James Dearden PRODUCER | DIRECTOR
PRODUCER | CREATIVE
Yes the rumours are true: we did set a man on fire and drag James Blunt behind a car...
This producer lives by the mantra “there are no problems, only opportunities”. My success thrives on empowering and enabling those around me. Creativity blossoms when you feel unstoppable, ideas flow and innovation breaks past the ordinary; great traits for a producer who likes to take on any job – from the teeny tiny to the super impressive.
In short, I love what I do and I hope you do too...
I've worked with: (to name a few)
10
Years in the industry
Producer Credits
120+
Camera Credits
150+
50+
VFX & Edit Credits
Vehicle rigs
Special FX
VFX
Child Actors
Location Scout
I’ve been in the industry for 10 years, 6 years as a Producer in London. Working predominantly in the TVC and music promo scenes. I’ve also covered live events, remote filming and photography. I’ve got experience with large shoots, gorilla filming and international filming around Europe, America and Australia.
My portfolio includes coordinating visual effects and special effects jobs, large scale art department, vehicle rigs, child actors, high profile talent, impossible location hunts, even more impossible schedules, battling the worst of the British weather and multi-camera madness with 12 Alexa’s. I’ve orchestrated a shoot to drag James Blunt along the floor behind a speeding car. Fight scenes and even setting a man on fire.
Experience
Seminal is a leader in art technology, copyright protection, management and is a monetisation engine helping artists get paid every time their art is reproduced digitally or physically.
I was in charge of the content creation, taking complete ownership of the end-to-end production: from planning to delivery for digital, social, traditional communications and cross-functional strategic projects. I am a believer in fearless creativity, the idea is king and I’m a true team player who loves to take the lead and encourage collaboration to achieve the best results. I brought to the team creative ideas and enthusiasm, I have a can-do attitude and believe great ideas do not need to cost the earth - music to the ears for a start up founder.
Scripting · Producing · filming · Strategy · Management · Copyrighting
My role at Blindeye was very hands on, I took ownership of the full creative process. Drawing and building upon my 7 years experience as a video producer, I was challenged daily with creative problem solving, pitching, bidding and developing ideas. I work closely with agencies, direct clients and record labels across a range of formats: above the line, music promos, branded content, photoshoots, 360 filming and live streaming.
My proactive and problem solving mindset provided me with a broad range of well developed skills outside of the traditional producer role: My VFX background allows me to VFX supervise on shoots knowing what’s needed for the edit and more importantly I can truly say “we’ll fix it in post!”. You’ll find me as DOP on quite a few shoots which has given me invaluable technical knowledge, enabling me to speak productively with the DOP, gaffer and 1st AC. This combined knowledge is always appreciated by the clients who seek my expertise for their complex projects. As the producer I saw myself as a positive enabler, allowing everyone to perform at their best whilst I handled the curveballs which sure enough came my way.
Producing · Negotiation · Client Relations · Pitching · Directing · VFX
As a side hustle I run a travel company taking groups of young profesionals on fully coordinated, experiential ski weeks. I oversee the whole company from sales, finances, advertising, PR and organising the trips (all transferable skills #buzzwords).
Sales · Marketing · PR · Business Management
I am a judge for the UK Music Video Awards that takes place every year, judging the very best music videos from around the world. I offer my expertise judging the produced merits.
Producing, directing, shooting, editing, VFX’ing(??) and grading, everything from live events to branded content. Basically I got things made. Working with a range of direct clients and agencies across the UK. I got my hands dirty, working in small teams to deliver big ideas.
Clients include; B&Q, BT, GSK, NSPCC, RNLI (probably a few other acronyms), Dyson, Tops Tiles, Allsop, Mentos (pronounced men-toss: who knew?)
Producing · Directing · Shooting · Editing · VFX · Scripting · Grade
Stable Boy
Blakedown, United Kingdom
April 2015 - April 2017
I literally scooped shit for a living, proof I can get my hands dirty. I’m still terrified of horses...
Shit Scooping · Horse whispering · WheelBarrow Fixing
skills
skills
skills
SKILLS
skills
skills
SKILLS
skills
Skills
Juggling on one leg... and...
I have extensive experience working on projects from micro to huge. Managing every aspect of production including: bidding, briefs, budgets, scheduling, crewing, casting and the infamous troubleshooting.
My large skillset allows me to produce efficiently with an in-depth knowledge of research, art direction, camera, lighting, editing and VFX. I can incorporate graphic design, animation and visual effects in pitches, treatments and projects to make our documents standout from the crowd.
During the Covid pandemic my technical knowledge enabled Blindeye to thrive. We were one of the first to offer full remote filming where we controlled the camera remotely. Whilst my career path is following the producer route I’ve found my ability to swap between rolls: directing, cinematography and VFX to offer a lot of value on project.
My Cameo in P!nks' Music Video:
P!nk - Walk Me Home FT. Sink The Pink
Some Highlights
Drafty - Bank Heist TVC
Directing Duo: That Jam
Directing duo, That Jam wanted to stage a bank robbery in London for Drafty's latest TVC. You can only imagine the difficulties of finding a location, that said we pulled it off complemented by a full cast of extras, Technocrane.
AWARDS
AWARDS
AWARDS
AWARDS
AWARDS
Best Rock Video – UK
Sam Fender - Spit Of You
Director: Philip Barantini
PM: James Dearden
UKMVA 22
Best Music Video Award
Metaxas - Sirens
Director: Savvas Stavrou
Producer: James Dearden
Aesthetica Film Festival 17
Best Music Video Award
Adam French - Wanna Be Here
Director: Savvas Stavrou
Producer: James Dearden
Best digital experience
BAFTA x Virgin Media
Agency: Rapp
Producer: James Dearden
DMA Awards Silver 19
Most Effective Use of Brand Content
Humans of New Yorkshire
Agency: Karmarama
Producer: James Dearden
Best Integrated Campaign
Humans of New Yorkshire
Agency: Karmarama
Producer: James Dearden
AWARDS
AWARDS
AWARDS
CAMERAS, TECH & Software
I have an extensive knowledge of the full Adobe create suite (Pr, Ae, Ai, Ps, Id) and was a qualified Adobe tutor teaching at a university. I have used Notion and Asana for project management. I’ve also used nearly all professionals cameras: Alexa Amira, Mini, C300 ii, FX9, FX3, FS7, A7S. Complemented by a thorough understanding of lighting equipment (LED, HMI and tungsten), handheld gimbals, wireless lens control and monitoring solutions.
EDUCATION
Bournemouth University BA (Hons)
Television Production First Class Honours
Firsts in every year
King Edwards VI College
A-Level Drama: A* A-Level Graphics: A*
A-Level Film Studies: A. A-Level EPQ: A*
AS Geography: B
Passions & Hobbies
Snowboarding WSet Wine certification Freediving QUALIFICATION Sailing
Photography Running Gym Travel Advanced Padi
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME
💡 Igniting Ideas
🚀 Empowering Visionaries
🎯 Precision-Driven Production