2013 TV/Cinema/Online Film - Production | Post-Production Jury

Over the course of his two-decade-plus career, Jonathon Ker has distinguished himself as a career builder with a keen eye for talent and a steadfast reputation for top-tier commercial film production. His diverse and impressive resume includes commercials, films and music videos, many produced in conjunction with some of the most respected directorial talents in the business.

Most recently, Ker co-founded paydirt with director Iain Mackenzie and fellow producer Jeremy Barrett.  In just a short time, paydirt has thrived. Prior to paydirt, Ker established tight in 2004, and concurrently introduced and ran Outsider and the Viral Factory in the States. Before this, he oversaw production powerhouses Palomar Pictures, which he helped found, and Limelight USA. His successful run also included time as head of broadcast at London advertising agency BBH.

Ker’s most visible work includes a series of VH1 films produced with Francis Ford Coppola, including I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times, a documentary about Brian Wilson.  Additional projects included a claymation adaptation of William Burroughs spoken word piece A Junky’s Christmas, and Always Outnumbered, an HBO movie written by Walter Mosley, directed by Michael Apted, and starring Laurence Fishburne. All three films received countless awards at top film festivals around the world and garnered widespread critical acclaim.

Most recently Ker produced the critically acclaimed documentary Buffalo Girls, which premiered this year at the Slamdance Film Festival. The film follows two 8 year-old girls in Thailand, who Muay Thai box to support their families.
Spots for Coca-Cola, Levis, Nike, Mercedes, American Express, and other major international brands top Ker’s commercial portfolio. He has executive produced projects for artists as diverse as Michael Jackson, Eminem, Black Eyed Peas, Tom Petty, Gwen Stefani and U2.

As impressive as Ker’s personal accomplishments are, he is known for launching and/or reinventing some of the most successful commercial and feature film directors working today, including Neil Abramson, Michel Gondry, Keir McFarlane, Alex Proyas and Gore Verbinski. His gift for spotting talent and assessing their needs has made him one of the most valued and sought-after exec producers in the world of advertising.

Ker arrived in America in 1987 to launch production company Limelight USA’s commercial division. As executive producer of the commercial department, Ker elevated Limelight, a then-unknown entity, to one of the top five commercial production companies in the US. At the time, very few music video directors had crossed over into the spot world, and only two companies had accomplished this goal: Limelight and Propaganda.