Katina Mercadante
Katina Mercadante loves directing advertisements because of their power to reach massive amounts of people and shift overarching consciousness through representation, inclusion, and integrity. Her evocative films – often casting non-professional actors – tell stories that epitomise a wider idea or message and are clever and direct; from the coming together of the cosplay community for Facebook in ‘We Are Not Alone’ (2014) to a daughter on the road listening to voicemails from her dad back at home in Toyota ‘Voicemail’ (2022).
Mercadante began directing films in 2006 while living and working in East Africa – where she produced work for the United Nations Girls Education Initiative. She realized the power of ads after a VW commercial she worked on featuring people laughing all over the world played immediately after a tense and fraught presidential debate, reaching over 80 million people. She fell in love with ads after directing a campaign for Facebook in 2014 – as part of director duo The Mercadantes – that an article claimed was seen 'by more viewers than anything in the history of time' and was nominated for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Commercials.
Mercadante has directed more than 100 ad campaigns for clients including Apple, Facebook, IBM, and Disney, and won awards including the Cannes Gold Lion and the Grand Clio. Her films have been featured at the annual TED Talk Conferences (2012, 2016) and played on Oprah’s OWN network. Katina is also a strategist and advises leaders and companies throughout the world in order to clarify and implement innovations in line with their highest spiritual values.
