I’m an award winning Senior Creative with 15+ years working in commercials, dabbling in features, photography and shorts.
In 2024, I was invited to join the team at Publicis Luxe to bring depth, meaning and storytelling to its stable of luxury clients including a new platform for Helena Rubinstein alongside campaigns for the likes of Armani, YSL, Lancome, Audemars Piguet and Bucherer.
Before that, I created transformational campaigns for the likes of Bulgari (Magnificence Never Ends) and Pandora (Love makes no sense unless you’re in love) marrying insight and narrative with rich, cinematic image making at Anomaly in London.
Trained by the great and the good at BBH, I worked on a range of non traditional and then traditional projects, including the form breaking Missing People campaign which was recognised for the power of its storytelling, not just by the 26,000 people who reconnected, but by the Kinsale Jury.
I’ve been shortlisted three times for the RA’s Summer’s show, taken part in a group exhibition at the Chelsea Arts Club, and picked up a Portrait of Britain prize for a campaign about Londoners shot by the wonderful Dylan Collard for VCCP (Barrett London) for art direction.
Alongside ad land, I’ve worked as a producer on a micro budget portmanteau feature “London Unplugged” that hit the big screen in 2019. Continuing my obsession with all things cinema, I’m currently writing a feature script that began life at the NFTS with Peter Ansorge.
Before all of this, I dreamt of being the next Tessa Ross.
Say hello at emmiecastagno@me.com
A few kind words from some of the lovely people I have worked with:
"Emma was an absolute inspiration. Working with her from the start on Missing people, developing the script together was almost like writing a feature. I think her emotional intelligence, sensitivity and acute attention to detail comes across very clearly in the final spot, it is very much her piece. She understands the importance of casting and overall process of film very well, which lead to a very exciting and collaborative shoot. She's the most instinctive and precise creative I've worked with in years and look forward to working on many more projects together.” Ben Strebel, Director
“Emma is an extremely talented creative with a very strong ability for narrative that deliver stories out of the ordinary.
We worked on 3 campaigns together for print and film purposes. Each time she was able to bring together a platform of possibilities that was letting us able to explore and deliver the best answer for the projects. On the human level, Emma is great fun to work with, light-hearted but well focus. Can not wait for the next project” Damien De Blinkk, Photographer & Director
“Emma is a unique combination of talent, knowledge, passion, creativity, and eloquence. And she combines it all with an exacting eye for visuals, and an enviable network of film and imagemaker collaborators, peers and partners. She's one of them herself: her photography has been featured at the RA Summer Show, a film she produced received a four star review from the Times, and her charcoal sketches would be at home at the Chelsea Arts Club. If you're lucky enough to work alongside Emma, I suggest that you do!” Jon Kallus, ECD & Founder of Fate vs Future
“Emmie is an amazing combination of being super creative and incredibly strategic. She's highly visual, with an encyclopaedic knowledge of artists/photographers/directors and can also convey emotion beautifully through her use of language. She's passionate about doing the best work possible and as a strategist, I couldn't have hoped for a better creative partner working on F&F.” Sara Beech, Strategy Director, ODD
"Emma is a fantastic creative mind, able to articulate her ideas beautifully with a huge vision. She's a strategic thinker with brilliant platform knowledge, capable of adapting her ideas to work in any media from traditional to digital. And, she's a gem of a person to go with it. She was a delight to work with at VaynerMedia and I'm sure she will be an asset to any creative team." Chris Rush, Associate Creative Director, VaynerMedia
“Great conceptual ability, always positive and the team found Emma a joy to work with. She's an asset to any creative department.” Vaughan Townsend, Creative Director, Ogilvy
“I was photographer for a commercial job when Emma worked as art director at VCCP, London. The client was Barratt London. Emma was great to work with! She gave very helpful instructions, great at art directing and at the same time letting me get plenty of space to make photographs. Emma has great knowledge of photography and obviously AD'ing. We worked long hours over a period of two weeks and it was a pleasure to work with Emma.” Tomter, Photographer
"Wouldn't hesitate to recommend Emma - smart, articulate and extremely plugged in on luxury, fashion, beauty and cultural trends. I happily made her client facing as she's creative AND a safe pair of hands for important presentations and in gently interrogating client briefs to get to the crux of what they want/need. She worked on luxury project of Button's for Pernod Ricard and her knowledge of the drinks industry was also incredibly helpful." Sara Jensen, CEO, Button PR