On The Cusp, Longlist - Commercial

Qiang Diao

Finn Keenan

Riff Raff Films

Qiang Diao is Mandarin for confidence, swagger or flair. It’s an attitude and spirit that’s common place in Shanghai. Many people want it, but only few have it…

Finn Keenan is an Irish filmmaker from Cavan. After spending most of his teens obsessively trying to emulate tricks from music videos that he watched growing up and making short films with his friends, Finn went on to study Film at the National Film School Ireland. After graduating, Finn started out by shooting, directing and editing videos for Irish bands such as The Strypes, Raglans and Otherkin; before moving to London and went on to work with The Wombats, The Kooks, Louis Berry, George Ezra and Willie J Healy. After joining Riff Raff's The Nursery of Evil in 2017, Finn worked on the Nike LDNR and Nike Never Ask campaigns with W&K, directing the social films for both as well as the socials for Halifax ʻThat New Home Feelingʼ with Adam & Eve. He has since directed a Tesco commercial, and his gravity defying music video for MK's ʻBack and Forthʼ won three Gold awards at last yearʼs Kinsale Sharks. Most recently heʼs been galavanting around China directing Nikeʼs latest commercial for W&K Shanghai, which was deemed Shots Ad of the Week in Dec 2019 for its ʻabsurdist, spectactular and uniqueʼ nature. Finn describes his own work (because we made him) as "a combination of surreal comedy, strong visuals and performance videos incorporating in-camera trickery and narratives that keep the viewers on their toes”.