Vicki Cooper
Vicki Cooper portrait by Christa Holka
agent: Camilla Chiverton - camilla@sternwild.com
Vicki Cooper is an award-winning director and executive producer renowned for bold, emotionally resonant storytelling. Vicki’s recent directing credits include ‘Planet Sex with Cara Delevingne’ (Hulu/BBC), a provocative deep dive into sex, gender, and sexuality; and ‘What’s the Monarchy For?’ (BBC) a collaboration with legendary broadcaster David Dimbleby; a subversive critique of the Monarchy’s power, wealth, and ultimately their survival.
As an executive producer, her body of work includes a number of investigative docs for Channel 4 and globally impactful projects: from ‘Anatomy of Lies’ (Peacock), a three part series co-produced with Condé Nast; to stranger-than-fiction, archive-rich feature doc thriller ‘American Zoo’ co-produced with Fifth Season and premiering at Tribeca; and exec on the development and pre production of ‘Antiheroine’, a feature on Courtney Love which premiered at Sundance.
Both as an exec and a director Vicki moves fluidly across genres, from hard-hitting investigative journalism to immersive science storytelling and powerful, character-driven narratives. Vicki delivers ratings hitters across archive-driven retrospective films, complex unfolding narratives, and talent driven docs, at the heart of her work are real people, big ideas, and entertainment.
Known for shaping intimate, authentic performances with A-list talent, she’s collaborated with icons including Jamie Oliver, Cara Delevingne, and Olly Alexander. She started out in music docs working with the likes of Amy Winehouse and the Beastie Boys.
From Parliament to prime time, Vicki enjoys delivering films that create genuine impact. ‘The Cruel Cut’ (Channel 4) helped force a national reckoning on female genital mutilation and earned nominations from BAFTA, Amnesty, Broadcast, and AIB. ‘Jamie’s Sugar Rush’ (Channel 4) and ‘What Are We Feeding Our Kids?’ (BBC One) ignited public debate and policy change on what we eat. With ‘Olly Alexander: Growing Up Gay’ (BBC), she helped articulate the struggles of a generation grappling with identity and mental health.
Vicki is meticulous across every facet of production, from legal and compliance to stakeholder management and budgeting, always striking a balance between achieving high production value; getting the job done; running a happy, productive team and delivering on budget and on time.
A respected mentor and industry advocate, Vicki is committed to nurturing emerging talent and amplifying underrepresented voices, including mentoring for BAFTA and supporting first-time female directors.
Vicki was able to steer an extremely complex and difficult international co-production that had a first-time director and a host of sensitive subjects with a level of calm and brilliance that left us at Vanity Fair in a constant state of thanks that we had her as the executive producer and showrunner on the project. She is not just creative and highly adaptable, she is also a wonderful person and a joy to work with.
Sarah Amos, VP of Development & Production at Condé Nast Entertainment
Vicki brought an energy and passion to the job that never wavered, from her first day through to TX. Her editorial instincts, director's vision and sheer tenacity in the face of multiple hurdles, drove the quality of the series ever upwards. We literally couldn't have made it without her!
Lucie Duxbury, Head of Programmes at The Garden Productions
Vicki has made a number of films for us at Channel 4 as both a director and an executive producer. They are always accessible, emotionally resonant, impactful, and are incredibly creatively told. Vicki is a dream to work with and always goes the extra mile to make the best possible film.
Louisa Compton, Head of News and Current Affairs, Specialist Factual, and Sport at Channel 4