Reel

Biography:
Les was born in Sydney, Australia and was educated at Sydney High School and the University of Sydney. He entered the business as an assistant film editor at the legendary Supreme Studios, and soon found himself working on national TV commercials as the youngest editor in Australia. He moved to Melbourne to accept the position of chief editor at Fred Schepisi's Film House - where he won many awards for editing and was nominated for an Australian Film Award (AFI - the Aussie Oscars) for his work on the feature film "Oz".

Luxford travelled overseas in the late seventies and worked as an editor in Hong Kong and London. When he returned to Australia in the mid 1980's he was ready to direct, and Schepisi welcomed him back to the Film House. One of his first spots for John West Salmon won the top commercial award in the AFI's.

Les soon set up his own production company in Sydney, and went on to work on a huge variety of commercials for the top Australian advertisers and ad agencies. Much of his work as a director involves the integration of live action shooting with intensive use of digital post effects. He maintains a keen interest in post, where his background as an editor means he is one of the few directors that can supply images designed to work perfectly in the digital suites, an essential requirement for today's complex effects oriented shoots.

His success is international, and awards include a Lion of Cannes, a Gold from the ultra competitive New York Festival, a Clio Hall of Fame, Mobius and golds from the Taipei based Times Asia-Pacific Awards. His recent awards demonstrate the ability to "deliver the goods" in the highly complex effects area. He is well known for spots that involve cars, adventure and effects, and in fact he has won 2 out of only 3 Automotive Trophies ever awarded in the Australian TV (ATV) Awards.

Les Luxford holds a US "Green Card", and is currently seeking representation in the United States.
He is the principal of Sydney production house UFO Pty Ltd.
Les is a director who is committed to using all the tricks of technology along with traditional directorial storytelling and filmmaking skills to enhance the agency's concept, and points out that in the highly competitive market of commercials, every spot must push the envelope and cut through. He is married with a teenage son, and when away from the digital effects suites he enjoys photography, cooking and travel.

Client List:
Includes Toyota, Nissan, General Motors, Suburu, Mail.com, Brother, Cadbury-Schweppes, City-Rail (Sydney), McDonalds, KFC, Crown Casino (Melbourne), Treasury Casino (Brisbane), Listerine, Anchor Beer, Budwseiser, Tiger Beer, OzLotto

Awards:
CANNES: BRONZE LION, ELECTROLUX "LIGHT GLOBE"

CANNES: SHORT LIST, JOHN MCENROE "BIG GAME"

NEW YORK: GOLD, PUBLIC SERVICE, BICYCLE AWARENESS "LOOK RIDER"

CLIO: RAILWAYS OF AUSTRALIA "TRAIN YOUR FAMILY"

CLIO: HALL OF FAME, PUBLIC SERVICE, C.E.S. "BABIES"

MOBIUS: EFFECTS, TOYOTA "SAT NAV"

TIMES ASIA: GOLD, TOYOTA "CAMEL"

TIMES ASIA: SILVER, SCHWEPPES "BACKDRAFT"

TIMES ASIA: GOLD, SECOND OUTRIGHT TOYOTA "SAT NAV"

ATV: GOLD, TOYOTA " CAMEL"

ATV: GOLD, TOYOTA "SAT NAV" (These are the only 3 Gold trophies ever awarded in the Automotive category in the entire history of the Australian Television Awards)

MCDONALDS: INTERNATIONAL MCDONALDS AWARD, BEST CHILDREN'S AD 1997

Mission Statement:
To bring the creative idea to life, with images that are bold and unexpected, utilizing both traditional filmmaking skills and the latest cutting edge digital technology.