Judy Ross, head of television at Publicis between 1994 and 2003, and Sarah Martin, head of TV at McCann Erickson from 1999 to June 2004, have expressed their concerns about the future of talent in the media, after setting up joint businesses the Ross Martin Consultancy and the TV Department.
Through their experience in the UK advertising industry, the pair have found that new talent is being pushed aside by agencies desperate to guarantee that their ads meet high expectations.
So what hope is there for new talent? Ross says the way things are going at the moment, the future for young directors looks bleak.
"It's very difficult to give them any advice. They have to keep knocking on doors, just keep going. Someone will give them a break eventually but it's very hard," she said.
One new director who has made an impression on the ad industry is James Rouse of the Viral Factory, who made the "vault" viral for Trojan Condoms' "Sex Olympics" campaign. These were much acclaimed and went on to win various awards.
"But that's rare", Ross said. "People only seem to want working directors at the moment and there's nothing wrong with that in one sense, but there will come a point when there's no new talent at all."
Ross and Martin joined forces 18 months ago to set up the Ross Martin Consultancy, which works as a "matchmaker" for directors and production companies, and the TV Department, which offers freelance TV producers and production services for ad agencies in the UK and Europe.
Ross says that they remember the days when creative teams used to demand new reels and new names, but now because they are unproven "no one wants to give them a chance".
Charlotte Woodhead, a freelance producer who most recently put together the NERFF charity film festival, says she understands the reasons why new talent is struggling to get through.
"Why do all that hard work and not get it realised the way you want it to be? It is the same for a director -- they will always go for the proven cinematographer over the newer one."
According to Woodhead, there is only a small amount of work out there for the new Frank Budgen or Jonathan Glazer to move on to bigger and better projects, and it is hard to develop in the shadows of the greats, with names such as Danny Kleinman and Budgen coming through again and again.
"The one thing that I found most interesting about running the festival was when I met a creative team for a major mobile phone network.
"They commented that they had lots of ideas that they would like to explore and directors they would like to look at, but their agency always showed them the same old reels. Maybe the agencies should take note of that."
One company that is attempting to nurture new talent is Rushes through its Soho Shorts Festival, with the inclusion of a newcomer award to give up-and-coming talent a chance to shine.
Joce Capper, managing director of Rushes, says the best way for new directors to get seen is through entering competitions.
"Money is so tight and people are nervous about taking a chance. Young directors need to get as many people as possible to go and see their work and make it not so 'on the edge' that it isn't suitable to be screened," Capper said.
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