Craft Kills: Why Republic of Imagination Is Reinventing Social for the Post-Template Era

After years of watching UK brands churn out templated, low-effort content while the rest of the world raised the bar for creativity on social, founder and CCO of newly-launched studio Republic of Imagination, Julie Seal, hit breaking point: “We’re a country known for craft, so why are our social ads so often forgettable?”

That frustration has now crystallised into a bold new studio designed to fill the gap: one that merges high-craft creative direction, platform-native thinking, and a new wave of AI-powered artistry. As traditional agency models buckle under budget cuts and follower counts overshadow skill, Republic of Imagination is offering a counter-model, one built for quality at speed, scale without compromise, and creators who deserve a seat at the table, whether they’ve got 20 followers or 20,000.

LBB> What was the tipping point that made you decide now was the right moment to launch Republic of Imagination, and what gap in the market are you most urgently trying to fill?

Julie> Honestly, I got so frustrated with the quality of social ad content in the UK, lots of other countries are less egotistical about the size of the screen! But the UK feels very behind, and yet we're a nation traditionally amazing at craft, so it just didn't make sense. As the market is in such huge flux at the moment, and with the rise of AI and traditional agencies losing clients and budgets, I thought it was time to merge my love of craft (and craft-led creators) and excitement about AI artist creators too, and throw the lot together to help serve brands better.

LBB> You describe social media as having entered a “race to the bottom.” What do you think led the industry to this point, and how does RoI offer a structural alternative rather than just a surface-level fix?

Julie> I understand why start-ups and smaller brands are turning to automated templates, apps, and tools to make their content. But for brands who really want to succeed on social and not just blend in with their competitors, they need to do better... which is where much more tailored, specific content means so much. But then, from my experience, the culture of social advertising has evolved badly, and it's nobody's and everybody's fault... but there's a huge quality and craft gap that brands and agencies need to address.

LBB> With AI-generated content flooding platforms and creators under increasing pressure to churn out volume, what role do you believe craft and creative direction should play in shaping the future of social?

Julie> Volume is important, we do algorithmic production, meaning that we do lots of different cuts and versions of a piece of content. It might just be the opening shots or a VO or titles, but feeding the algorithms and trusting the algorithms to find new audiences is vital. But that doesn't mean you need a million low-quality pieces of content. You need a decent number of high-quality ones instead. But when you cut out layers of bureaucracy and hierarchy and traditional structures and processes to make quantity, you can still achieve high craft and quality.

LBB> Why was it important to build a model that prioritises creative skill over follower count, and what kind of creator work is often overlooked or undervalued in the current system?

Julie> Almost all the creators who have few followers aren't hitting low numbers because their craft isn't great, it's often because they have jobs, limited resources, busy lives, and don't have the privilege of money, location, language, or looks to get lots of followers. We're democratising it all. We don't mind if you only speak Korean, or if you are a single mum who has to 'make' only at night, or if you're just starting out in your career, or you live in poverty so can't share your glam life but can make incredible found object art, or if you're autistic so can't communicate brilliantly on camera, or etc... as a disabled, ex-working class, (former) single mum this stuff is important to me.

LBB> You’ve spoken before about the emotional and strategic power of “wow” content. What does that look like in 2025 – and how do you brief for that?

Julie> Well, I'm not a huge stats fan, but the studies show that better quality work works. Craft kills, basically, on pretty much every level for sentiment, trust, brand equity, and ad efficacy... but mainly on social, it's about cutting through the noise. And great opening shots help a huge amount, 'scroll-stopping' starts. But so does music, VO, good writing, and a great understanding of the quirks and unique culture of the platforms.

LBB> How do you see ROI complementing or collaborating with existing agencies, and what does a dream brand or agency partnership look like to you?

Julie> I love agencies and as a freelancer for years I've worked at most of them. We've already collaborated with a couple on big social projects, and what's always important is trust. They trust us that we are experts in social and social craft. And also that social creators can actually inspire the look and feel or big idea for 360 campaigns, the agencies that collab best are those with the smaller egos! Who doesn't see social as an afterthought, crumb off the table, but often the main dish!

LBB> You’ve already won clients pre-launch and worked with giants like Meta and TikTok. What kind of work – and impact – do you hope to be known for by this time next year?

Julie> I'd love to win some craft awards for the brands and agencies we work with, and I'd love to see our (still under wraps for now) AI video project shake things up a bit too. But ideally, I'd just like to change some attitudes toward social. And maybe also attitudes to disabled women running agencies, too, probably including my own impostor syndrome,