Eleanor, the production company headed by executive producer Sophie Gold, has signed director Rohan Blair-Mangat for U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content.
Blair-Mangat has created films for many major brands, winning several awards including six Cannes Lions. His work has led him to collaborate with prominent talents such as Daisy Ridley, Don Cheadle, Maya Rudolph and Nas, among others. Blair-Mangat’s credits include the short film Bam from JAY-Z’s album "4:44," a Clio award-winning music video with Black Thought to accompany the documentary series Rest in Power: The Trayvon Martin Story, the visual album Nasir – The Film for Nas’ self-titled release, and the series Centerpiece with Maurice Harris, executive produced by Rashida Jones.
Blair-Mangat said of his new roost, ““I’ve known Sophie for about five years now, professionally and personally. She looks at the commercial industry in such a creative way and I really respect the way she’s putting Eleanor together. Everyone in the industry tells me amazing things about how she works. We’re going to do great things together.”
Gold shared, “Rohan is a talented filmmaker and a close friend, and I couldn’t be more excited to have him in the Eleanor family. His films have the ability to delight with their beautiful imagery while surprising you with their honesty and deep, genuine human emotion. He creates thoughtful character driven stories that are bolstered with a palpable atmosphere and imaginative art direction.”
Prior to joining Eleanor, Blair-Mangat had been repped most recently in the advertising market by Imperial Woodpecker.
The director has always been passionate about storytelling going back to the make-believe worlds he created in the tales he told his three younger brothers, who always had a few notes when the story ended. This, combined with the endless hours spent watching television with his grandfather, woke Rohan up to the power of the moving image.
Memories of watching everything from Predator to Murder, She Wrote stirred feelings in Blair-Mangat that made him want to tell stories at a greater scale. He got a taste of this when his mother placed him and his siblings in an inclusive theater company. While being on stage made him learn that he’s more of a behind the scenes guy, he appreciated the perspective of being a performer, which only reinforced the storyteller within.
Despite his creative drive, Blair-Mangat never thought he could do any of what he saw on screen and had every intention of pursuing a career in law. Thankfully, a beloved high school teacher (Mr. West) revealed a path more suitable for Blair-Mangat’s strengths by encouraging him to go to art school. With only one week to apply, and no other schools accepting applications, Blair-Mangat sought out one of the best art schools in the world, and got in. His time at Central Saint Martins in London had its frustrations, but in hindsight he found it to be a highly valuable experience that prepared him for the professional creative world.
Beyond his own work, wants to help guide other artists towards reaching their full creative potential, like his teacher did for him, and give them the opportunities they need to achieve their creative goals. As a co-founder of Change the Lens, Blair-Mangat has worked with major production companies, ad agencies, talent agencies, and prominent industry individuals, to provide them with actionable steps to solve the racial disparity behind the camera in the commercial industry. Change the Lens encourages companies, directors, producers, and heads of department to pledge to hire more Black filmmakers and creatives, and by extension, make the industry a more representative and equitable place.
Blair-Mangat shared that storytelling is a profession that has become increasingly important to him. “As a storyteller you help shine a light on different experiences. You’re essentially a custodian of someone’s story, which I think is a beautiful thing. I’m drawn to projects where you can feel the filmmakers are respecting the story and trying to make it as honest as possible.”
Blair-Mangat joins a directorial lineup at Eleanor that includes Adrian De Sa Garces, Alice Waddington, Chris Muir, Dawit N.M., Daniel Lundh, Edson Oda, Kacper Larski, Kate Cox, Kelsey Taylor, Milo Blake and Woods.
Eleanor is represented on the East Coast by Anya Zander and Andrew Michaeloff of Hustle, in the Midwest by Matt Bucher of Obsidian Reps, and on the West Coast by Melissa Ross and Worthy Goodman of Melissa Ross Represents.
