Growing up in an art commune might have sown the seeds for Bernhard Landen’s career in the world of commercial films. Get me out of here! Were his only thoughts as he set off for Los Angeles with an open mind and the artisan spirit he’d inherited from the commune, in the hope that art could also mean earning some cash.

On arrival, he started writing, visiting courses for scriptwriting, surviving on packets of crisp bread while he completed his first short film.

His fourth short film, “Killer”, was initially released in cinemas to german-speaking audiences, and later shown at several international festivals, picking up numerous prizes along the way, kicking off his career as a commercial filmmaker.

It wasn’t long before he was shortlisted for his “Red Cross” spot in Cannes, awarded gold at the NY Festival for “Compuserve”, a Clio award for “Zorro”, and subsequently attracting prestigious clients such as Orange, McDonalds, Volkswagen, Beiersdorf, Coca Cola and Deutsche Telekom, to name a few.

While shooting his first feature film in 2013, Bernhard gained valuable experience, which greatly influenced his further endeavours as a commercial film director. The poetry of seemingly mundane everyday life and the focus on moments of greater emotional human interaction became central themes of his work. By breaking out of the shackles of rigid technical conventions, and allowing his protagonists more scope to express their vulnerability and humaneness, he found a way of creating images, which are not only visually aesthetic, but emotionally touching.