HOLLYWOOD—Director Buddy Cone, formerly of bicoastal/international Chelsea Pictures, has come aboard Fabrication Films, Hollywood, for exclusive spot representation. At press time, he had wrapped his last job at Chelsea, a Maxwell House assignment for Ogilvy & Mather, New York.
Cone said several factors drew him to Fabrication, including reuniting with its head of sales Ellen Knable of independent rep firm Ellen Knable & Associates, Santa Monica, and the opportunity to perhaps diversify into longform. The latter is rooted in his new roost’s longstanding involvement in feature film distribution and its plans to move into movie production. Theatrical distribution was a longstanding mainstay business of the overall Fabrication (and predecessor company Outrider), which launched a commercialmaking shop earlier this year (SHOOT, 5/14, p. 7).
Cone and Knable worked together at the director’s first spot home, now defunct Coppos Films. Cone made a successful transition from noted production designer to director at Coppos, where he stayed from 1993-’95. He then moved onto the since closed Palomar Pictures in ’96, and Chelsea in ’02.
Though he had a self-described "great run" during his two-and-a-half years at Chelsea, Cone said he felt the need to move on. He explained that it is often beneficial for a director to "shake things up a bit" by joining another company and tapping into connections and opportunities that are different from those at his previous shop.
Best known for his prowess in storytelling—as well as in live-action commercials that incorporate ambitious visual effects—Cone is no stranger to the ad industry’s biggest stage, the Super Bowl. In ’00, he helmed the Super Sunday spot "Whoosh" for AutoTrader.com via Doner, Southfield, Mich.
For the previous year’s Super Bowl, Cone directed Budweiser’s "Separated at Birth" for DDB Chicago. In the spot, two Dalmatian puppies go their separate ways—one is chosen for firehouse duty, and acts somewhat condescendingly to the pup colleague he leaves behind. Fast-forward a couple of years later and we see the firemen’s dog on a fire truck. The vehicle passes a wagon being pulled by the famed Budweiser Clydesdales. Sitting proudly on the wagon is the other Dalmatian, who self-assuredly sticks out his tongue at the firehouse mutt.
Cone is also known for another Budweiser commercial, "Payback," which also features anthropomorphic storytelling. In the ’01 ad, a mouse and a Budweiser Clydesdale strike up a friendship. The mouse scratches the horse’s persistent itch and in return gets to ride regally on the Clydesdale’s head during the procession of the Budweiser wagon train.
Among Cone’s credits over the years are spots for Kodak, Acura, Lexus, Maytag, Skittles, Rawlings and most recently Bush’s Baked Beans. The Rawlings spot for Arnold Worldwide, St. Louis, deployed humor and star Houston Rockets guard Tracy McGrady (a.k.a. T-Mac) to promote a sure-grip basketball. T-Mac comes to the rescue, using the ball to hoist a man hanging from a garage to safety.
The director also gained industry recognition on the public service front with "Ice Cream" and "Cruisin’," two spots that promote automobile safety belt usage. In the former, a guy leaves the house at night to get his pregnant wife some ice cream. He backs his car out of the driveway and is about to head down the block. Immediately his vehicle is hit head-on by another automobile, which appears out of nowhere, with a drunk driver behind the wheel. The crash dramatically shows the importance of wearing seatbelts because you never know when an accident will happen.
Cone joins a Fabrication spot directorial roster that consists of Alexander von David, Munier Sharrieff, James Wahlberg and Eugene Yelchin. The company also maintains a Hollywood satellite shop, A Film By, with a lineup comprised of directors Gary Johns and the team known as The Konwiser Brothers (Kip and Kern). Steve Johnson is president/executive producer of both commercial houses, Fabrication and A Film By.
Head of sales Knable handles the West Coast. Independent reps cover the rest of the country: Liz Laine in the Midwest, Maggie Klein on the East Coast and Fran Montoya in the Southwest.
