Melbourne · London · LONDON — OPENING THIS APRIL
where ideas go
to be set free.
A creative partnership, built inside out.
Senior strategists, designers, directors and makers — working this way not because they have to, but because they choose to. The people you always wished were on the brief. They're here.
No overheads. No hierarchy in the way of the work. No process-pain. Just bespoke teams, built flat, by people who'd rather make work than manage it.
Forgive us for thinking this is how it should have always worked.
For talent: The work, on your terms. With people you'd actually choose to work with.
For clients: The right team for your brief. Cast bespoke, without overhead. Built from the people you wish were on the brief in the first place.
The people who make it possible.
Practitioners from adam&eveDDB, DDB, Ogilvy, M&C Saatchi, WCRS, Sky and beyond. They didn't leave the industry. They chose to do it better.
Melbourne 🇦🇺
Michael McConville
Founder & Creative Director
IPA Effectiveness, D&AD, Cannes Lions and British Arrows winner. Former Partner at Engine/WCRS, former Managing Partner at adam&eveDDB and former Global CEO at cummins&partners.
London 🇬🇧
Sophie Lewis
Chief Strategy Officer
One of London's most respected strategic minds. Senior leadership at M&C Saatchi and BBH across Boots, Sainsbury's, Starbucks, American Express and Heinz. Strategy that earns its keep.
LONDON / GLOBAL 🌏
Geraldine Ingham
Global Business Consultant
Former Global Managing Director of Range Rover. Global Head of Automotive at Meta. Former Marketing Director at Volkswagen UK. She's sat on your side of the table. She knows what brilliant should look like.
London 🇬🇧
Christopher Ringsell
Creative Director
Two decades of award-winning creative production across WCRS, VCCP, Sky and Saatchi & Saatchi. Work for Women's Aid, the RAF and the BBC. Craft that earns its place in culture.
London 🇬🇧
Steven Halliday
Studio Director
Commercial Director at Gen Plus Group UK/EU and Studio Director at free.studio London. Formerly Business & Sustainability Director at adam&eveDDB. Fifteen years of high-performance client partnerships across Volkswagen, Coca-Cola and Jack Daniel's.
Melbourne 🇦🇺
Lucy Saarelaht
PR & Communications Director
Former Director at Ogilvy PR. Specialist in earned media strategy, brand reputation and cultural storytelling.
Melbourne 🇦🇺
Ben Welsh
Chief Creative Officer
Former CCO of DDB Australia and Asia Creative Chairman at M&C Saatchi. Two decades building brand platforms for McDonald's, Netflix and Virgin Australia.
London 🇬🇧
Dino Burbidge
Technology & Innovation Creative
BAFTA-winning inventor of the Rubik's Connected Cube. Formerly of Sky Innovation Lab and Walt Disney Europe. Sees AI as a creative accelerant, not an existential threat. One of the rare people who understands technology as deeply as storytelling.
Melbourne 🇦🇺
Pat Baron
Executive Creative Director
Under his leadership, McCann Melbourne was ranked the world's number one agency by the Gunn Report. The only Australian CD with work in the London Design Museum. Advertising Age's #1 Creative Director globally.
London 🇬🇧
Sophie Lewis
Chief Strategy Officer
One of London's most respected strategic minds. Senior leadership at M&C Saatchi and BBH across Boots, Sainsbury's, Starbucks, American Express and Heinz. Strategy that earns its keep.
LONDON / GLOBAL 🌏
Geraldine Ingham
Global Business Consultant
Former Global Managing Director of Range Rover. Global Head of Automotive at Meta. Former Marketing Director at Volkswagen UK. She's sat on your side of the table. She knows what brilliant should look like.
London 🇬🇧
Christopher Ringsell
Creative Director
Two decades of award-winning creative production across WCRS, VCCP, Sky and Saatchi & Saatchi. Work for Women's Aid, the RAF and the BBC. Craft that earns its place in culture.
