Director Thomas Mignone has joined Shooting Gallery Productions (SGP), the commercial/music video division of New York-headquartered The Shooting Gallery. When he joined SGP in April, Mignone shut Doom Inc., the Los Angeles production house he had founded in 1994. Through Doom he helmed many music videos, including Slipknot’s "Spit It Out" and "Wait and Bleed," as well as Soulfly’s "Bleed" and "Primitive," and Mudvayne’s "Dig." For the American Red Cross, Mignone also directed CD-ROM projects like CPR Kidz and educational videos such as First Aid for Dogs and Cats, direct from the client. About shuttering his shop, Mignone offered, "I did as much as I could do on my own, but there’s a practical limitation on what a person can do without having a strong company behind him."
New York native Mignone studied electrical engineering at Renssellaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, New York, graduating in ’87 with a BS in electrical engineering. Then he moved to Redwood City, Calif., to join Ampex Corporation, makers of digital audio and video equipment. Mignone told SHOOT that as a design engineer, "I learned the technical side [of production and postproduction], then I started editing and shooting my own stuff. As an editor I learned how to direct—how to cover shots and tell stories."
After about three years at Ampex, Mignone moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career as a freelance editor, which he did while shooting footage for bands and building a director’s reel in his spare time. In ’94, he opened Doom Inc., and, "I got lucky. One of the first music videos I directed got a lot of attention." Mignone, a big music fan, had heard some demos made by a band called The Toadies. As he recalled, "I thought their sound was really different, so I pursued Ray Santamaria, the then A&R rep, who signed them to Interscope Records. He gave me the chance to direct a music video for them." It was the resulting Toadies’ video, "Possum Kingdom," that took off, giving Mignone’s career as a clip helmer a jump start.
Mignone has worked steadily since, directing music videos. Recently, however, he decided that his duties as a businessman were getting in the way of his work as a director. Then, earlier this year, "The Mudvayne clip ‘Dig’ took off, and I got a lot of positive feedback. In fact, a couple of production companies called me—which was surprising; I wasn’t anticipating calls from people looking to rep me. That’s when the light bulb went on and I thought, ‘This could be the time to transition to a bigger and better place.’ "
In mid-February, Mignone actively started seeking representation. According to the director, everyone he spoke to recommended SGP’s head of music videos, Kris Toledo-Foster. Mignone, who promptly contacted Toledo-Foster, said, "We just clicked. In my opinion, Shooting Gallery has an impeccable reputation. I like the commercials, the attitude Shooting Gallery brings to music videos, and the fact that they develop feature projects."
Toledo-Foster was likewise impressed by Mignone: "Thomas understands how to capture a band at their best, but he also knows how to tell a story and he maintains incredible visuals. I know he’ll be able to do the storytelling videos as well." In the near future, Mignone will continue to concentrate on music videos. "Thomas’ popularity is growing and people are really taking notice of his work, Toledo-Foster offered. "So music videos will be our primary focus for now, with the intention to explore commercials and film work in the future."
The SGP roster also includes commercial directors Richard D’Alessio, Peter Berg, Bob Gosse, Allen Weiss and co-directing team Spooner/French (Nick and Andrew, respectively). Music video directors are Cameron Casey, Bill Yukich and Simon Brand. SGP also reps Tony Vanden Ende, Alex Parker, Felipe Nino, Steve Haim and Andy Hutch of QD Productions, London, for music videos in the United States.
Mary Knox of independent rep firm Sales & Marketing (S&M), Minneapolis and New York, is head of sales for SGP. Knox and S&M’s Angelina Powers handle the East Coast. Rich Newman and Sue Rosen of Chicago-based Richard Newman and Associates cover the Midwest. And Reber Covington’s Rebecca Reber in San Francisco and Brooke Covington in Los Angeles handle sales for the West Coast and Texas. SGP is repped in Canada by Christina Ford and Marni Luftspring of Imported Artists Film Company, Toronto.
