Lief
My Role
Strategic creative partner to Margo Mars, founder of Lief Studio and co-founder of Lief Entertainment Company with Raymond Van Der Kaaij.
What’s Emerged
With a rare instinct for auteur talent, and a vision for how brands and filmmakers can work together without either compromising what makes them valuable, Margo has built two genuinely distinctive studios in Lief Studio and Lief Entertainment Company. I collaborate across both.
Lief Studio
I helped Margo position Lief Studio as a female-led studio focused on diverse artist-filmmakers who create cultural exchange through their work. I provided a sounding board as she developed her TEDx talk on representation in advertising, and provide ongoing “crystal-balling” on the future of media, technology, and creative industries.
Lief Entertainment Company
Lief Entertainment Company creates, produces, and distributes brand-funded entertainment leveraging Margo’s nose for artistic talent, and Raymond's deep experience in European film production and financing.
The job for me was naming something true that didn’t have a name yet.
Auteur Brands
The insight is simple but undeniable: when brands trust auteur filmmakers to tell stories that reflect their values, rather than producing safe, bland corporate content, they become Auteur Brands by proxy. They inherit the cultural cachet, creative point of view, and audience trust that comes with backing real artists. Think Barbie with Greta Gerwig at the helm.
The Auteur Brands concept now sits at the centre of how Lief Entertainment communicates its value to streamers, studios, and brands. More relevant than ever in the age of AI, when the hunger for genuine human authorship is only growing.
“Finding a sounding board who truly understands the nuance of my creative instincts is rare. Working with Andy also helped us articulate our vision: the ‘Auteur Brands’ concept he developed is now a cornerstone of how we communicate our unique value to streamers and brands. An essential part of the Lief journey."
Margo Mars