Yard Dog has signed comedy director Tom Feiler for exclusive representation in the U.S. Feiler specializes in performance-based comedy often involving odd characters and skewed scenarios. His many credits include campaigns for Walmart, McDonald’s, Iams and Tim Horton’s.
In describing his approach toward comedy, Feiler points to a spot for the Illinois State Lottery about a pudgy track and field athlete preparing for a high jump. After the event is given a big build up by a play-by-play announcer, the man leaps over a bar set eight inches off the ground. “I love it when viewers think they know what’s happening, but then there’s a twist,” he explained. “For me, that’s very, very funny, especially when the actors are fully committed to the moment.”
Feiler adds that he’s a perfectionist and takes a fastidious interest in every aspect of his work. “I like to bury things in the art direction so even after multiple viewings, you’re still discovering something new,” he said. “I want to add things that trigger something in your mind and make you want to see the commercial again.”
“Tom is just flat out funny,” said Yard Dog executive producer Joe Piccirillo. “His emails are funny, his texts are funny, he brings his fantastic sense of humor to work and life.”
Feiler says that his alliance with Yard Dog came about through informal talks with Piccirillo, and that he found they shared similar values and work ethics. “I liked Joe and I liked what he was saying about the business,” he says. “Throughout my career, it’s been about that…connecting with people I like. We talked, he laughed at my jokes, we had a good conversation. The rest is history.”
Feiler studied fine arts at Ryerson College in Toronto and began his career as a commercial photographer. He made the transition to live action via Radke Films, Toronto, and immediately latched onto comedy work. He has gone onto to direct spots for agencies across Canada, the U.S. and Asia. He is the recipient of numerous Canadian advertising awards and has been short-listed twice at Cannes. Prior to joining Yard Dog, he was handled in the U.S. by Accomplice Media.
“Anything that mirrors life can be funny,” Feiler observed. “But, there needs to be an ounce of truth in the situation…something that’s real about it.”
Rom-Com Mainstay Hugh Grant Shifts To The Dark Side and He’s Never Been Happier
After some difficulties connecting to a Zoom, Hugh Grant eventually opts to just phone instead.
"Sorry about that," he apologizes. "Tech hell." Grant is no lover of technology. Smart phones, for example, he calls the "devil's tinderbox."
"I think they're killing us. I hate them," he says. "I go on long holidays from them, three or four days at at time. Marvelous."
Hell, and our proximity to it, is a not unrelated topic to Grant's new film, "Heretic." In it, two young Mormon missionaries (Chloe East, Sophie Thatcher) come knocking on a door they'll soon regret visiting. They're welcomed in by Mr. Reed (Grant), an initially charming man who tests their faith in theological debate, and then, in much worse things.
After decades in romantic comedies, Grant has spent the last few years playing narcissists, weirdos and murders, often to the greatest acclaim of his career. But in "Heretic," a horror thriller from A24, Grant's turn to the dark side reaches a new extreme. The actor who once charmingly stammered in "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and who danced to the Pointer Sisters in "Love Actually" is now doing heinous things to young people in a basement.
"It was a challenge," Grant says. "I think human beings need challenges. It makes your beer taste better in the evening if you've climbed a mountain. He was just so wonderfully (expletive)-up."
"Heretic," which opens in theaters Friday, is directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, co-writers of "A Quiet Place." In Grant's hands, Mr. Reed is a divinely good baddie — a scholarly creep whose wry monologues pull from a wide range of references, including, fittingly, Radiohead's "Creep."
In an interview, Grant spoke about these and other facets of his character, his journey... Read More