By Millie Takaki

SHOOT’s batch of up-and-coming directors this time around includes a directing collective as well as a helmer who’s gone solo after being part of a collective. Add in such artisans as a veteran editor who’s taken the production house plunge, a noted agency creative director who’s moved into directing and a casting director who had the opportunity to direct thrust upon her, and you get a taste of the diverse experience that leads to the same destination: the director’s chair. Here’s our fall collection of promising helmers to watch:

JOHN DOE
    A directing collective that’s made its mark internationally, John Doe–consisting of Tiago Guedes, Milovan Radovic, Masataka Namba and Stjepan Klein–has secured its first stateside representation, signing with Santa Monica-headquartered TWC. Best known for its brand of at times over-the-top humor, John Doe was true to that reputation with Blaupunkt car stereos “Pimp My Ride,” a recent SHOOT “Best Work You May Never See” spot for German agency Wensauer & Partner, Ludwigsburg.
    Airing on MTV Europe and generating considerable buzz, “Pimp My Ride” takes us into a car where an unseen driver starts the ignition and then turns on his Blaupunkt stereo. Two stuffed animals–a teddy bear and a bunny rabbit–perched between the two rear window speakers pulsate to the stereo’s beat. The stuffed critters assume a variety of audio-propelled positions reminiscent of a not-so-soft porn film. First the bear is atop the bunny, then behind the rabbit. We see the latter configuration in the rearview mirror. Next the rabbit is on top. The hard-driving music has them jumping up and down on each other–at one point with a nearby bobble head dog, its tongue hanging out, nodding repeatedly in apparent approval.
    As long as the Blaupunkt volume is thumping, the bear and bunny are humping in perfectly synchronized movement to the music’s beat. This demonstration of staying power ends as the Blaupunkt stereo is switched off, leaving the stuffed animals laid out motionless as if completely fatigued. A parting product shot of a Blaupunkt speaker is accompanied by a super that reads, “Blaupunkt. The advantage in your car.”
    While John Doe’s reel contains assorted other types of comedy fare, such as Sunbites’ “Truth” from Tiempo/BBDO, Barcelona, the directing team also exhibits a thoughtful storytelling touch with a Saga commercial, “Dare” out of Leo Burnett, Lima, Peru, that encourages women to be aggressive and go after what they want in both their personal and professional lives.
    Guedes, Radovic, Namba and Klein first met in 1997 as film students at New York’s Film Academy where they promised one another to someday collaborate full time. Well “someday” came three years ago when John Doe formed and started to take on assignments. Klein says that having established itself overseas, John Doe was looking to move into the American ad market. He explains that the collective was drawn to TWC based on its track record in high quality spot production, as well as its connections in the feature film world. On the latter score, film producer Ralph Winter (X-Men, Fantastic Four) is a founding partner in TWC along with executive producer Mark Thomas and director Phil Cooke.

MAX VITALI    While we have the collective John Doe on one hand, the other end of the spectrum is in a sense represented by Max Vitali who went solo nearly two years ago as a director after having been part of the noted Acne collective. Vitali is with bicoastal/international HSI Productions in most of the world while his Scandinavian roost is Callboy, a Stockholm shop in which he’s partnered with director Mans Mansson and producer/director Nils Ljunggren. Vitali’s work since breaking out individually has largely been comprised of spots that mesh humor with visual appeal.
    For example in Oras’ “Water” for agency Taivas in Helsinki, Finland, we are introduced to Mike who is seen sitting on the bed in his apartment, which happens to be flooded. The water level has reached his knees as a voiceover informs us that the apartment uses 56,000 liters of water a year. Next, we’re taken to a locker room where Mike and other workout addicts are seen getting ready for or having wrapped their gym exercise. A man sits on a bench, with water up to his chest. Mike is standing about knee deep in water while comically in the background there’s a naked man, his back to us, taking a shower. The gym uses 960,000 liters of water annually. Our next destination is a restaurant where Mike sits at a table with his girlfriend. The water has all but the tabletops submerged in the various booths. Mike’s favorite restaurant uses 1.5 million-plus liters of water a year. A voiceover notes that Mike will use 4.5 million liters of water in his lifetime, at which point we’re introduced to an Oras electronic faucet which helps reduce water consumption, saving money, energy and the environment.
    Vitali’s droll understated humor is also evident in Betsson’s “Soccer” via Scholz & Friends, Stockholm, in which two boys are kicking a soccer ball against a garage. Watching them are two senior citizens sitting at an outdoor cafe table. When one of the boys kicks the ball through a nearby window, shattering the glass, one man pushes the check over to the other, noting that the former adult has won their wager. The Betsson’s logo appears, accompanied by a rundown of its services spanning poker, betting and a full casino.
    While “Water” and “Soccer” were produced by Callboy, HSI served as production house on Vitali’s most recent endeavor, an about-to-debut comedy spot for Electronic Arts out of Wieden+Kennedy, London.
    Indeed breaking out as a solo director has proven worthwhile for Vitali but there was some angst in making the move initially. “Acne was doing real well internationally and just starting to gain momentum in the American advertising market with ESPN spots,” recalls Vitali. “It’s hard to leave success for something that entails you having to begin all over again. But I wanted to develop my own sense of direction, my own signature, to be more hands-on, to work as a smaller unit in collaboration with agencies. I’m glad I made the decision to forge out on my own through Callboy.”
    Next was to try to draw work from outside Scandinavia so at the Cannes International Advertising Festival in ’05, Vitali scouted about for a U.S./U.K. home. He met with HSI executive Nicola Doring whom he knew years ago when he was an editor/assistant to noted director Jonas Akerlund at Pettersson Akerlund, Stockholm. At the time Akerlund was repped by HSI in the United States. Vitali sought out Doring for advice but when she saw his reel, she expressed immediate interest in having HSI handle him.
    Vitali describes Akerlund as a mentor, dating back to his teenage days when he hung out and did odd jobs at the director’s studio. This later translated into Vitali filling the editor/assistant role, which represented “a great education that led me to want to become a director.” Vitali then went freelance as a cutter so that he could pursue his directorial aspiration on the side. He then linked with the now late Robert Nettarp, a top fashion photographer, and the two wound up co-directing a series of eight films for Hugo Boss. Meanwhile Vitali kept on editing, eventually cutting for Acne. Striking up a collaborative rapport with the Stockholm-based collective, Vitali was invited to join its directing ranks.
    “I’ve been blessed with some amazing opportunities–with Acne, with Jonas–that have led me to where I am,” relates Vitali. “In retrospect going back to the drawing board to define myself as an individual director was a decision I had to make and which has been a great experience that continues today.”