London 🇬🇧
Steven Halliday
Studio Director
Commercial Director at Gen Plus Group UK/EU and Studio Director at free.studio London. Formerly Business & Sustainability Director at adam&eveDDB. Fifteen years of high-performance client partnerships across Volkswagen, Coca-Cola and Jack Daniel's.
Melbourne 🇦🇺
Lucy Saarelaht
PR & Communications Director
Former Director at Ogilvy PR. Specialist in earned media strategy, brand reputation and cultural storytelling.
Melbourne 🇦🇺
Ben Welsh
Chief Creative Officer
Former CCO of DDB Australia and Asia Creative Chairman at M&C Saatchi. Two decades building brand platforms for McDonald's, Netflix and Virgin Australia.
London 🇬🇧
Dino Burbidge
Technology & Innovation Creative
BAFTA-winning inventor of the Rubik's Connected Cube. Formerly of Sky Innovation Lab and Walt Disney Europe. Sees AI as a creative accelerant, not an existential threat. One of the rare people who understands technology as deeply as storytelling.
Melbourne 🇦🇺
Pat Baron
Executive Creative Director
Under his leadership, McCann Melbourne was ranked the world's number one agency by the Gunn Report. The only Australian CD with work in the London Design Museum. Advertising Age's #1 Creative Director globally.
Beyond the creative disciplines you'd expect.
We've built signature programmes designed to solve the problems agencies can't — or won't.
01
Special Projects
For when the brief isn't fully formed yet — and neither is the answer. We come in as a neutral partner. Not to take over. To make what you have work harder when you're not sure you've got the perfect casting for the task.
02
Fractional-Plus
The leadership and day-to-day delivery, all in one place. One contract, no handoff, no gaps. The capability you need, backed by the talent you didn't know you could access.
03
Innovation Circuit-Breaker
A six-week reset to unlock your next phase of growth. A cultural reset through doing — not just talking.
04
Free Ideas
A low-cost bolt-in that keeps your business generating ideas, even when everyone's heads-down. Plug us in. Watch what surfaces.
05
C-Suite Co-Piloting
Peer-level thinking for leaders working through something knotty. Our free-folk have sat in your seat. They won't tell you what you want to hear. They'll tell you what you need to.
06
New-Age Publishing
Don't wait for production to find your story. We come in early — finding the angles, shaping the narrative, helping you say something worth hearing before you spend a penny on making it.
Senior practitioners from brands that set the standard.
Our free-folk have held leadership positions at the world's most respected agencies and brands. Their track record is your reassurance.
Agencies
Brands
Want to speak to someone who's worked with us? We're happy to connect you.
Request a Referral →Transparent by design.
Membership gives you a co-working space in Melbourne or London, access to an extraordinary community of senior talent, curated project opportunities — and the chance to build teams around your own ideas for funding, selling or commercialisation. No lock-in. No politics. Just good people and good work.
Standard Membership
Month-to-month. No lock-in.
- Month-to-month membership
- Cancel anytime with 30 days notice
- No lock-in contracts
- Full workspace access
- Community and project opportunities
Founding Membership
Available until 30 April 2026 · Founding rate locked for 12 months
- Founding rate locked for 12 months
- Available to founding members until 30 April 2026
- No lock-in contracts · Cancel anytime with 30 days notice
- Workspace, community access and curated project opportunities included
Project Work
No hidden markups.
- We cast for task and profile each piece of talent
- Hourly and day-rates for allocated project teams
- Project-based engagements from less than your traditional shop
- Credit-banks for resource available
Melbourne and London. One partnership.
Melbourne
Established 2024
Bank Street, South Melbourne, Australia
hello@free.studio
+61 435 583 455
London
LONDON — OPENING THIS APRIL
Farringdon, London
london@free.studio
+44 7427 747 373
LONDON — OPENING THIS APRIL — Apply now →
Rare alignments turn ordinary into extraordinary. We watched the moon eclipse, the aurora corona, the very first light of a new day. Lifetimes get spent looking for moments like those. So we built something that works the same way. Set as equals. Set to aim high.