Eleanor signs director Kacper Larski for US representation
Action and sports-oriented filmmaker whose work has won at Cannes and the YDA excels at creating strikingly visual environments.
Director Kacper Larski whose work has won awards, driven brands and raise pulse rates across North America and beyond, has signed for representation in the US with Eleanor. The news was announced by Eleanor Founder and EP Sophie Gold.
Larski is a highly visual filmmaker specialising in action, sports and outdoor adventure, with a particular expertise in automotive work. While born in Europe, he was raised in Toronto, and currently divides his time between there and Los Angeles. He’s known for creating films that reveal a cinematic mix between the real and the surreal, combining high end VFX with a raw and often jarring visual aesthetic marked by an accentuated sense of coloUr, lighting, sound design and editing.
Larski continues to be represented by Asymetric in Canada, the Progress Film Co. in London and Gesas in Germany.
The director made a name for himself early in his career, as he won the Cannes Young Director Award in 2016 for his breakout work with Land Rover. More recently, he won a Silver Lion at Cannes, as well as both Silver and Gold at the 2018 Advertising & Design Club of Canada Awards. His reel includes riveting, at times abstract work for Jeep, RAM, VW, Garmin, Budweiser and the Canadian Paralympic Team, as well as fashion-focused spots for the retailers Harry Rosen and Mark’s.
“I’ve had my eye on Kacper for some time, and it was an amazing love fest when we finally spoke,” says Gold about their first Tinderesque meeting via Zoom. “His work is so visually interesting and layered, and he clearly loves craft. We connected on a number of levels, both professional and personal.
“What impresses me the most about Kacper, and what makes him such a good fit for Eleanor, is that he truly wants to push the envelope,” Gold continues. “And I’ve found that if you push something far enough, and in the right way, it becomes entirely new. His work has that quality – it’s fresh and original, and pulls you in.”
For his part, Larski was impressed by Gold’s deep knowledge, not just of film, but of the commercials industry. “She intuitively understands where I’ll fit in, and I’m excited by that,” he says. “I think everyone knows that Sophie is a bit of a hustler, and that’s really appealing to me.”
Everything she’s doing at Eleanor feels exciting
Larski’s signing continues Gold’s drive to shape the Eleanor brand around the work of its directorial corps, which also includes Kate Cox, Adrian De Sa Garces, Elias Ressegatti, Kelsey Taylor, Sean Thonson, Alice Waddington and Woods. “We’re a craft-driven boutique that champions both creatives and creativity, and in that respect Kacper is a kindred spirit,” she states. “The high end nature of his work attests to this, as does the roster of brands and agencies that have entrusted him with their vision.”
Larski would agree: “Everything she’s doing at Eleanor feels exciting,” he says. “To be at a smaller shop, but one that’s armed with big guns and has a big hunger to kick ass and do great work, that’s something I want to be a part of.”
Known for his interpretation of automotive brands, Larski says building on that reputation is one of his goals in joining the company, but that’s not all: “I’m also looking to expand into work that’s more cinematically driven, as well as scripts that are more narrative storytelling. I’m interested in emotive work that stands out and feels special.”
Gold says much of Larski’s subject matter, and indeed the manner in which he captures it, reflects his dynamic, action-oriented ethos, one informed by an ongoing quest for what can only be called personal fulfillment. “It’s like he says in his bio,” she notes. “His work has taken him around the world, and he breathes the human spirit of exploration into every shot. It just pours out of his work, which is why it’s so alluring.”
Indeed, Larski’s passionate embrace of life’s greatest experiences is what inspires him. “I want to show beauty in all things, and while action and adventure is an element of that, I also want to show the human stories that happen in these places, where the adrenaline runs high and people are pushing themselves to the limit,” he observes. “I like to take the viewer along as we go beyond their day to day lives, as I firmly believe it it brings us in closer touch with our sense of humanity.”
Eleanor is represented on the East Coast by Anya Zander and Jenn Johnson of Hustle, in the Midwest by Matt Bucher of Obsidian Reps and on the West Coast by Melissa Ross of Melissa Ross Represents.