Lights, camera, action: Laura Sargisson

She’s the directing star behind big campaigns, and she shows no signs of slowing down. Anisha Satya spoke to Laura Sargisson about her impressive directing resume.

The TVNZ 2 ad break. Air New Zealand commercials. Promos for the Fifa and ICC Women’s world cups.

Did you know they were made by an Ashburton local?

Director Laura Sargisson has created content for everyone, from Israel Adesanya to Helen Clark and Jacinda Ardern.

But her story starts in Mid Canterbury.

“Lots of people in my industry make sure it’s known that I’m from Ashburton!” she said

“People will say ‘Oh, that says a lot,’ after they meet me; ‘You just don’t seem like your classic Aucklander’.”

Sargisson was the youngest of four kids who grew up in Ashburton.

“We had a really lovely childhood,” she said. “Super relaxed and safe.”

A ‘creative’ household led her to pursue the arts, and she completed a Bachelor of visual arts and electronic arts at Otago Polytechnic, then a Masters in science communication and natural history filmmaking at university.

Filming back then was a feat of strength as much as cinematography.

“We had these huge Sony cameras that were still filming on tape, and these big tripods.”

“We’d drag them out on location and be stealth filming seals and things.”

Sargisson said while the course didn’t allow for much creative freedom, it taught her the importance of a story.

After university, her parents got her a Canon DSLR camera and she began filming and cutting her own stuff. After some help from her sister in law, she began her journey as a freelancer.

“I was offering my services to agencies in Auckland, and then it just kind of grew.”

And Sargisson hit the ground running; her first gig was with an airline.

“It sounds too good to be true, but one of my first jobs was doing the marketing videos for Air Rarotonga.

“That was crazy. I went over there and filmed for a couple of months.”

And the work just kept coming in.

A doco for the Ministry of Health. An ad for Instant Finance. Now, after several years in the business, she’s made content for the Cricket and Fifa world cups.

“If I’m honest, growing up, I didn’t even know this was a job.

“My family, we loved watching movies and TV together, and had our favourite ads on telly. But never did I think that I’d be making them.”

“I’m glad though, because I couldn’t picture myself doing anything else.”

Sargisson said growing up in a small town gave her an edge in the world of directing.

“Down in Canterbury, I like to think everyone’s pretty friendly. Just that small town confidence, being able to speak to everyone.

“I so vividly remember first moving to Auckland, and going for a walk and saying ‘Good morning!’, ‘Hi!’, as I walked past. And people were just looking at me like ‘What?’.”

And she brings those vibes to the film set. Creating a happy atmosphere makes the job easier for her, and for the rest of the team.

When it comes to the final product, though, Sargisson spares no insult.

“I’m pretty hard on myself, in terms of looking at my work and ripping it apart on how it could be better next time, and just trying to be constantly better at the next job.”

She wishes she’d “picked up a camera earlier,” and advises young people interested in media to learn “all the parts of production.”

“Get a camera, edit everything yourself, because once you learn about cameras and editing, you realise what you’re doing wrong.”

The learning doesn’t stop after university, she said, with AI being a new learning curve to conquer.

“It’s something that I’m really going to get my teeth stuck into now.”

“I don’t want to look at it as a negative; instead I want to learn it in a way to figure out how it will better my career.”

Sargisson’s latest piece of work, a New World ad, aired on Monday July 22. It’s still strange to see her work on TV, but in a good way, she said.

“My fiance George and I are quite traditional in that way; we come home, we put on The Chase, we watch the news.

“It is cool seeing your ads on telly.”