Directors William Campbell and Will Johnson of Gentleman Scholar craft a new viral video for Ray-Ban’s “Never Hide” campaign. Edited by Steve Prestemon of Whitehouse Post, the piece follows a young Russian couple on an adventure into an abandoned house where they stumble upon a bug metamorphosing into a very unusual creature.
Campbell and Johnson sought to strike the perfect balance between believable and wonderful in the spot. In order to push the intrigue of the story, the directors introduced the idea of the couple speaking in a language that wouldn’t be easily recognizable. They found a couple who not only had on-screen chemistry but spoke Russian fluently.
Next on the docket for the Gentleman Scholar creative team was the creation of the insect. They wanted to make sure that the bug had a dimension of wonderment while still staying fundamentally grounded in reality. As the creature molts and evolves–creating and shedding sunglass lenses, Campbell and Johnson were able to show a variety of different features of the stylish Ray-Ban Clubmaster model, as well as develop an interesting-looking creature.
In order to create that “lost footage you found in the attic” feel, Gentleman Scholar transferred the piece to VHS tape, then pulled the tape out of the VHS cassette, crumpled it, kicked it down the hall, and wound it back up.
Netflix Series “The Leopard” Spots Classic Italian Novel, Remakes It As A Sumptuous Period Drama
"The Leopard," a new Netflix series, takes the classic Italian novel by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa and transforms it into a sumptuous period piece showing the struggles of the aristocracy in 19th-century Sicily, during tumultuous social upheavals as their way of life is crumbling around them.
Tom Shankland, who directs four of the eight episodes, had the courage to attempt his own version of what is one of the most popular films in Italian history. The 1963 movie "The Leopard," directed by Luchino Visconti, starring Burt Lancaster, Alain Delon and Claudia Cardinale, won the Palme d'Or in Cannes.
One Italian critic said that it would be the equivalent of a director in the United States taking "Gone with the Wind" and turning it into a series, but Shankland wasn't the least bit intimidated.
He said that he didn't think of anything other than his own passion for the project, which grew out of his love of the book. His father was a university professor of Italian literature in England, and as a child, he loved the book and traveling to Sicily with his family.
The book tells the story of Don Fabrizio Corbera, the Prince of Salina, a tall, handsome, wealthy aristocrat who owns palaces and land across Sicily.
His comfortable world is shaken with the invasion of Sicily in 1860 by Giuseppe Garibaldi, who was to overthrow the Bourbon king in Naples and bring about the Unification of Italy.
The prince's family leads an opulent life in their magnificent palaces with servants and peasants kowtowing to their every need. They spend their time at opulent banquets and lavish balls with their fellow aristocrats.
Shankland has made the series into a visual feast with tables heaped with food, elaborate gardens and sensuous costumes.... Read More