Merman Signs Amanda Blue to Director's Roster

Merman has tapped director Amanda Blue for UK commercial representation. Blue is a critically acclaimed filmmaker known for her hard-hitting documentaries, comedies as well as commercials. She is also known for her multi-layered storytelling and her ability to deal with the complexities of modern life. 

Amanda started her career working for Oscar nominated film director Mike Figgis before directing the multi-award winning documentary series ‘Young Black Farmers’ for Channel4, a series about a group of inner city black teenagers going to live and work on a farm in Devon. She was BAFTA-nominated Best Director for ‘Prescott: The Class System and me’, a documentary about former UK Deputy Prime Minister John Prescott and his wife. She then went on to direct seminal series ‘The Big School Lottery’ (experiences from children going from primary to secondary school), ‘Twincredibles’ (a film about growing up mixed race in Britain) and feature film “The Town That Caught Torrettes” which pulled in huge ratings for Channel4. 

Amanda’s commercial work spans across many well loved brands such as VW, Barbie, and P&G. Her directing work for Dove ‘Mother’s Body’ picked up a Cannes Lions Bronze and a Kinsale Shark Silver. She has also collected an array of nominations for the British Arrows, LIAA and New York Festival. 

Her feature length documentary drama ‘Deep Water’ which she wrote and directed uncovers a spate of unsolved homophobic murders on Sydney’s coastline in the 80s & 90s and received wide critical acclaim. The film has been reviewed as being one of the ‘best crime documentaries of the recent past’. 

Most recently, Amanda has written and directed for new comedy sitcom ‘Newark, Newark’. A modern take on life as a chip shop manager in the East Midlands featuring Gavin & Stacey star Mathew Horne and Morgana Robinson.

Siobhan Murphy says: “We feel extraordinarily lucky to have hooked Amanda to the Merman roster. She’s a force of energy and talent. Her body of work is unusually diverse and she has incredible range. This includes award winning documentary features, effortless commercial work with a truthful heart at its core, not to mention hilarious comedy TV shows most recently displayed in the three hander ‘Newark, Newark’  featuring a genius ensemble of talent such as Morgana Robinson, Matt Horne and Beverley Callard. We cannot wait for her to join the dream team!”

Amanda Blue says: “I'm beyond thrilled to be joining the dynamic, exciting, forward-thinking Merman team. It feels like the perfect fit for me at a time when I'm loving moving between short and long form, comedy and drama. It's a place where I know my creative versatility will be embraced, developed, and nurtured. For me it's so vital to be continually making artistic leaps and Siobhan and the team at Merman innately understand that. Most crucially I know we are going to have a right old laugh doing it together.”