Ryan’s upbringing in the frigid plains of Fargo, North Dakota, seems to have been the perfect generator for his dark and witty style of comedy. Whether pitting Dolph Lundgren against a poison-spurting unicorn, teasing passers-by with evil two-faced sweets, or subverting the dramatic genre of a bank heist, Ryan clearly finds particular delight in character-based comic surprise. A skill which has seen him work with the likes of The Hoff, Mr T and Darth Vader, and for agencies including Mother, Crispin Porter Bogusky & BBH NY.

A relative newcomer to behind the camera, Ryan started his advertising career on the agency side. He was a successful copywriter working for various US agencies including Fallon, BBH, TBWA & W&K amongst others. Ryan was most notably Creative Director for the creative hot-shop Butler, Shine & Stern, where he helped the agency win awards in just about every creative arena from Cannes to D&AD to One Show.