Flying High, Longlist - Commercial

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Andreas Nilsson

Biscuit Filmworks

A classically trained painter and sculptor, Andreas Nilsson is known for his fine art-driven, often surreal, and playful style of directing. He entered into the world of commercials by way of set design and art direction in the music industry; a background that is evident in the elaborate, memorable visuals and sounds that characterise his work. His depth and unparalleled sense of humour lends itself to a wholly distinct style. Andreas’ recent commercial projects include Planet Fitness’ Super Bowl LVI spot starring Lindsay Lohan, the epic fourth wall-breaking campaign “A Voice is All You Need” for Amazon Alexa, the oddly mesmerising “Omega Mart” and “Convergence Stations” promo videos for Meow Wolf’s eponymous art installations, the absurdist “Squarespace It” campaign for Squarespace, and the musical tour de force “We Got You” for Dollar Shave Club. He is widely recognised for his 2013 spot “The Epic Split” for Volvo Trucks, which shattered convention and instantly went viral – garnering over 114 million views on YouTube (and counting), hitting every major “Best of the Year” list in the ad world, and racking up numerous awards including two Cannes Grand Prix. The Gunn Report also named it one of the top twenty ads of the 21st century to date, and its viral success ultimately led to Andreas being crowned the most-awarded director of 2014 in Ad Age’s annual awards report. In 2015 Andreas earned the DGA Award for Outstanding Achievement in Commercials and the title of Director of the Year from Shots Magazine, based on work such as the moving “Emily’s Oz” for Comcast, humorous “Dadsong” for Old Spice, irreverent “Silver Skaters” for Rekorderlig, and strangely empowering “Spray Tan” for Southern Comfort. Beyond commercials, Andreas has also worked with dozens of musicians including Kanye West, Moby, and Fever Ray to create provocative music videos and live stage performances where the only thing to expect is the unexpected. In 2019 he directed (and performed in) a stunning live show for Kite at Stockholm’s Royal Opera involving 38 moving platforms and dozens of layered scrims to create a video-driven visual topography.