worklife | Ellie Green
brought them into contact with outdoor brands sponsoring the events. Marketing managers wanted to use their films on company websites and the emerging social-media platforms. Those relationships then turned into commercial commissions. “There would be a spring⁄summer campaign and they’d ask us to come and shoot jackets up in Scotland or Cornwall,” Green recalls. “It was right when Facebook, Instagram and social media were really taking off, so it was new for the brands and completely new for us.” Brand work also introduced the couple to athletes and other characters whose stories seemed capable of supporting something longer. “We’d meet somebody and think, ‘That’s an incredible story.’ They might be sponsored by a brand and we knew the marketing manager, so perhaps they’d commission or support a longer film.” Looking back, the progression appears logical. At the time, it didn’t necessarily feel anything like as organised. It can be scary. Banks don’t like what we do when you start talking mortgages!
‘Why is everything on the GoPro flat, but when I look at something in the cinema there are all these different areas of focus?’” That curiosity pushed the pair towards some more sophisticated cameras, initially Panasonic Lumix GH models, chosen not for brand loyalty or fashionable specifications but because they were dependable for the conditions in which the Greens worked. “You could take them out anywhere and they perform. The batteries were amazing. People would ask why we used Lumix, and we were basically saying that whatever does the job best and whatever we don’t need to worry about.” They subsequently moved to Sony, and today Green’s main cameras include the A7S III. But that same philosophy remains. “I’m not very technical,” she admits. “My style is much more run and gun. I grab whatever I can. Sometimes I’ll shoot with a phone if that’s the nearest thing to hand.” That’s not to suggest that technical knowledge is unimportant. Green describes Matt as the more technically proficient one, while she gravitates towards directing, editing and constructing the story. “I just get obsessed with the story and the edit. Story is what draws you in.” Building organically The Greens’ business grew in much the same way as their filmmaking knowledge: gradually and organically. Trail races
“It was very organic and very slow,” Green explains. Then Covid arrived. Within days, virtually an entire year of planned work disappeared. But the restrictions eventually created an unexpected opportunity. With organised racing still restricted, endurance athletes began attempting individual records on trails and routes. The Greens could follow them with an extremely small crew. “We’d have just the two of us and a runner trying to break a record. We started making films around that and selling them directly to viewers, rather than relying completely on commissioned work,” says Green. The experience strengthened their ambition to concentrate more seriously on documentaries. Don’t chase everything That decision has become even more important as the creator economy has exploded. The simpler social-media films the Greens were producing can now be made by scores of influencers and creators carrying remarkably capable cameras in their pockets. Green sees this not as one profession replacing another, but as two different disciplines. “Really good social media content is a skillset in itself,” she stresses. “It’s just something we decided wasn’t for us.” The harder lesson has been learning to turn down jobs that pull the business
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November/December 2026
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