Alfonso Cuarón (Gravity) wasn’t the only first-time nominee to win a Directors Guild of America Award during the DGA’s gala evening ceremony back in January. Also garnering the coveted honor with his initial career nomination was Martin De Thurah of Epoch Films who earned Best Commercial Director of the Year distinction on the basis of two spots: Hennessy’s “The Man Who Couldn’t Slow Down” for Droga5, New York; and Acura MDX 2014’s “Human Race” out of Mullen LA.
De Thurah topped a field of commercial nominees which also consisted of directors Fredrik Bond of MJZ; John X. Carey of Tool; Noam Murro of Biscuit Filmworks; and Matthijs van Heijningen of MJZ.
In his acceptance remarks, De Thurah said he was honored by the DGA recognition, particularly for “my first pieces in this part of the world.” Indeed De Thurah has made a major splash stateside after first establishing himself in the international ad marketplace, where he is handled by Academy Films in the U.K. and Bacon in Copenhagen.
De Thurah said of “Human Race,” “The agency sent me a poem to interpret into a commercial. He described the experience as “the most experimental shoot of his career.”
As for “The Man Who Couldn’t Slow Down,” a fitting addition to Hennessy’s “Wild Rabbit” campaign, De Thurah noted that the creatives at Droga5 were a wonderful team with which to collaborate as he told the story of Sir Martin Campbell and his relentless pursuit of the world land-speed record. Campbell broke that record nine times in the 1920s and 1930s as he was proclaimed the world’s fastest man. “This piece,” shared De Thurah, “was about a man’s struggle and search for something unknown—it was something concrete and abstract at the same time, a very unusual place for a cognac commercial to go.”
These two extraordinary projects helped to realize what De Thurah had sought when he decided that he needed to make a substantive commitment to the U.S. market, prompting his move from Denmark to New York in March 2013. “I feel very fortunate to have landed these projects and to get the opportunity to work with the agencies involved. To get these high-quality stories and concepts has been a blessing.”
He also feels lucky to have connected with Epoch, noting that he was attracted to the company in large part by his affinity for founder/managing partner Mindy Goldberg.
Painter turned filmmaker
De Thurah started his artistic career as a painter in his native Denmark, specializing in water colors. Though he loves painting, De Thurah decided to transition into film. “I wanted something more social more collaborative, less isolating. I wanted to be in a place where people would demand things from me—I didn’t have that as a painter.”
He gained acceptance into the exclusive National Film School of Denmark where he further developed his talents. Later in the real-world marketplace, De Thurah made his first major splash with the music video “Human” for Danish band Carpark North in 2005. “Human” won assorted awards, including the Audience Choice prize at RESFEST, a DMA Danish Music Video of the Year, and a Grand Prix at the Festival International des Art du Clip in Provence. “This video opened many doors for me,” recalled De Thurah. It also began a series of accolades for De Thurah-helmed clips over the years as reflected for example in Best Music Video nominations at Camerimage for Glasvegas’ “Flowers & Football Tops” in 2009, James Blake’s “Limit Your Love” in 2011, Feist’s “The Bad in Each Other” in 2012, and Blake’s “Retrograde” in 2013.
“Flowers & Football Tops” also won Best Director, Best Cinematography and Best Visual Effects honors at the U.K. Music Video Awards. Additionally, De Thurah directed a Will Young video, “Changes,” which garnered a D&AD Pencil.
Meanwhile, De Thurah managed to successfully diversify into commercials and short films; the latter including the 45-minute Young Man Falling, an Official Critics’ Week selection at Cannes in 2007, and We Who Stayed Behind, a winner in 2008 of the Children’s Jury Prize at the Chicago Children’s Film Festival. The director observed that his music video experience helped him to do longer films. In turn both his videos and experimental artistic films enabled him to bring something more to commercials and branded content.
De Thurah’s ad filmography includes assorted spots, among the noteworthy being IKEA’s “Home” for Denmark ad agency Robert/Boisen & Like-minded. “Home” earned De Thurah the Best Director mantle at the Creative Circle Awards in Copenhagen. He has also directed for leading U.K. agencies over the years such as BBH and AMV BBDO.
This year’s DGA Award, though, is the punctuation mark thus far on De Thurah’s commercialmaking career. Of the DGA honor, De Thurah simply told SHOOT, “It’s beautiful to be acknowledged because of your language as a director. And to have that acknowledgement come from your peers—other directors—means everything to me personally and professionally.”
