Richard Augello, Tony Diamond and Yuki were all student honorees at this year’s Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) Show. The three recently took time out from the festivities to discuss their work.
Los Angeles-based Yuki Wantabe (who goes by her first name) has signed with DNA, Hollywood. Her "Pig" for Kirin Beer won AICP Show recognition and a Silver Clio in both the competitions’ student categories. Yuki graduated with a master’s in film from Pasadena, Calif.’s Art Center College of Design, in ’99.
She had graduated from Occidental College, Los Angeles in ’95, determined to direct. Yuki then returned to her native Tokyo to work for a television production company for six months before enrolling at the Art Center. There she made "Pig," a deceptively simple spot starring an animated metal pig. Yuki recalled, "The funny thing was that pretty much everybody told me not to shoot it. I think people had a really hard time picturing it. I had the style and timing and rhythm, and I could see it, but other people couldn’t."
The commercial was made with a collaborator: her computer. Yuki explained, "My DP Reuben Steinberg and I took it into Illustrator and we made the eyes. Then we brought it into [Adobe] After Effects at home on my Mac, and we did it frame by frame."
Lacking a budget, she and Steinberg taught themselves software programs in order to do the post work, including the logos and effects. The music was likewise homemade: "I recorded in the kitchen with my neighbors," Yuki said.
Her reel caught the attention of DNA, and she joined the company at the end of April. Despite her aptitude for the form, "I don’t necessarily want to do more animation," Yuki offered. "I’m interested in rhythm and pacing and music and sound. A lot of times people see my spots and think, ‘Oh that’s so simple,’ but it actually it’s carefully composed."
Venice, Calif.-based Richard Augello also received his master’s in Film from the Art Center College of Design in ’99. As an undergraduate at California State, Fullerton, Augello had studied Japanese, and his proficiency in the language paid off when he be-
came a bilingual production assistant. Starting in ’90, he worked for companies such as West Hollywood’s Cente Service, a subsidiary of the Tokyo-based commercial production house Tohokushinshagaisha. Augello was "mostly a mouthpiece for the DPs. It was a trial by fire!" Augello laughed. "I didn’t know the terms in English, let alone Japanese!" Despite the language barrier, Augello eventually became an assistant director.
However, a ’94 back injury Augello sustained on set was the real catalyst for his directorial career, as he put most of his vocational rehabilitation program money towards his fees at the Art Center.
In the fall of ’98, Augello made Konami Software’s "Dance Dance Dance Couple" and "Dance Dance Dance Cactus" via Yomiko Advertising, Tokyo. Most recently, Augello’s been putting the finishing touches on his reel, which includes the AICP-honored Busch Beer spot "Buschhhh," about two giant sea bass who reel in fishermen using Busch Beer.
Venice, Calif.-based Shuffle reps Augello in Japan, but he is looking for representation here. Selling yourself can be exhausting, though: "It’s hard to be your own sales force," Augello attested.
Los Angeles native Tony Diamond actually has one class to take before he receives his B.A. in Production from the University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles’ Cinema-Television school, but the director has already signed with Los Angeles-based No Prisoners for spot representation.
Interest in Diamond escalated when his AICP-honored "Psycho For Milk" was shown on the IFILMpro Web site (an Internet film resource) in March. His managers at Los Angeles’ FourSight Entertainment contacted No Prisoners’ executive assistant Michael Abbot, who showed it to president/managing partner Bruce Martin. Diamond signed with the company in mid-April.
Diamond’s spot-the story of a crazed man’s search for his favorite drink-almost wasn’t made. He recalled, "Originally I had another idea. We were just starting preproduction, and I said, "You know what would be a funny ‘Got Milk?’ commercial? Someone missing on the back of a milk carton!’ " Shot for his independent study course, Diamond did the editing and sound at USC, while the telecine and the online work was completed at 525 Studios, Santa Monica.
Like his colleagues, Diamond is ready to direct: "I have a commercial I want to do as a spec," he explained, "I just need to get the money for it."
