RSA UK's first documentary is Ad Men for Sky Atlantic

Sky Atlantic has commissioned Ad Men from RSA Productions.  A first documentary from the UK operation of the leading commercials production house, Ad Men will look at the  colourful world of British advertising across the decades.

Commissioned by Sky’s Siobhan Mulholland, commissioning editor, features and factual, Ad Men is executive produced by RSA’s Casper Delaney.  The series will air on Sky Atlantic and Sky Atlantic in March to support the UK premiere of Mad Men, Season 5.

The film will  trace the world of advertising from the revolutionary 60s through to the hedonistic 80s and the dawn of the millennium’s global digital world.

While America’s ‘mad men’ shook up New York, a rival generation of British ad men were revolutionising London. Led by avant-gardes Charles Saatchi, Ridley Scott, Alan Parker, David Puttnam and John Hegarty, these badly behaved, working class firebrands understood the new wave of consumerism that was sweeping Britain and readily exploited the myriad of creative opportunities this nascent world offered.

Celia Taylor, Sky’s head of factual and features, said: “Ad Men is the perfect documentary to compliment the launch of the eagerly anticipated new season of Mad Men on Sky Atlantic.  A compelling documentary, Ad Men will be an entertaining look at British advertising and how a small group of young creative radicals changed the advertising landscape forever.”

RSA’s executive producer Caspar Delaney said: "It's great for RSA to be moving into TV documentaries with a subject matter so close to our hearts. We were inspired by this year's fiftieth anniversary of D&AD, the organisation at the heart of Britain's creative industries.

“It's a fascinating story about the country's most memorable ads and the amazing, eccentric and maverick men who made them. With great access to the big names of the business such as Alan Parker, David Puttnam and John Hegarty, this is the story of one of the most significant chapters in British cultural history, straight from the horses’ mouths."

By the eighties, London’s biggest ad agencies were playing on the world stage. Amidst a heady atmosphere of wealth, excess, sex and hubris, iconic commercials such as Hamlet’s award-winning Happiness is a cigar called Hamlet, the infamous Levis launderette advert and Heineken refreshes the parts, ensured the awards kept rolling in and their power kept growing.

Advertising executives influenced what people ate, shopped and even shaped politics. Governments were launched on the back of ad campaigns and Saatchi’s even made a bid to buy Midland bank.

The new millennium heralded a new era: recession, globalisation and the opportunities and threats offered by digital media meant the end of hedonism and extravagant expense claims. Ad agencies revolutionised again and many continue to succeed.

RSA is known for its high profile commercials and features work. In the US it has already made a number of documentaries.