Sanctuary Signs Cinematic Australian Director Dylan Duclos

After more than six years with a renowned Australian production company, Australian/Maori director Dylan Duclos is officially entering the U.S. market as the new addition to the roster at trailblazing Los Angeles production company Sanctuary. Duclos is known for his photographic and surreal style, that’s earned him several Vimeo Staff Picks and commercial craft awards.

“When I met Dylan, I was impressed with his ambition and ability to blend sharp narratives with an immersive, time-suspending visual style,” said Preston Lee. “I knew immediately that he would be an apt addition to our team, and I’m elated that he felt similarly.”

Indeed, already familiar with Sanctuary’s reputation for consistently producing pioneering, high-impact work, Duclos first crossed paths with Sanctuary when he came to the States to work on an ad campaign. When introduced to Sanctuary partners Preston Lee and Kristen Bodard Johnson, he felt inspired and was on board straight away.

A native of Western Sydney, Duclos’ dad worked in TV, exposing the future filmmaker to control rooms and sets at a young age and allowing him to start editing professionally by age 16. As a young editor, he gained experience in nearly every part of film production and befriended several directors who encouraged him to try his hand behind the lens.

“I’m really drawn to the velocity of short-form storytelling, and I’ve been fascinated with photography as a medium for as long as I can remember,” said Duclos. “In photography, you have to tell a story in one shot, and I tend to play on that in my work by using a lot of photographic references and building a film frame by frame.”

Duclos got his start directing music videos, a swift, creativity-unleashing format that he said felt natural to him as a kid of the Vimeo generation. Sure enough, he honed an absorbing, textural, and rich visual style and quickly started working for top Australian talent. With electro-pop White Shadows, he made the music video “Give Up Give Out Give in,”  and with singer-songwriter Emma Louise, a cultish music video called “West End Kids.” Both earned Vimeo Staff Picks. 

After making waves with his music videos, Duclos was scooped up by Australia’s Collider and thrust into the world of commercials. Duclos has since honed his minimalist and cinematic style with award-winning ads for Corona, Sheridan, James Boags, Vanguard, Victoria Racing Club, and more. 

With Sanctuary, Duclos has his eye on highly creative collaborations with global brands, particularly in luxury fashion. He’s also eager to try his hand at crafting more comedic stories, and to eventually transform his love of high-impact storytelling into the creation of a TV series. Duclos is currently crafting a short film, its working title “St Vitus,” based on the true story of the dancing plague of 1518 in Stroudsburg.

“I am always trying to push my filmmaking artistry, and America is the home of the ad, so it just feels like a natural next step in the progression of my career,” said Duclos. “I can’t imagine a better way to make my entrance than with the skillful team at Sanctuary by my side.”

View more of Dylan’s work here