Grand Prix-Winner Karien Cherry on Comedy, Craft, and Chicken Licken

​It was in her friend’s kitchen that Karien Cherry heard the news. With Chicken Licken 'Piki Piki Mabelane', she’d both won the first Loeries Grand Prix ever to be awarded to a Film Craft category, and become the first woman director to helm a Grand Prix-winning film.

Above: Chicken Licken 'Piki Piki Mabelane'

Despite being a top-end filmmaker who’s executed complex projects at scale spanning tabletop to automotive to stunts, babies to animals to celebrities, the Giant Films director simply didn’t expect this award. But the truth is, she’s not new to making Loeries history. Her previous work for the South African restaurant chain, another comedy spot titled 'Everybody's Talking About It', resulted in her becoming the first woman to win a Gold for Direction and top the Director Rankings back in 2020.

Above: Chicken Licken 'Everybody's Talking About It'

Sitting down with LBB’s Zara Naseer to discuss her ambitions in the aftermath of these fresh wins, it’s clear that Karien’s goal remains unchanged, “I just hope I stay lucky! And keep getting to make great work with great people!” Already one of South Africa’s most prolific directors, Karien is equally excited by opportunities across markets like the UK, North America, and Australia. “When I’m creating work in different markets my curiosity gets a free pass -- I get to question stuff that’s widely accepted, or notice things that are really funny but have become wallpaper. Being able to lend an old truth a fresh eye is really fun.” The director, who specialises in comedy, has long since proven her ability to fine-tune her humour to different markets, beginning with her 2021 Heineken commercial, 'The Perfect Match' – the first to be directed by a woman.

Above: Heineken ‘The Perfect Match’

“I love comedy that tells the truth about what it means to be human, and that can look very different to UK, Australian, North American, and South African comedic sensibilities,” says Karien. That’s what makes her comedy distinctly hers: emotional storytelling through human performance.  

Perhaps that’s down to her background in theatre. Directing, surprisingly, was never the plan. “I used to be on stage,” Karien reveals. “I grew up acting, dancing, singing. After school, I was in a performing arts touring company for five years, spent some time in LA, got to know people in the industry, and was like, ‘Oh, I can do that’. That’s how I started choreographing and producing and directing.”

That formative experience as an actor manifests itself in the way Karien approaches casting and directing, uniquely attuned to who belongs on screen – whether they’ve previously acted or not – and how to pull the best performance out of them. 

“A lot of directing happens off camera, so even when the cameras aren't rolling, you're creating a feeling and a space between the crew and the cast,” she says. “Acting's really, really tough – you've got to be so brave and vulnerable and open. That doesn't mean that actors want to be held with cotton wool; they just need someone who gets that. I riff and banter with them to create a comfortable space for them to relax into and do their thing.”

Her process is a testament to the importance of human craft: the magic lies in real people bringing their lived experience, sense of humour, and spontaneity to set. 

“That's what infuses life into filmmaking. It’s an art, sensory, emotional. Without devolving into the AI conversation, which is a wonderful tool for some things, I think it would be very sad if that replaces the very thing that makes us human: having my experience and your experience and a hundred people's different experiences come together in one day to make something.”

From Karien’s perspective, looking after the performance is a focal part of her responsibility as a director, being the only part of the filmmaking process in which no other crew member is involved. That makes winning the Loeries Grand Prix for Performance all the sweeter, especially for the Chicken Licken film which, according to Karien, demanded pitch-perfect execution to come alive.

“Central to that was casting the right lead. With only three weeks of prep, I was a nervous wreck until Phila Mazibuko’s tape came across my desk. The first time I saw those eyes I knew we had a chance,” Karien recounts. Giving the story and performance an entertaining arc through repeated scenarios was the next major challenge. “Finding different ways in and out of each scene became very important. Understanding the beats helped me plot the shape and create a truthful world for the actors to respond to in fresh, interesting ways. The planning facilitates the improv. There’s an elusive alchemy to a great performance that I’ll always be in pursuit of.”

Once the ad was completed and she heard the unanimous laughter that broke out at its ending, she was certain something had hit home. “What ultimately makes something resonate is how truthful you’re able to be. South Africa is a cultural melting pot with 11 official languages, so when people across the country respond in a universal way it means we’ve made something truthful even in its specificity.”

Karien’s found a way to make comedy that’s rooted in South Africa, without it being typical of the region. Her favourite kinds of projects are just a little subtler, more conceptual, pared back. Her recent City Lodge campaign – observing the comedy in our everyday domestic dramas – stripped out all spoken dialogue entirely. 

Above: City Lodge ‘Couple’

“The comedy was in the tragedy, and I really didn't want it to devolve into trying to be funny,” Karien emphasises. Instead, she opted for unconventional methods. “I completely rewrote the scenarios for the actors. They had no idea what the actual story was gonna be. They thought they were in a drama or a horror, like a couple going through divorce. Meanwhile, it's something completely different, but it nailed the tone of the performance.”

High-concept visual effects work is a “whole other level of visual storytelling” that Karien’s keen to explore further, noting the need to get more women behind the big work. Her past Volkswagen commercial springs to mind, in which joyful surprises hide around every corner.

Above: Volkswagen ‘Mind on Family’

“As a director you're building a world. It's exciting to me to create something that doesn't necessarily exist, but that still resonates emotionally. That'll always be what I look for in work that incorporates any kind of post work, whether it's overt or not: does it retain that emotional resonance? Do we invest in the world?”

Asked what her world would look like if she were tasked with building it, Karien cheats. “I wouldn’t be able to just create one world; there's too much that I enjoy! When I was young I used to complain that I'd never live long enough to do everything I wanted to do. And I still feel that way!”

At the same time, she’s focused, working relentlessly towards a single goal.

“I just want to make the best work I'm capable of, alongside the best people I can find. What more could you ask for?