Nike Ads, ‘Trees for Tesco’ and ‘The Way of The Wildcard’: The Work That Made Jonny Madderson

Jonny Madderson is an award-winning documentary filmmaker and co-founder of JustSo, a certified B Corp.

Alongside co-founder and directing partner Jono Stevens, Jonny leads JustSo’s mission to craft human-centred stories that deepen brands’ emotional connections with their audiences.

His recent work spans global organisations including Netflix, LEGO, Red Bull, Expedia, the Olympics, and Channel 4.

A pioneer in digital storytelling, Jonny was a founding member of the team behind ‘Black Cab Sessions’, the hit YouTube music series that redefined intimate live performance for the online era.

LBB> The ad/music video from my childhood that stays with me…

Jonny> Nike ‘Airport 98’. So cool, so effortless and so fun. It’s 90 seconds of magic. Everyone at school was wearing Nike Brazil t-shirts the following week.

The film stuck with me – as I became hooked on Brazil and a couple of years later got a job teaching English in Rio de Janeiro. Amazing that a 90 second film can have that impact.

LBB> The ad/music video/game/web platform that made me want to get into the industry…

Jonny> It’s not the most famous ad, but for me, ‘Trees for Tesco’ was a turning point. My first job in the industry was at Lowe, working on Tesco.

I remember sitting in a PPM with director Vince Squibb, watching him bring his vision to life with such clarity and passion. It was the first time I'd been in a room with a filmmaker – and I knew, right then, that I wanted to be on the other side of the table.

LBB> The creative work that I keep revisiting…

Jonny> Working in documentary, writer Michael Lewis is something of a hero. He’s ruthless in the best way – he knows that without a story, you have nothing. That mindset has stayed with me.

Many docs get stuck on themes and subject matter, but he’s a master at finding great stories and great characters.

I love hearing him interviewed – his passion is infectious, and it’s heartening to know how hard he works to take a nugget of an idea and turn it into a story.

‘Moneyball’, in particular, could have been dry in the wrong hands, but instead, it’s a masterclass in storytelling.

LBB> My first professional project…

Jonny> A wedding video. Looking back, it was the best training for documentary filmmaking.

You’re capturing raw emotion, working in real time, and there are no second chances.

Goosebumps, tears, and joy – bottled in the moment. That skillset still serves me today.

LBB> The piece of work that made me so angry that I vowed to never make anything like *that*…

Jonny> Exploitative filmmaking. Documentary is a privilege – it’s built on trust, authenticity, and pride in the final film. Many of the people we’ve filmed – refugees, athletes, remote communities – we still keep in touch with. Some are lifelong friends.

LBB> The piece of work that still makes me jealous…

Jonny> Louise Osmond’s documentary ‘Dark Horse’ is a beautiful gem of a film. A backwater Welsh mining community buys an unloved racehorse and takes on the elite. It’s one of those rare, perfect true stories – and I wish I had found it! It has everything I love – an unlikely dream, a defiant underdog, and a forgotten community finding its pride again.

LBB> The creative project that changed my career…

Jonny> ‘Black Cab Sessions’. Jono (co-director) and I feel like our filmmaking careers were born in the back of a cab.

The idea was simple: one song, one take, one cab. Raw, unguarded, totally unlike a glossy music video – just an intimate connection between artist and audience. It took off. Nearly 400 sessions, a global audience, a Channel 4 TV series travelling across America, and a string of cultural awards.

Brands like Ray-Ban, adidas, and Red Bull started coming to us, and suddenly, we had a career. We often say ‘good things happen when you make good things’ and this was where that belief was forged.

LBB> The work that I’m proudest of…

Jonny> ‘The Way of the Wildcard’. Red Bull is known for stunts and spectacle, but this series was different. It leaned into human storytelling – sporting mavericks who saw the world differently and refused to be defined by expectations.

It was also one of the first Red Bull projects to be recognised in major film awards. That meant a lot.

LBB> I was involved in this and it makes me cringe…

Jonny> There’s probably a few over the years. Jono (co-director) and I met at university… Some of the early films we made together on mini-DV are very funny looking back – mainly for the haircuts.

LBB> The recent project I was involved in that excited me the most…

Jonny> ‘Hustle and Run’ – a documentary we just launched for Channel 4.

At a time when the world feels fractured, this is a film about the power of community. It’s about people (and pets) coming together around a shared passion – flyball, the most joyful, exhilarating sport you never knew you needed.

It’s got everything I love – an underdog story, a dreamer defying the odds, a ragtag team rallying behind them. Heart, grit, and goosebumps. It’s exactly why I got into documentary filmmaking in the first place.