GEORDIE STEPHENS    For Geordie Stephens–who exited his creative director post at Crispin Porter+Bogusky, Miami, three months ago–the choice of bicoastal Tool of North America as his directorial home made sense on a couple of prime fronts. For one, Tool has a track record of helping noted agency creatives like himself transition into successful directing careers as evidenced by such artisans over the years as company founder Erich Joiner, Sean Ehringer, Tom Routson and more recently Harry Cocciolo. Secondly the agency creatives turned filmmakers at Tool generally have more of a narrative storytelling bent, meaning that there was a unique production house niche for Stephens to fill as a visually driven storyteller.
    Right out of the gate at Tool, Stephens landed a seven-spot package for the Washington State Department of Health out of WongDoody, Seattle. The “No Stank You” anti-tobacco campaign eschews traditional don’t smoke messaging, focusing instead on the social and cosmetic consequences of tobacco use. In “Sniff A Date,” for example, an outdoor dating game pits an elderly woman against an attractive lass. However the young lady has been exposed to a “stank stick,” giving her a smoker’s odor. Blindfolded male contestants select a date based on their sense of smell, leading to one gent being paired with his clear choice, the senior citizen. And in another spot, the “yellow tooth fairy” stains the teeth of an otherwise hot looking teenager who smokes cigarettes. In an instant, she goes from knockout to “look out” in terms of her appearance.
    The seven spots were shot in two days, a whirlwind multi-tasking timetable to which Stephens is accustomed based on his Crispin experience. While he was creative director at Crispin on Miller and Virgin Atlantic, he still had the chance to work on every account, including Volkswagen, Burger King and the American Legacy Foundation (“Truth” campaigns). “The experience at Crispin was wonderful,” he relates. “They had what they called the ‘swarm mentality’ whereby any brief was open to any creative at any time regardless of position–from intern to junior copywriter to creative director. Good ideas came from everywhere. And you got used to shooting something one day, going back to the hotel and coming up with a concept that night for another project for a different account. The next day you edit something shot the week before while working on another brief. You learn to multi-task.”
    Working with great directors at Crispin also proved invaluable, particularly given Stephens’ aspirations to one day direct himself. “Watching how directors worked, how they drew performances out from actors was great,” he relates. “And unlike many other agencies, Crispin creatives are heavily involved in the shoot, with script changes being made on the fly, throwing out new ideas. There’s just more intense collaboration with directors.”
    Those collaborations bore fruit as Stephens had a creative hand in assorted pieces of award-winning work, including Gold and Silver One Show Pencils earned on the basis of Burger King fare. Plus he was part of the team on this year’s Cannes Cyber Grand Prix-winning interactive VW campaign that encompassed such elements as viral videos and a Web site featuring sexy German engineer “Helga.”
    Prior to his three years at Crispin, Stephens served as a creative director at Odiorne Wilde Narraway and Partners, San Francisco; while there he got the opportunity to direct some EA Sports spots. Earlier he was an art director at Butler Shine & Stern, San Francisco. He had four-year tenures at each of those Bay Area shops.
    As for his move into directing at Tool, he says, “The main challenge is that you have to wait. As a creative in an agency setting, you knew what you could do to get your project going. It was in your control to help your idea along and get it produced. Now as a director, you have to really hustle to make things happen. You have less control over things. That’s a new feeling for me but I enjoy it because I love getting the opportunity to direct. What’s helped is how supportive Erich Joiner and [Tool executive producer] Brian Latt have been of me as a director. It’s an exciting time because I see not only the chance to direct commercials but to contribute in terms of helping to realize integrated work, which I became known for at Crispin, exploring viral releases, the Web, spots, shorts–anything it takes to build brands.”

