once I got the chance to direct, I realised I could never go back to being a creative. The floodgates were open.

Directing can be an oddly lonely job. You build intense bonds with a crew, then the job ends and everyone disappears.

What do you like most about the work that you do? 

Watching it get better at every stage. As a director you set the overall vision, but it’s the departments that come in and elevate it far beyond what you imagined. I still get tingles seeing theoretical ideas turn into real things. It genuinely feels like magic. 

What is one thing every director needs? 

People skills. You’re only as good as the people around you. Honestly, if you had zero talent but were great with people, I reckon you’d get further than someone who’s wildly talented but terrible to work with.

I  love Steven Spielberg for his childlike way of seeing the world.

Did you have a mentor? Who was it? 

When I started out, I really struggled with my mental health. Directing can be an oddly lonely job. You build intense bonds with a crew, then the job ends and everyone disappears, and you start again with a completely new team. There isn’t that steady group of colleagues you grow alongside. 

Because of that, I actively sought out mentors to help me understand how to cope with the rhythm of the work. I try to stay close to contemporaries and people who’ve been there and done it, and Sam Brown has been the most generous and kind with his time.