Born in Perth, Western Australia, Richard tried to grow up and failed. He got a commerce degree then found himself in advertising school. He began exploring the planet starting in Sydney then Johannesburg and onto London.
He then crossed the Atlantic and became a student of funny and legendary shop Cliff Freeman & Partners New York. Following his award-winning stint with CF&P, Richard re-crossed the Atlantic and embarked upon a rapid rise at 180 Amsterdam where he became ECD and managing partner.
Richard began directing film projects at 180 and kicked off with a long form road trip for adidas called “The Stars of St.Kitts & Nevis.” He then co-directed “DREAM BIG”, a huge content/commercial/web experience for the 2008 Euro Football Cup. He followed this with a web series to launch David Beckham in America titled “Futbol meets Football” for 180 LA.
Richard brings an enormous wealth of storytelling experience across styles and cultures. He has directed commercial projects worldwide for brands like asics, adidas, uber, airbnb, Omega, Turkish Airlines, Microsoft, MasterCard, Google, Ikea, Gatorade and has shot with a wide array of A-list talent like Daniel Craig, George Clooney, Al Gore , David Beckham, Lionel Messi and Cindy Crawford.
Richard directs everything from scripted commercials to feature length branded content films. He has a particular ability to blend unique set design and use animation across his projects to give them an original storytelling quality.
Most recently, Rich directed VRBO’s “Your homes not ready” commercial for Fortnight collective, a funny and culturally relevant piece about the pandemic and the toll it has taken on our beloved homes.
His scripted short film Black Ice, which follows the true story of Skeleton athlete Akwasi Frimpong, shot for the brand ON, saw him pick up a Pencil at this years D&AD awards.
Richard has a particular interest working in the space between brands and NGOs. He recently directed GENERATION REWEAR a three part series about sustainable fashion for the British Fashion Council and Vanish UK. He has made two TV documentaries about sight saving surgery in Peru and Mongolia. His feature length documentary RUN for the Swiss brand ON was broadcast globally in 2020. An epic three year journey documenting the Athlete Refugee Team headed for Tokyo. He has been involved with Open Heart International on film making missions to Rwanda,Tanzania and Papua New Guinea.
He is indebted to the Unstressed Surf School on the Wild Coast of South Africa for teaching him to surf.
Since 2009, Richard has been a Director; represented by Hungry Man in Europe and North America, and by Revolver in Australia and New Zealand.