Director Michael Downing is joining the commercial roster at Biscuit Filmworks in both the U.S. and U.K. He was formerly repped by Epoch Films in the American ad market, and Independent Films in the U.K. Downing continues to be handled in Canada by Partners Film.
Originally from Toronto, Downing has directed spots for brands including Samsung, Netflix, Subaru, T-Mobile, Mazda and Volkswagen. His recent “Pep Talk” commercial for Netflix won awards at Cannes, The One Show and the Clios. His “Sky Diver” spot for Bud Light has been cited as one of the top twenty Super Bowl spots of all time.
Downing is a graduate of the American Film Institute (AFI), where his film “Fine” won a Student Academy Award. He attended AFI on a scholarship awarded based on his short films “Clean-Rite Cowboy” and “Why Don’t You Dance?”, both of which screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, and were nominated for Genies (the Canadian Oscars). Prior to entering the world of directing, Downing studied fine art, acting and theatre, and formed an experimental theatre company in Toronto.
“I’m looking forward to joining Biscuit; they’re such a force in the business,” citing the company’s managing director Shawn Lacy as “a great architect of careers” and director Noam Murro as “one of my heroes.” Murro and Lacy founded Biscuit in 2000. Other directors on the company roster include Aaron Ruell, Aaron Stoller, Andreas Nilsson, Ayse Altinok, Christopher Riggert, Clay Weiner, Gary Freedman (The Glue Society), Matt Devine (The Glue Society), Jeff Low, Matt Dilmore, Mundo Sisters, Steve Rogers and Tony Barry.
