Aadil Dhalech
Aadil Dhalech is a half Thai, half Indian director based in Johannesburg, South Africa. Aadil spent his childhood bouncing between Thailand, India and a troubled 80’s South Africa. He found escape in movies, and dreamed of one day being able to tell stories that other people could escape to.
Unfortunately, it took him quite a while to get on that path. When he left school, he studied medical sciences, like any good Asian kid, but broke his parents’ hearts when he dropped out. BUT he did get a degree in Psychology, only to break his parents’ hearts again, and enrol for post-grad in Copywriting and Advertising…
Aadil then spent over a decade working as a creative in top tier agencies - JWT, Y&R, and BBDO - where he racked up a number of local and international awards.
In 2016, just when he’d become a father and had mounting financial responsibilities, Aadil decided to leave his financially stable career as a Creative Director to pursue his lifelong-dream of directing. Thankfully, it worked out. Aadil has produced some amazing work, for some pretty amazing brands, a few short films, and has won a couple of awards along the way. His agency experience, a knack for directing comedy and performance, paired with a strong cinematic eye, made him a dream to work with.
In October 2023, Aadil started Fam Films with Executive Producer (and sometimes director, when he feels like it) Mpho Twala, his work soulmate. In its first year Fam Films produced 10 commercials for South Africa and the African continent for Suzuki, Adidas, KFC, Toyota, Ford, and AbinBev (Castle Lager, Hunter’s Dry, and Flying Fish Lager), to name a couple. And they’re just getting started, fam.
*BTW, his parents’ hearts are still broken, but they complain less.
