Nathalie Lamb

Emerald Pictures

What was your first professionally directed work and when was it?
While studying directing, I had the opportunity to work on my first job, a commercial for PETA. The spot tells the story of the friendship between a young girl and her “best friend.” I enjoyed working with the young girl and her vivid imagination, which was necessary for the shoot since we were not allowed to work with real animals. I collaborated with Mackvision to create a lifelike CG creature, resulting in a VES award nomination.

This experience gave me the confidence to work with talented children and VFX in the future.

How did you get into directing?
Since childhood, I have been known as “the girl with the camera.” Telling stories visually has always fascinated me. I developed a passion for filmmaking early on, thanks to my love for photography, spending every free minute working on my film projects. Directing was my dream job, but it didn’t seem realistic because of the lack of female role models. Things changed when I won my first short film award at 15, realizing my films inspired people outside my family and friends’ circle. The audience keeps motivating me to continue this path. To learn the craft professionally, I studied directing at Filmakademie Baden-Württemberg with a focus on commercials. Now, I work as a freelance director.

What is your most recent project?
I recently completed a film project called “Heirloom” for Vitra. The film tells the story of a family in their home from the 1950s to the present. Throughout the film, the room changes over the decades, with things coming and going. The only constant is the Eames Lounge Chair, which remains timeless and long-lasting to be passed down to future generations.

We shot the film with a motion control and changed the film set in-camera. We carefully planned every frame, including the camera choreography, lighting, set changes, and every movement of the actors. I learned the most from this project.

At the same time, my feature documentary Silence is a Beautiful Sound has just been released in Germany. The film explores the worlds of six deaf protagonists and their families. The project is quite personal, as are most of my movies.

What is the best part of being a director?
The most fulfilling aspect of my job is bringing a vision to life while collaborating with a talented crew, from the initial spark of an idea to the final release of a film.

What is your current career focus: commercials and branded content, television, movies? Do you plan to specialize in a particular genre–comedy, drama, visual effects, etc.?
My main focus is on commercials directed with empathy and a love for detail. I find inspiration in working on different genres and formats as it allows me to bring new elements to my work. For instance, during the TV shoot for “Little Boxes,” I expanded my acting direction, dialogue, and comedy work skills. In my documentary work, I have sharpened my observation and intuition. With stop-motion animation “Him And Her,” I enjoy creating a world without boundaries for the imagination. And with “Henry,” I loved to execute a visual style. I want to keep the diversity.

In the long run, there are specific stories that I feel compelled to tell in a feature movie.

Tell us about your background (i.e., where did you grow up? Past jobs?)
I grew up in a small town in the Black Forest in south Germany. My father, grandfather, and great-grandfather all were carpenters. We share the love of the craft and the process from concept, planning, teamwork, and the bridge between art and function until you’ve created something unique.

As a teenager, I worked at a tiny arthouse movie theater, which was an excellent opportunity to analyze films after watching them up to 20 times in a row.
After school, I gained experience in various film productions, working in the director’s department and production.

Contact

• US representation: Emerald Pictures, Mara Milićević, Email: mara@emeraldpictures.co, John Duffin, Email: john@emeraldpictures.co