Long-form and short-form documentary. Athlete films, cultural embeds, expedition footage, commercial storytelling. From 90 seconds to feature length.
Still images with the weight of film. Street photography, portrait work, sports and action, editorial documentary series. The decisive moment, honestly captured.
Photo and film campaigns for brands that want to associate with real achievement. We deliver both disciplines — and they work better together than apart.
Most production companies do one or the other. We do both — and we think the best stories deserve both. A film captures movement and time. A photograph captures the moment within it. Together they tell the complete story.
In a world flooded with CGI, AI-generated imagery and fabricated spectacle — we go the other way.
Make It Real documents extraordinary people through film and photography. Athletes. Street life. Documentary portraits. Whatever the subject — we capture it honestly, with no fabrication and no safety net.
The goosebumps only work because everything you're watching actually happened.
Most production companies send a crew. We are the crew. James and Jack don't observe from a distance — we embed, we climb, we ski, we go on expeditions. We survive in the wild for weeks if that's what the story demands.
If your story happens at altitude, we're at altitude. If it happens in a remote river system, we're in the river. If it means following a tribe for a month, we follow the tribe.
When you need a production studio willing to go to the extreme to capture your story — we are the ones who make it real. You've done the hard work. We'll go wherever it takes to share it.
Film and photography rooted in documentary truth. Real people. Real moments. Nothing fabricated.
It started with cheap flights. James Cumberland and Jack Shuttleworth saw an opportunity — Marrakesh, practically no notice, a camera and no plan whatsoever. They went. They spent 24 hours walking the medina, photographing the people, the noise, the colour, the life.
Nobody asked permission to dream it. They just made it real.
That trip became the proof of concept for everything Make It Real stands for: you don't wait for the perfect conditions, the budget, the brief. You see the story, you show up, and you document what's actually there.
I've always loved going to the cinema — not just because I love films, but because of the way they make me feel. Every drop of blood, sweat and tears an artist poured into something, landing in a dark room full of strangers. That feeling. That's what I'm chasing.
I'm a story-first filmmaker. I strongly believe that once you have an incredible story, making the film is the easy part. That's why I'm here — to come and document your incredible story. You've already done the hard work. I'm just here to share it.
Make It Real started with a pair of cheap flights to Marrakesh — James and Jack, no plan, just cameras and a belief that showing up is the hardest and most important thing you can do.
We are not spreading fake news. We are telling real stories in an honest, humble way. What you see is what happened.
James and Jack saw cheap flights to Marrakesh. No plan, no budget, no brief. They just went. Armed with a camera and 24 hours, they walked the medina and photographed everything — the people, the chaos, the beauty, the rawness of a city completely alive.
That's the whole philosophy in one trip. Make It Real isn't a production company that plans things to death and then shoots. It's two people who saw something worth documenting and went and documented it.
The name was already there. We just had to prove it.
If you're doing something extraordinary, we want to hear about it. We don't care how well known you are. We care about what you're doing and why.
Working with us means you retain full creative input. We share edits before anything goes public. Your story is never misrepresented. It stays yours.
We don't charge you to tell your story. The work is funded through brand partnerships with companies whose values align with the story being told.
The most effective brand content doesn't look like brand content. It looks like something people actually want to watch — because it is.
Make It Real partners with brands whose values align with the story being told. Your brand earns its place rather than being grafted on top.
Briefs that compromise the honesty of the film are declined. That's not a limitation — it's exactly why the work is worth associating with.
Behind the work. Notes from the field. Thoughts on storytelling and the world we film in.
This is not a values statement. It is a condition of our work.
Make It Real films in some of the most extraordinary natural environments on earth. These places are not backdrops — they are living ecosystems that exist independently of us.
We have an obvious self-interest in protecting them. Without an intact natural world, the stories we want to tell don't exist. But that self-interest and genuine care are not in conflict.
We are not a sustainability company. We are a production studio that takes its responsibility to the natural world seriously.
Updated after each production. Published openly.
| Production | Year | Location | Carbon Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 24 Hours in Marrakesh | 2024 | Marrakesh, Morocco | ~3.53 tCO2e · Offset pending |
| Calculation: Leeds–Marrakesh return (x2 passengers, economy, ~3,400km each way) + local transport + 2 nights accommodation. Source: DEFRA 2024 emissions factors. | |||
| First Documentary | 2025 | TBC | In progress |
Whether you're an athlete, a subject with a story, a brand with a vision, or just curious about the work — we want to hear from you.
We read and reply to everything. Usually within 48 hours.
Leeds, United Kingdom
Available for projects nationwide
and internationally.
"We're at the beginning of something. If your story resonates with what Make It Real stands for, we genuinely want to hear from you — whether you're a brand, an athlete, or just someone doing something extraordinary."