The Directors: Alex Motlhabane
Alex Motlhabane began his career making short films at the University of Northampton alongside Lewis Levi in a partnership known as The Rest. Drawn to telling stories with an unfiltered view of the world, that impact with story and emotion.
This later developed into the start of their careers in directing music videos & creative direction, building spirited visual identities for buzzing British rappers - slowthai and Kojey Radical. They went on to create genre-defying music videos, influencing the way people view and create lo-fi content which translated well into his commercial work.
Q> What excites you in the advertising industry right now, as a director? Any trends or changes that open new opportunities?
Alex> It feels like there’s a shift back to putting stories and films that are down to earth at the front and centre. I love that. For a while it felt like there was a heavy trend of VFX transitions and commercials looked like high energy music videos, which is fine but it became over-saturated.
Also the growing importance of social media as a platform for advertising opens up the parameters of what a commercial can be which is exciting.
Q> What elements of a script sets one apart from the other and what sort of scripts get you excited to shoot them?
Alex> How clear and effective it is. Sometimes there’s a visual hook in there that I’d love to bring to life and that sells it for me. Especially when the story being told informs what that is. Oscar Hudson’s B&Q ad comes to mind.
For example, I did some work for Ballantine’s & Highsnobiety, where they said they were taking RZA, a hip hop legend to the Scottish Highlands to learn how their whiskey is made. I just had to do it. The visual was clear in my mind.
Q> How do you approach creating a treatment for a spot?
Alex> Sometimes ideas come immediately from reading scripts and briefs, but in most cases I start every job with research. I research the brand, it’s core message and what media they’ve put out recently because along with making a good effective film, I'd like to make something that builds upon what the brand has been trying to do.
I also look for other bits of media/content that might be similar to the script.
I feel like with that kind of knowledge in mind, it’s easier to go with my gut and make decisions that will help the film we’re making set itself apart from what's currently going on because I’m informed.
Q> If the script is for a brand that you're not familiar with/ don’t have a big affinity with or a market you're new to, how important is it for you to do research and understand that strategic and contextual side of the ad? If it’s important to you, how do you do it?
Alex> It is important to me. I do it with brands I am already familiar with.
If the brief doesn’t mention the brand taking a new direction, I try to source and watch a bunch of their recent commercials and press output to help inform my own approach to the film.
Q> For you, what is the most important working relationship for a director to have with another person in making an ad? And why?
Alex> I think communication is key in filmmaking. As a director that’s pretty much all you’re doing and making sure what you’re trying to achieve is clear to everybody else. So in my opinion, a good producer who you have a good understanding with is irreplaceable in making any type of film. They’re often the people who you start and end a job with and a producer who you’re properly aligned with can help all of that feel easy and manageable.
Q> What type of work are you most passionate about - is there a particular genre or subject matter or style you are most drawn to?
Alex> I like dark comedy, with a pinch for fantasy. I think that’s evident in some of our work with slowthai. That balancing act of tone is something I’m attracted to. Everyday stories, told in unusual ways.
Q> What misconception about you or your work do you most often encounter and why is it wrong?
Alex> Most of the work we have done so far have been with sports talent. Whilst I do enjoy those types of jobs, I’d like the opportunity to diversify the type of work we’ve done.
Q> What’s the craziest problem you’ve come across in the course of a production – and how did you solve it?
Alex> I don’t know about crazy, but it was definitely difficult to manage working with a company that was going through a change in their image and design during the production. That combined with the amount of people who were involved bred a lot of miscommunication and confusion from all sides of things. Script and details kept changing all throughout and blame gets pushed around…
Things could have gotten heated but you just keep a cool head, help breed a calm atmosphere and you just work through it.
Q> How do you strike the balance between being open/collaborative with the agency and brand client while also protecting the idea?
Alex> I think it comes with the job. You have to be open, willing to listen and be at service. It doesn’t mean listening and giving in to every note but I’ve learnt that in filmmaking you have to be prepared to constantly prove your idea works, and that you’re the right person for the job.
Q> What are your thoughts on opening up the production world to a more diverse pool of talent? Are you open to mentoring and apprenticeships on set?
Alex> That is something I have been doing, from the very first commercial I did. I think more importantly you should bring people in as soon in the process as you can. It’s key for people to see everything that leads up to the shoots and after. It’s just as important, if not more so. That’s what I try to do, plus compensation.
Q> Your work is now presented in so many different formats - to what extent do you keep each in mind while you're working (and, equally, to what degree is it possible to do so)?
Alex> At this point in time it’s only natural to. Social media has been a present and relevant space to share work for over a decade so I don’t really see the problem. Even if you're shooting a TVC, it’s going to end up online, on a phone. Sometimes the stills or a gif end up on the side of an article. Does it change how we put together shots or tell stories? No. I don’t plan to see if shots work in 16:9 and 9:16. I think it mostly affects what the deliverables end up being.
Q> What’s your relationship with new technology and, if at all, how do you incorporate future-facing tech into your work (e.g. virtual production, interactive storytelling, AI/data-driven visuals etc)?
Alex> I think it’s great when it’s utilised properly and makes sense . It can be in bad taste if you’re just trying to incorporate things because they’re new. That’s usually how missteps happen.
Q> Which pieces of your work do you feel show what you do best – and why?
Alex>
This music video was about romanticising this forgotten struggling Northampton town where slowthai is from, and presenting it to the world. It had to feel nostalgic, familiar and warm not just to people from there but everyone worldwide. So we gave it this gritty documentary feel.
RZA x Ballantine's
This was a spot to announce RZA and Ballantine’s collaboration, and they were flying him to visit one of their distillery in Scotland. We went for a documentary approach but still wanted to find some shots that looked cinematic which the Scottish Highlands help with.
Our music video background got us this job as we did a lot of chaotic, tongue in cheek music videos for slowthai.
Sports Direct Go All Out was organised chaos. Had to put together a bunch of scenes featuring 16 or more sports stars in a huge snowball fight, shoot it in four days and fit it all within one minute.
McDonalds One Big Decision
This was one of those simple effective scripts and I think all the frame and camera movements we added worked well with what the script had set out to do without feeling too over the top. It was a good opportunity to show we can do something more refined.
