Director Jack Cole has signed with Chelsea for spot representation stateside, continuing a relationship that began when Chelsea maintained a strategic relationship with London-based integrated content production company Pulse. Per that arrangement entered into last year (SHOOTonline, 7/6/10), Chelsea handled the U.S. for Pulse’s directors, including Cole, under the banner Pulse @ Chelsea. However the affiliation between the two shops ended a couple of months ago. Cole, who is still on the Pulse roster in the U.K., ultimately decided he also wanted to stay with Chelsea in the U.S.
Via Chelsea, Cole recently made his U.S. spot directorial debut with comedy fare for Stride Gum out of JWT New York. “I had a great experience working with Chelsea shooting the last Stride spot,” said Cole. “When the offer to sign up to the ranks officially came along, it was a no-brainer. I’m really looking forward to working more in the States and hope I can offer something a little different by bringing this particular Englishman’s eye to the table.”
Tom Christmann, executive creative director at JWT, worked with Cole on Stride. “Jack can direct ostriches to run through walls. He can direct nineteen-year-old girls to wrestle rams. And yet he still hasn’t let those talents go to his head and is a pleasure to work with,” said Christmann.
Coming from a background in still photography, Cole began his directing career as one half of the duo Liff in which he was teamed with Stian Smestad who now also works as a solo director. Smestad is based in Norway. Liff’s work was nominated for the Newcomer Award at the Soho Rushes Shorts Festival, screened at the onedotzero Film Festival, and short-listed for the Nike Young Directors Award. Liff’s short films received international acclaim, most notably “Practice Makes Perfect”, nominated for the TCM Classic Shorts Award at the London Film Festival. Liff, which was repped by Independent, London, disbanded about two-and-a-half years ago. The duo’s European spot credits spanned such clients as Subaru, Converse, Europark, and Panasonic.
Cole, whose solo helming endeavors also include a European job for Reebok.com, was described by Chelsea co-owner Lisa Mehling as a rare filmmaking breed. “Visualist comedy directors are few and far between. Add in Jack’s still background and you have a very potent director.”
Cole joins a Chelsea directorial roster that includes Alex Gibney, Borgato & Berte, Bruce Hunt, Charles Mehling, Christopher Quinn, Colin O’Toole, David Gordon Green, Johan Kramer, Kevin Macdonald, Lauren Greenfield, Liz Von Hoene, Michael Muller, Nadav Kander, Neil Abramson, Nicholas Barker, Rick LeMoine, and Robb Bindler. Chelsea is owned and operated by Mehling and Allison Amon.
“Overnight Success” Has Been More Than A Decade In The Making For Meghann Fahy and Eve Hewson
Meghann Fahy and Eve Hewson, two of the stars of Netflix's whodunit "The Perfect Couple," have news for you if you want to call them breakouts: They've been working in this business for more than a decade.
Fahy made her TV debut in 2009 in an episode of "Gossip Girl." Hewson's first big film role was in 2011's "This Must Be the Place." They do concede, however, that it's recent TV roles — "The White Lotus" for Fahy and "Bad Sisters" for Hewson — that have led to new frontiers of opportunity.
Susanne Bier, who directed "The Perfect Couple," says both Fahy and Hewson are "going to be big stars."
"They certainly have proper, profound star quality, Both of them in very different ways," Bier says. "Both are incredibly creative, incredibly smart, and also have a impressive insight as to who they are. You can be a great actor or actress and not necessarily really know who you are yourself. And they do."
Hewson, 33, whose dad is U2 front man Bono, may have grown up in a famous family but she's now in demand in her own right. She will next be seen in a second season of "Bad Sisters, " out in November. She's in Noah Baumbach's next film, alongside Adam Sandler, George Clooney and Riley Keough. She's also been cast in Steven Spielberg's next production and is set to star opposite Murray Bartlett in a racing series for Hulu.
Fahy, 34, is in production on a limited series with Julianne Moore and Milly Alcock called "Sirens," written by Molly Smith Metzler ("Maid") for Netflix. She also has two films in the can with Josh O'Connor ("The Crown," "Challengers") and Brandon Sklenar ("It Ends With Us").
The two actors spoke candidly about this phase of their careers. This interview has been condensed for clarity and... Read More