Owner/President
Chelsea Pictures
Survey, Part 1. The Pandemic
1) Thankfully we have taken on numerous projects that were shot during the pandemic, but one that stands out for us was our first big job after LA opened for shooting EA Sports/Madden campaign for Johannes Leonardo, directed by David Gordon Green. The editor was Jeff Feruzzo at Arcade. VFX done by Preymaker. Music by Human. The campaign was for the launch of Madden 20, and David and JL created the Spokesplayer character together.
2) The collaborative spirit and true camaraderie that came together between David and the JL team: Omid, Mina, Thomas, Jacobi, Doug and Brett was extraordinary. It was a big campaign and a really important launch for EA. It was decided early on that for safety reasons they would write the scripts featuring just one on-camera actor. So the challenge was the infuse enough energy into the shooting style and the Spokesplayers performance so the Spokesplayer could command the full screen. From the day the job kicked off nobody let the fact that we were all remote hinder the creative focus and drive to make the campaign great. JL, EA and David were all remote and on the ground in LA was David’s longtime trusted crew led by producer Shanah Blevins, DP Michael Simmons and production designer Chris Spellman. Friendships were made over Zoom and the resulting campaign is outstanding.
3) Well, as I said, this was a remarkable project, shot right when LA opened for shooting — it was our first full up location shoot, with a crew of 60+. Top of mind was always everyone’s safety and we did a ton of research to insure we had the best possible protocols in place. We chose a top crew, and every single person on set gave it 1000% . JL was all-in, working (virtually) in lockstep with David. The JL team put their trust into David and we just didn’t let the limits of isolation get in the way. It truly was one of the best shoots we’ve ever had and I am really proud of what we accomplished.
5) Trust in each other. Stay focused on the two priorities: Health and safety and the concept.
Survey, Part 2. Emerging filmmaking talent.
1) It’s really important to find a team of people who are dedicated to supporting your creative development for the long haul. Look for a company who has a strong creative tradition, is regarded for integrity, and has a history of building directors who have become top directors.
2) Work with the best possible directors, and immerse yourself in the industry. Be good on your word. Trust your instinct and work with the people you like and trust.
5) Nisha Ganatra’s third commercial ever is Libresse Wombstories. Despite Nisha being brand new to commercials, she landed Libresse and created a campaign that sparked a universally important conversation that will have lasting impact for generations of women.
Review: Writer-Director Andrea Arnold’s “Bird”
"Is it too real for ya?" blares in the background of Andrea Arnold's latest film, "Bird," a 12-year-old Bailey (Nykiya Adams) rides with her shirtless, tattoo-covered dad, Bug (Barry Keoghan), on his electric scooter past scenes of poverty in working-class Kent.
The song's question — courtesy of the Irish post-punk band Fontains D.C. — is an acute one for "Bird." Arnold's films ( "American Honey," "Fish Tank") are rigorous in their gritty naturalism. Her fiction films — this is her first in eight years — tend toward bleak, hand-held verité in rough-and-tumble real-world locations. Her last film, "Cow," documented a mother cow separated from her calf on a dairy farm.
Arnold specializes in capturing souls, human and otherwise, in soulless environments. A dream of something more is tantalizing just out of reach. In "American Honey," peace comes to Star (Sasha Lane) only when she submerges underwater.
In "Bird," though, this sense of otherworldly possibility is made flesh, or at least feathery. After a confusing night, Bailey awakens in a field where she encounters a strange figure in a skirt ( Franz Rogowski ) who arrives, like Mary Poppins, with a gust a wind. His name, he says, is Bird. He has a soft sweetness that doesn't otherwise exist in Bailey's hardscrabble and chaotic life.
She's skeptical of him at first, but he keeps lurking about, hovering gull-like on rooftops. He cranes his neck now and again like he's watching out for Bailey. And he does watch out for her, helping Bailey through a hard coming of age: the abusive boyfriend (James Nelson-Joyce) of her mother (Jasmine Jobson); her half brother (Jason Buda) slipping into vigilante violence; her father marrying a new girlfriend.
The introduction of surrealism has... Read More