Creative connoisseur and filmic polymath Kelsey Taylor a keen eye for cinematic excellence and an impeccable sense of comedic timing, this fearless storyteller crafts masterpieces that effortlessly entwine quick wit, visual artistry, and powerful narratives that touch the soul.
Beginning her filmmaking journey as a photographer and cinematographer, Kelsey attends to every frame with a fervent passion for imagery. Steeping each scene in impactful emotion, her natural talent for working with casts nurtures breathtaking performances.
From her viral, 'LIVE Moms Answer Moms' campaign to her feature film 'To Kill a Wolf', Kelsey鈥檚 storytelling visionary traverses mediums.
Name: Kelsey Taylor
Location: Los Angeles
Repped by: Eleanor
Kelsey> I鈥檓 always drawn towards character-driven scripts or scripts that leave room for me to develop a character.
In my mind, strong characters are what create a bond with an audience. Scripts with a clear designing principle are also very attractive and often tied to character. Why does THIS person need to go on this journey? I think no matter how short a script is, there鈥檚 always room for a character to experience a beginning, middle, and end.
Kelsey> The first step for me is letting my imagination loose on the script鈥攖he first reading is really important because it immediately triggers ideas and I think those instincts are important to recognise.
Then there鈥檚 the more calculated step of distilling the designing principle鈥 in what way is this story being told, and why? And does everything point to that guiding light? I think for world-building and resonance this step is very important.
Kelsey> Research is very important to me in familiarising myself with a new brand. I want to know who the audience is, what kind of advertising they鈥檝e done in the past, and if we鈥檙e staying the course of the established advertising or pushing into new territory. I will usually do as much research as I can before an initial call so I know what questions to ask.
I generally try not to do research before I read the script however, I like to come at the creative without any context just to see what ideas spark.
Kelsey> I don鈥檛 know that I would say there鈥檚 any one relationship that鈥檚 more important than any other. Especially because I鈥檓 always working with new people, it鈥檚 hard to pinpoint a particular relationship because so often you鈥檙e working with new teams and developing a brand new relationship.
But to me the most important quality in collaborators is honesty.
It saves time and money when everyone can be honest about what鈥檚 working and what鈥檚 not. That said, I鈥檒l leave you with one of my favourite quotes: 鈥淗onesty without tact is cruelty.鈥
Kelsey> I have so many interests and passions鈥 I can get excited about just about anything. And when it comes to genres, I love it all, from sci-fi to musicals. My reading list is similarly eclectic, from a Buddhist book on work habits to a modern novel about the Greek witch, Circe. Don鈥檛 try to pin me down.
Kelsey> When people first encounter my work they tend to say鈥 鈥淥h you鈥檙e a horror director!鈥 or, 鈥淪o comedy is your thing!鈥 And they鈥檙e both right and wrong because I do it all and I desperately don鈥檛 want to get pigeonholed. I think one of my greatest strengths is world-building and being able to use that skill to work in all genres.
One of my dreams is to someday make a musical!
Kelsey> I鈥檝e only been made aware of cost consultants on a handful of jobs and they have been both helpful in finding solutions to budget issues, and also a hindrance when they overstep and start to infringe on the creative with their own opinions that are veiled as cost issues.
This is particularly frustrating when a common issue in advertising is already having one too many cooks in the kitchen.
Kelsey> All the crazy problems I encounter seem to be weather-related. Which is frustrating because there鈥檚 nothing you can really do about it besides getting creative.
I鈥檝e lost a location to flooding and made one kitchen look like five different kitchens. I鈥檝e scrambled shots and schedules to avoid looking out windows on an incredibly overcast day on a fifth-story office building. And I鈥檝e had scenes in which snow melted halfway through the scene鈥 there wasn鈥檛 a solve for that one鈥
Kelsey> I鈥檓 a very collaborative director鈥 I recognise that my agency and client collaborators sit with a project a lot longer than I do and so I must be respectful of the journey that has brought them to hiring me and the journey that will continue on beyond me.
That said, my job is to have a vision for the project and to be able to communicate that vision to everyone. This begins with the treatment where I lay out that vision, but I always frame the treatment as just the starting point of the conversation. It鈥檚 not my way or the highway. For success, we all must be pulling in the same direction and that means getting on the same page at the very start.
Kelsey> I鈥檓 incredibly excited that the production world seems to be slowly opening its doors to a more diverse pool of talent. It鈥檚 not enough, but organisations like Free The Bid and Free the Work (RIP), did a lot for me and I鈥檓 hoping that there will continue to be a push for more equal representation. I鈥檓 particularly passionate about increasing that representation below the line.
And as far as mentoring goes, I come from a family of teachers so I think sharing knowledge comes very naturally to me and I would LOVE to share what I鈥檝e learned with someone who鈥檚 just starting out. This can be a very lonely business and knowing that so many people struggle with the same issues no matter where they are in their career can be very comforting.
Kelsey> So often the request for many formats demands assets be captured with creative integrity while being in total opposition to each other. Create a compelling narrative that works for sixty seconds鈥 but could also work in six seconds鈥 Or create visually striking visuals that work for vertical, but also widescreen.
It鈥檚 virtually impossible to satisfy these requests which is why I always want to know what the priority is and ultimately where the project will live so we鈥檙e fully delivering on what鈥檚 most important and not creating compromised work across the board. These days, this is an issue that鈥檚 always on my mind.
Kelsey> Technology is always changing and I learned a long time ago that you have to evolve with it. That said, I think good storytelling will always prevail no matter the evolution of technology and I use this as an excuse to justify many of my luddite tendencies. There are instance where new tools like virtual production and AI are very helpful, but I鈥檓 not keen on trying to force them into situations where they鈥檙e not the right tool.
Kelsey> 'The Clash Royale Curse'
Pure Leaf 'Tea Break' with Lindsay Lohan
Alien: Specimen
Rakuten 'Book Club'