JOHN MCDONNELL / Writer & Creative Director

Backed by Messi is a film series that tells the story of 10 rising football stars from across the globe who have been chosen by the world's best player to wear his boots.

I was tasked with taking series two of BBM to new heights, creating something authentic and compelling to inspire the young target audience. Taking influence from the split-screen titles of Football Italia, the graphics of retro video games like Street Fighter and the multi-action, comic book-style storytelling of Fargo season 2, I came up with a fresh new look and feel for the series. With full creative control over the series, my role encompassed everything from writing and directing each episode, to overseeing production, animation, voiceover and sound design – as well as choreographing and shooting content with players across Europe over a six-month period.