Raheem Sterling co-founds content agency Playmaker

stirlingEngland and Chelsea footballer Raheem Sterling is joining forces with music video director Carly Cussen to launch creative production agency Playmaker Films, formalising a working partnership which has already seen the duo make ads for Gillette and Sumsung.

Playmaker Films will specialise in producing branded content, advertising and music videos, with the agency’s core approach being ‘entertainment first’, inspired by Cussen’s and Sterling’s work, both behind the camera and on the pitch, over the past two decades.

The launch comes as Sterling has begun to establish himself outside of football, starring in ads for the likes of Bottega Veneta and Burberry.

He has also become an advocate for social change and the Raheem Sterling Foundation offers opportunities for young people around the UK; he was appointed MBE for his services to racial equality in 2021.

Cussen has 15 years in the industry, directing videos for some of music’s biggest names including Ed Sheeran, Keke Palmer, Little Mix and Lil’ Baby. Additionally, she has worked with household brands such as Disney, Pretty Little Things, and OnePlus.

Sterling said: “Part of the day job involves a lot of time on sets at video shoots for brands. Over time I was more and more interested in what was going on behind the camera. I’d worked with Carly on a number of projects, for brands like Gillette and Samsung, and I started to ask her questions about different aspects of the process. When it came to starting my own production company, she was the obvious choice.

“We’ve got some great projects lined up, with some amazing brands and talent, including Clarks ‘Back To School’ campaign which was a lot of fun to create and shoot. I can’t wait for the world to see what we’ve got up our sleeves.”

Cussen added: “I knew Raheem was a natural performer on the pitch, but I didn’t know that he also had the talent in front of the camera as well! I loved working with him, and when he started to pop up behind the scenes as well, I knew he had a future on the other side of the camera.

“Playmaker Films is a truly collaborative endeavour between myself and Raheem, as well as the amazing people that perhaps don’t get a mention in the headlines. There’s a real buzz about the place, what we are trying to do and we have some exciting projects in the pipeline. I can’t wait to kick off.”

Playmaker Film’s in-house capabilities will include specialist strategy, creative and production functions, fronted by Royston Reeves, former Head of Strategy at Joe Media, and Kem Ekundayo, an international producer with a background working with top influencers and musicians such as Anne-Marie, KSI and Popcaan.

The launch follows actor Idris Elba joining forces with Miroma Group founder Marc Boyan to launch marketing and content business SillyFace. The venture. which opened in June, operates as part of Miroma Group from three offices in London, New York and Los Angeles.

Related stories
Idris Elba joins with Miroma to open marketing agency
Box ‘em in: Women’s football really is ‘beautiful game’
Bolser agency lands brief to help £92m sports project
Hammers sign marketing deal to get closer to fanbase
Man Utd raids N Brown to sign first data science chief
Footballers cry foul over ‘abuse’ of performance data