It’s been a heady time since July 1999, when Australian-based director Bruce Hunt shifted from Film Graphics, Sydney, to bicoastal/ international @radical.media. At the time of signing with @radical. media, Hunt was riding a wave of popularity, accelerated by his role as second unit director on The Matrix, the sci-fi visual effects extravaganza written and directed by Larry and Andy Wachowski. Faced with shrinking budgets in the local spot market, the Cleveland-born Hunt, who grew up in Sydney, wanted to work on international commercials and continue to live in Australia with his family.
Joining @radical.media allowed that to happen. The firm provides a base for international agencies wanting to shoot in Australia, and Hunt has been helming spots for shops in the U.S. and Japan, and for the local Australian market. Recent work includes Nintendo 64’s "Decisions," and Nintendo Excitebike’s "Boat," "See-Saw," and "Cliff"—all via Leo Burnett Co., Chicago. He also directed Toyota RAV4’s "Enter the Camel" for Saatchi & Saatchi, Sydney, and Telstra. com’s "DIY Bond Girls" and "Surf Babies" via Mojo Partners, Sydney. He recently wrapped KPMG’s "Brave New World" via J. Walter Thompson, New York, which was filmed in Australia.
At the 2000 Australian Television Awards (ATV), Hunt was named director of the year. He was also awarded best direction in the content category and was runner-up for best direction in the style cate-gory, for "Decisions." Another Hunt-helmed ad, Lucozade’s "Lara Goes to the Dogs" via Singleton Ogilvy & Mather, Sydney, earned an award for best computer animation. (He directed that spot while still at Film Graphics.)
Hunt has always mixed his interests in features and commercials. While at Film Graphics, which he joined in ’90, he took two breaks to work on features: In ’97 he was the second unit and visual effects director on Dark City, directed by Alex Proyas, who is represented for spots by bicoastal/international Chelsea Pictures. And in ’98 he worked on The Matrix.
Hunt’s favorite ads are those done in a film genre. For example, "Enter the Camel," a kung fu-inspired spot, shows the Toyota RAV4 mascot—actually a man dressed in a camel suit—in Chinatown, where he fends off several gangsters with Jackie Chan-style moves. For Hunt, one appeal of directing the spot was his relationship with the Saatchi & Saatchi, creatives, who included senior art director Paul Bennell and copywriter John Mendes. The cast members were found at a local martial arts school, and the stunt guys were former crew on The Matrix. "We shot it in three days, which is pretty fast. But the style is slapstick, so you can get away with a lot more," explains Hunt. "The camel plays the unfazed martial arts superstar, and yet it had to play not too violent—tongue in cheek—more Jackie Chan than Jet Li. Some of the best humor was behind the scenes—people’s bizarre reactions in the street to this camel at the wheel of the hero vehicle, driving through Chinatown, racing a ’68 Buick Riviera."
Hunt also enjoyed "DIY Bond Girls," a dreamscape sequence promoting the Internet division of Australian telecommunications company Telstra. Even though the budget was "nonexistent" and the turn-around was rapid (a one-day shoot), he was given the opportunity to help develop the concept, mixing the style of a Bond title sequence with girls, power tools and bad karaoke. Similarly, "Decisions," which stages a medieval-style battle in a young man’s head as his girlfriend asks him whether she should purchase a tank suit or a bikini, was enjoyable because of the style and the scope.
Epic spots
"The reason I like these particular types of commercials is because they are more like little films than ads," says Hunt. "I’m telling a story and I get paid to learn about these new genres. I’d love to do a medieval film like we created for Nintendo [‘Decisions’], or a kung fu
