CREATIVE
direction
Local Legends was built around immersion and alignment.
The intention was never to document individuals from the outside. It was to step into their world long enough that the audience feels present within it. Creating alongside them. Moving at their rhythm. Experiencing the environment that shaped them.
Each story features a real individual living an honest, creative life rooted in place. These are not manufactured personalities. They are people deeply connected to their craft and their community. Their identity is not performed. It is lived.
The creative direction centered on spending time first. Listening. Understanding how they create. What drives them. What authenticity means in their world. The camera only entered once that foundation was established.
Faherty’s role within the series is intentional but subtle. The brand does not announce itself. It aligns itself. By featuring individuals who embody craftsmanship, presence, and connection to place, Faherty invites the audience to draw a natural conclusion. These are like-minded values.
Authenticity recognizes authenticity.
VISUAL
direction
There’s a perception that vertical video is disposable. Quick. Scrollable. We wanted to challenge that. The goal was to prove that vertical can still carry weight. Still carry story. Still feel cinematic.
We approached it as portraiture in motion.
Each frame was treated like a living portrait and focused on presence. The vertical composition naturally draws you into a person’s space. It becomes intimate. You’re not watching from a distance. You’re standing there with them.
Lighting was meant to feel natural, but we curated everything to feel authentic. We shaped what already existed. Windows, practical light, real ambient sources to start and then added our lighting techniques to refine. Nothing overly polished. Nothing that felt staged. This world had to feel honest.
We filmed in each subject’s real environment. Instead of reshaping those environments, we adapted to them. The texture, the imperfections, the atmosphere all mattered. They tell part of the story.
Camera movement was motivated by what was actually happening. It followed their hands at work. I followed pauses and responded to rhythm. If someone slowed down, we slowed down. If energy shifted, the camera shifted.
We shot on a Vista Vision digital sensor and wide open prime lenses to match. T1.4 to create real depth inside the vertical frame. The extreme shallow falloff gave separation and dimension, allowing the subject to feel grounded in space rather than flattened. Even on social, the image needed to feel sculpted. Authentic feel with dreamy sequences.
Wardrobe was fully Faherty, but integrated naturally. Nothing felt placed. It was lived in. The clothing was handpicked to belong in their world.
Story is always the anchor. Even in a social-first format, the objective was not content. It was connection.
IMPACT
Local Legends is not about showcasing product. It’s about alignment.
Faherty has built its brand around authenticity and craftsmanship. Instead of saying that outright, this series demonstrates it. By spending time with real people who live those values every day, the brand positions itself alongside them.
The audience doesn’t need to be told the connection, because they feel it.
Since release, the response across social platforms has been extremely strong. Not because it’s loud. But because it’s real. In a feed full of fast content, sincerity stands out.
This series reinforces Faherty’s identity by proximity. By showing up in the lives of people who create with intention, the brand strengthens its own commitment to that same ethos. Vertical in format, intentional in execution, and always rooted in story.
Six stories captured.
Three presented here.
One shared sense of authenticity.