ALEYSA YOUNG    There was no grand plan for Aleysa Young to break into directing. She had made her first industry mark as a founding co-producer of Resfest Canada four years ago and then became a successful Toronto-based casting director. She envisioned career longevity in casting–that is until James Davis, founder/managing director/executive producer of Toronto production houses Untitled and Reginald Pike (and its U.S. offshoot Reginaldo), recruited her to direct.
    “It was an opportunity that just materialized for me about a year ago,” recalls Young. “I wasn’t actively looking to become a director.”
    Yet Davis saw helming potential in Young who had regularly served as a casting director on varied Reginald Pike projects. So when Davis was looking to form Runt, a roost for young directors being groomed for Untitled, he sought out Young. His belief in Young was quickly justified as her initial endeavors included a Virgin Mobile assignment for Lowe Roche, Toronto, and a short film, Blockhead, which she wrote, directed and produced for the Straight 8 film competition in London. Blockhead was chosen from the Straight 8 field for the honor of being screened at this year’s Cannes Film Festival.
    In fact, all the original directors at Runt, including Young, reached a level of success that resulted in their being merged into Untitled, with the Runt banner being shelved.
    The Virgin Mobile work and Blockhead both displayed Young’s penchant for charmingly quirky comedy. And that has continued in many of her spots since, including a campaign for Denninger’s goose pate in which people, thinking there’s no real goose in the product, end up finding out otherwise and sheepishly apologizing to a nearby goose. Also cut from generally good natured yet offbeat comedy cloth were a Playland spot for Rethink, Vancouver, B.C., a promotional campaign for the film Souvenir of Canada via ACLC, Toronto, and Walmart for Publicis, Toronto.
    While comedy is her stock and trade–“a nice niche to be in if you have to be in a niche,” says Young–the director has already been able to diversify a bit. For a Purina spot from Lowe Roche, she relates, “I had to take down my quirkiness and replace it with sweetness…It was a departure from what I had been doing and I enjoyed it.”
    She has also had her comedy take a darker turn. In the Insurance Corp. of British Columbia’s “Chess” out of Wasserman & Partners, Vancouver, Young directed a one-sided chess match in which a man moves a piece and waits for his competitor to counter. After an inordinate stretch of time, we learn that the player at the other end of the table is dead. A super appears, which reads, “It’s no fun if you’re dead. Always buckle up.” The spot is tagged with a Web site address, nofunbeingdead.com.
    Furthermore, at press time, Young was about to embark on another spot addressing a serious topic for the Ministry of Citizenship’s Ontario Women’s Directorate out of Bensimon Byrne, Toronto. The slice-of-life concept is designed to help teenage girls not tolerate verbal or any other form of abuse from their boyfriends.
    However, Young’s penchant for the quirky lives on. The Ontario Women’s Directorate spot came on the heels of a United Church of Canada piece from Toronto agency Smith Roberts. In the commercial, life’s big questions are asked of a squirrel.

MICHAEL LABELLARTE    With a 20-year career as an editor–highlighted by his being a founding partner in now defunct NuWorld in 1993, and then launching Chicago post house Outsider in ’00–Michael LaBellarte recently decided to make directing his professional priority, signing with Z group films, which maintains shops in Venice, Calif., Chicago and New York.
    A couple of years ago, LaBellarte began to explore his deep rooted aspirations to direct. He sought out opportunities, resulting in Leo Burnett USA, Chicago, offering him the chance to helm and edit “Transglobe” for Philip Morris brand L&M. He later cut a cinema version of the ad, which earned a nomination this year for a Best of Chicago Association of Independent Creative Editors (AICE) Award.
    “Transglobe” heads a directorial reel which also includes spec ads for Johnnie Walker and Budweiser, and a regional commercial promoting an Infiniti car dealership. The work showcases LaBellarte’s prowess as a concept-driven, visual storytelling director. LaBellarte says building a reel affirmed his love for directing, causing him to seek a production company home, leading him eventually to Z. He harbored an ambition to direct dating back to college. Initially upon graduating, he broke into editing as a means to transition to directing. But he wound up enjoying cutting commercials and stayed in the post arena for decades. He estimates that his current workload is 70 percent directing and 30 percent editing, as he continues to cut via Outsider for clients with whom he has enjoyed longstanding relationships.
    LaBellarte helmed “Transglobe”–as well as an MTV-aired documentary on the rock band Disturbed–in ’05 while he maintained staff editor status. In early ’06, he devoted three full months to directing, resulting in the aforementioned ads for Bud, Johnnie Walker and Infiniti. Z group marks a new beginning for LaBellarte the director. It parallels his first career beginning 20 years ago, marked by staff editor positions at Edit Chicago and then Optimus, Chicago.

–additional reporting by Robert Goldrich

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