Peter Moore Smith–who spent the past four years as executive creative director at Saatchi & Saatchi New York where he oversaw all creative on the General Mills account and worked on notable campaigns for Cheerios as well as Walmart and Duracell–has embarked on a directorial career, moving over to his first production company roost, bicoastal/international Aero Film.
Smith is no stranger to the director’s chair. In fact earlier this year (3/30/15) he was included in SHOOT’s Up and Coming Directors feature coverage largely on the strength of an emotionally poignant and thought provoking PSA he wrote and directed while at Saatchi: “The Talk” for Harlem-based youth development organization Brother/Sister Sol.
The spot depicts several discussions between African-American parents and their sons about how to avoid potentially dangerous encounters with the police. This is a common dialogue dubbed “the talk” in black households. In sharp contrast, the piece next shows a white father telling his teenage son that the police are there to help and to seek out an officer if there’s trouble. Then the question is ultimately asked, “Do we want one America–or two?”
Smith related that the move from creative directing to directing was a fairly natural transition. “I spent my whole career on set during commercials shoots,” Smith said. “The more time I spent on a production, the more I realized I wanted to stay in that environment. I started making commercials at BBDO where I was really encouraged to be part of the production process, and get really involved with the director. So ultimately, I wanted to do it myself.”
Smith has more than 20 years’ experience in advertising. He had a 15-year tenure at BBDO NY, rising from a budding creative star to senior creative director while working on celebrated campaigns for top-tier brands such as Pepsi, Visa, GE and FedEx in the process. During his career, Smith also held a similar position as EVP/ECD at Publicis before moving on to Saatchi, where he assumed the title of ECD and even interim chief creative officer for a time.
Smith also wrote a novel titled "Raveling" and the screenplay for the 2012 feature film, Forgetting the Girl.
Smith hopes to infuse his vast advertising experience from the agency side into his new role as director at Aero. “Generally, directors come from a film background and may not know the politics of advertising,” he said. “Some details might be very important that could be confusing for a director who’s new to commercials. I hope that with what I’ve learned during my time in advertising, I can be helpful with that and successfully navigate through the process.”
Smith’s working relationship with Aero Film, which is run by partners Skip Short, Lance O’Connor, and Klaus Obermeyer actually dates back to his days at BBDO. In regards to what Aero’s newest director brings to the table, O’Connor recalled, “When we got the first script from Peter for Visa, Klaus and I were blown away by the caliber of writing. We knew we were dealing with a real talent. Over the years, that’s only gotten better. Seeing him as a director, his instincts for casting are amazing. He’s the ultimate storyteller. Performance is his strong suit.”
