In this Fall Directors Series Issue, there are assorted examples of directors crossing over between or among disciplines.
This week’s lineup of profiles includes: long-time commercial director Gary McKendry who earned an Oscar nomination several years ago for best short film and is now in post on his theatrical feature debut, The Killer Elite starring Robert DeNiro, Jason Statham and Clive Owen; Nanette Burstein, an accomplished documentary filmmaker who diversified into commercials and recently saw the release of her romantic comedy Going the Distance starring Drew Barrymore and Justin Long; Dennie Gordon, nominated for a DGA Award for HBO’s Tracey Takes On…, and director of multiple episodes of such comedies as 30 Rock and The Office, as well as spots, promos and branded content; and Tom Hooper, director of the acclaimed HBO miniseries John Adams, and the feature The King’s Speech, which has generated considerable Oscar contender buzz based on recent debut screenings at the Telluride Film Festival followed by the Toronto International Film Festival.
This week’s news coverage also includes production studio Bandito Brothers‘ signing of noted indie filmmakers The Polish Brothers for commercials and longer form branded entertainment. With a filmography that includes three movies that have debuted at the Sundance Film Festival over the years, Mark and Michael Polish also have several commercial campaigns to their co-directorial credit.
Yet standing out for his diverse endeavors–even in a landscape where crossover has become common–is Richard Ayoade, writer/director of Submarine, which too scored kudos at the recently concluded Toronto International Film Festival.
Ayoade is well known in the U.K. as a comedian, an actor, writer and director. On the acting front, for example, he became noted for his role as the socially awkward tech genius Maurice Moss in Channel 4’s The IT Crowd, winning best actor in a TV comedy series at the Monte Carlo Television Festival.
Ayoade also co-wrote (with Matthjew Holness) and performed in the noted stage show Gareth Marenghi’s Fright Night.
The Marenghi character later surfaced in the parody horror comedy series Garth Marenghi’s Darkplace. Ayoade directed and acted in a supporting role in the television series. He also had a writing hand in The Mighty Book of Boosh, which spawned a radio series and then a TV show (he acted in the pilot).
Ayoade was also a stand-up comedian for a brief stretch, performing on The Stand Up Show on BBC1, before transitioning to acting in comedies.
Beyond directing comedy series, Ayoade has also helmed music videos for such artists as the Arctic Monkeys, Super Furry Animals, The Last Shadow Puppets, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Kasabian.
Via production house Tomboy Films in London, Ayoade diversified into commercials, directing several jobs before moving over to bicoastal/international Moxie Pictures for spot and branded content representation in the U.S. and U.K. He continues to be repped for music video assignments by Warp Films, London.
And now Ayoade has made his narrative feature directorial debut (he earlier helmed a feature-length concert film The Arctic Monkeys at the Apollo) with the aforementioned Submarine, a teen film adapted from the novel by Joe Dunthorne.
Submarine is told from the unique perspective of Oliver Tate, a witty, endearingly odd 15-year-old lad who is coming to grips with a most confusing world, which includes the impending breakup of his parents as well as his first romantic relationship.
The film has scored rave reviews, singling out such elements as Ayoade’s writing and direction, the performances of newcomer Craig Roberts as Oliver, Yasmin Paige as his romantic interest, and Noah Taylor and Sally Hawkins as Oliver’s parents.
Reviews have also cited the different dimensions of the movie, ranging from humorous to introspective, moody and melancholy.
As for what drew him to a film project centered on adolescents, Ayoade told SHOOT, “I liked the book a great deal. That was the starting point.” And while he understands that American audiences might wonder why the need for yet another adolescent film, Ayoade explained that the genre is not nearly as common in the U.K. and thus represents a departure for his home marketplace.
“America seems to be the leader in films and television shows with teens and adolescents, TV series like The Wonder Years, and I very much like Dawson’s Creek,” related Ayoade. “But this is more an American form than I suppose a British one, and capturing that mindset with a bit of a different twist interested me.”
Plaintive ballads written by Alex Turner from the band Arctic Monkeys also help to set the mood and feel of Submarine.
Turner has collaborated with Ayoade over the years on the alluded to Arctic Monkeys music videos and concert film.
Ayoade is gratified over the favorable reviews that Submarine has received but resists the temptation to dwell on them.
“If the reviews are bad, you can become depressed. If they’re good, you can be overly confident. And if they’re bad, it’s too late to do anything about it anyway.”
His perspective on positive reviews is akin to the observation attributed in some circles to George Bernard Shaw which went along the lines of it being easy to ignore bad reviews. But the hard thing to do–which is necessary for personal balance, integrity, humility and creative success–is to ignore the good ones.
Ayoade joined Moxie for commercials just as Submarine was green lit. He wants to remain active in spotmaking and said he’s attracted to the discipline based on the work done by such directors as Spike Jonze (whose roost is MJZ), Wes Anderson (also handled by Moxie Picutres) and Jonathan Glazer (of Academy Films).
Among Ayoade’s directorial credits are a humorous trailer for The Mighty Boosh, and comedic commercials for Nokia and Peugeot.
The latter consists of tongue-in-cheek, cut-down versions of well known feature films (Lord of the Rings, The Blair Witch Project) to reflect a reduced production footprint simpatico with the reduced carbon footprint of the eco-friendly Blue Lion accredited Peugeot 308 automobile.
The Blair Witch Project parody, for example, features several young folks running around screaming in a field, each holding a video camera.
Directing and Editing “Conclave”; Insights From Edward Berger and Nick Emerson
It’s been a bruising election year but this time we’re referring to a ballot box struggle that’s more adult than the one you’d typically first think of in 2024. Rather, on the industry awards front, the election being cited is that of the Pope which takes front and center stage in director Edward Berger’s Conclave (Focus Features), based on the 2016 novel of the same title by Robert Harris. Adapted by screenwriter Peter Straugham, Conclave stars Ralph Fiennes as the cardinal leading the conclave that has convened to select the next Pope. While part political thriller, full of backstabbing and behind-closed-door machinations, Conclave also registers as a thoughtful adult drama dealing with themes such as a crisis of faith, weighing the greater good, and engaging in a struggle that’s as much about spirituality as the attainment of power.
Conclave is Berger’s first feature after his heralded All Quiet on the Western Front, winner of four Oscars in 2023, including for Best International Feature Film. And while Conclave would on the surface seem to be quite a departure from that World War I drama, there’s a shared bond of humanity which courses through both films.
For Berger, the heightened awareness of humanity hit home for him by virtue of where he was--in Rome, primarily at the famed Cinecittà studio--to shoot Conclave, sans any involvement from the Vatican. He recalled waking up in Rome to “soak up” the city. While having his morning espresso, Berger recollected looking out a window and seeing a priest walking about with a cigarette in his mouth, a nun having a cup of coffee, an archbishop carrying a briefcase. It dawned on Berger that these were just people going to... Read More