In 2008, Kingsley worked as a runner at Blink, the Soho-based production company, after sending them a DVD containing several of his short films.[8] Over the next year, he began directing music videos and commercials.[9][10][11][12][13][14]
In 2011 Kingsley and Will Sharpe released their low-budget feature-length film Black Pond.[15] The film led to Kingsley and Sharpe being nominated for Outstanding Debut at the Baftas, and winning Most Promising Newcomer(s) at the Evening Standard Film Awards.[16] It was listed as a film of the year in the New Statesman and the Financial Times.[17][18]