By Robert Goldrich
Director Patricia Murphy, an established European spotmaker via her London-based Patricia Murphy Films, has signed with Bravo Zulu, Santa Monica, for exclusive stateside representation. At press time, Murphy was in the midst of a live action/visual effects combo spot for Whirlpool out of Publicis, London, and Publicis & Hal Riney, Chicago. The job is being produced by Patricia Murphy Films.
Murphy hasn’t been repped in the U.S. for several years. But upon serving as a judge at London’s Design & Art Direction (D&AD) Awards in ’99, she was favorably impressed with the quality of work coming out of the U.S. This prompted her to decide to re-enter the American ad market. After consulting with whom she described as being "a few good U.S. sources," recommendations led her to Bravo Zulu founder/executive producer Ron Hacohen.
While she had other offers, Murphy said she opted for Bravo Zulu due to its being "a small, focused company that can guide me to the right projects." Murphy’s addition brings Bravo Zulu’s roster up to two directors; the other being John Mastromonaco.
"Coming from a larger company [bicoastal HKM Productions]," related Hacohen, "part of my goal in forming Bravo Zulu last year was to have a situation where I could focus on a director’s work and actually spend time on projects from the beginning through post. I was astounded by Patricia’s reel and wanted the chance to work with her."
Other recent Murphy-helmed spots include a One to One mobile phone assignment for Bartle Bogle Hegarty, London. The commercial entailed shooting characters at different speeds and then employing complex compositing. Over the years, Murphy’s work has garnered recognition from numerous awards shows. For example, she has won best and silver direction honors at the D&AD competition for, respectively, Kodak’s "The Birthday Party" in ’92 out of Young & Rubicam, Paris, and Kiss FM’s "Are You Tuned In?" in ’91 via Abbott Mead Vickers/ BBDO, London. In ’98, Murphy won both gold and silver honors in the direction category from the Chicago Festival: the gold for Volvo’s "Climber," the silver for Yellow Pages’ "Life," both from Abbott Mead Vickers/ BBDO. "Life" also earned Murphy a gold for direction at last year’s Montreaux competition.
Collaborator
Murphy is no stranger to collaborating with American agencies. Besides the aforementioned Whirlpool assignment involving Riney, her credits include MCI via Messner Vetere Berger McNamee Schmetterer/Euro RSCG, New York. The MCI job was facilitated by New York-based Cine International.
Hacohen said that Murphy is suited to a broad range of American projects. He noted that she’s "a high-end director who is a natural" for spots that require "a strong visual style," as well as ads that mesh effects and live action.
The last company to represent Murphy in the U.S. was the then Tony Kaye Films, Los Angeles and London, which at the time also handled her in the U.K. She was later, albeit briefly, marketed in the U.S. through an independent rep. "Since she hasn’t been actively repped here for so long," said Hacohen, "it’s like getting a new director to introduce to U.S. agencies. She’s getting a fresh start in this market."
Bravo Zulu’s sales force consists of independents Keri Weber of Superglue on the West Coast, Rich Newman in the Midwest, and Mary Knox and Alyson Daniels of Help! on the East Coast. Hacohen launched Bravo Zulu nearly a year ago (SHOOT, 5/7/99, p. 1) after a long tenure at HKM Productions.
The Long and Short of The IDA Documentary Awards’ Shortlists
The lineups are set as 20 feature-length and 20 short documentaries have been shortlisted for the 40th IDA Documentary Awards.
This year, the IDA Documentary Awards shortlists and nominees are selected by independent committees of 300 documentary makers, curators, critics, and industry experts from 40-plus countries. More than 700 total entries were submitted for all categories from 77 countries.
Additional IDA Awards will be presented in the following categories: Best Director, Best Cinematography, Best Editing, Best Writing, Best Music Score, Best Curated Series, Best Episodic Series, Best Limited Series, Best TV Feature Documentary, Best Music Documentary, Best Audio Documentary, the David L. Wolper Student Documentary Award, the ABC News VideoSource Award, and the Pare Lorentz Award.
All nominees in the above categories will be announced on November 19.
The 40th IDA Documentary Awards Ceremony will be held on December 5 at The Orpheum Theater in Los Angeles.
Here’s a rundown of the feature and short film IDA Documentary Awards’ shortlists.
FEATURES SHORTLIST
Agent of Happiness
Black Box Diaries
Brisa
Dahomey
Ernest Cole: Lost and Found
Hollywoodgate
Igualada
Kamay
Mediha
Motherboard
My Sweet Land
No Other Land
Queendom
Seeking Mavis Beacon
Soundtrack to a Coup d’Etat
Sugarcane
Tell Them You Love Me
The Last Journey
The Remarkable Life of Ibelin
Water For Life (Agua Es... Read More