Director David Preizler of Epoch Films, bicoastal and London, is no stranger to the spotlight. He gained inclusion in SHOOT’s New Directors Showcase in 2003. The next year, he was part of the Saatchi & Saatchi New Directors Showcase. His work has garnered assorted awards, including a Gold Clio, and recognition at the Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) Show in the student commercial category (Speedo’s “Aquaman”).
Preizler’s latest coup paradoxically dates back to the early stages of his directorial career. An Epoch-produced spec spot he directed in September ’04 via Young & Rubicam, Chicago, has been bought by client Miller Lite for air, with the debut date yet to be determined. The commercial, “Runaway Fridge,” was based on a concept from a creative team at Young & Rubicam, Chicago, consisting of chief creative officer Mark Figliulo, creative director Dave Loew, copywriter Tohru Oyasu, art director Jon Wyville, director of broadcast production Matt Bijarchi, and producer David Fisher.
The premise involves the classic love affair that’s gone badly. But in this case, the relationship is between a man and his refrigerator. Indeed hell hath no fury like a fridge scorned. And the scorn comes in the form of the man electing to put a case of nondescript light beer in the refrigerator late one night. He then goes to bed only to awaken the next morning to find that his fridge has deserted him, leaving behind the light beer.
Hurt and bewildered (now he knows how his refrigerator feels), the man heads out the door to find his fridge. The trail takes him to a bus driver to whom he shows a photo of the refrigerator. Indeed the fridge had taken an express bus to the big city. We later see the fridge being harassed by a baton-wielding police officer for loitering.
The young man is relentless in the pursuit of his dearly departed fridge. He posts “Have you seen this fridge” signs all over town. Late into the night, he happens upon a streetwise female hooker who gestures down the sidewalk to the fridge. The man has finally caught up with his cool companion–but now the refrigerator is working a corner, in front of a theater playing a double feature, The Ice Box and Midnight Snack. A potential fridge/hooker customer appears to be negotiating a deal when the refrigerator owner intervenes, shooing the would-be customer away.
Seeing the error of his ways, the young man presents his beloved fridge with a case of Miller Lite. All is forgiven and man and fridge are reunited. They head back home together. A parting super reads, “Good Call,” which is Miller Lite’s longstanding slogan.
At press time, Preizler was in India on a shoot. He and Epoch were gratified to see “Runaway Fridge” get picked up for real-world airtime. Even a token run would qualify the spot for awards consideration.
The refrigerator theme in beer advertising gained a high profile earlier this year with the Super Bowl telecast debut of “Secret Fridge” for Bud Light. Directed by David McNally of bicoastal Villains for DDB Chicago, “Secret Fridge” scored the top slot in the USA Today Super Bowl commercials poll. The ad shows a guy stocking his fridge with Bud Light. When his friend sees the stash, he expresses concern that their buddies–who are coming over to watch the Big Game–will drink all the beer. That’s when the first guy proudly shows off his solution to the problem: a revolving fridge that hides the Bud Light. What the pair doesn’t realize is that when the refrigerator revolves, it ends up in another apartment populated by a bunch of guys who worship the beer-bestowing appliance. The spot ends with the more-than-grateful Bud Light recipients ritually bowing down and chanting, “Magic fridge, magic fridge.”
Ironically the refrigerator-centric concept of “Runaway Fridge” preceded that of this year’s popular “Secret Fridge.” But the Preizler-directed spec spot has finally been thawed out of deep freeze with airtime in the offing.
Epoch’s Mindy Goldberg and Jerry Solomon executive produced the commercial, with Anita Wetterstedt serving as producer. The DP was Eric Schmidt.
Matthew Wood of The Whitehouse, Chicago, edited the spot. Sue Dawson produced for The Whitehouse. Dave Gerbosi of Chicago Recording Company was the audio post mixer/sound designer. Music house was Human, New York. Visual effects house was Ring of Fire, West Hollywood, with John Myers serving as executive producer and Jerry Spivack as creative director. Principal actors were Joe Eggender, Jesse Goins and Julia Young.
SUPERLATIVE Signs Director Claudia Abend For Spots and Branded Content
Latin American director/editor and documentary filmmaker Claudia Abend has joined SUPERLATIVE for her first U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content.
Abend's empathetic docu-style POV has garnered several international awards for the documentary films Hit (2008) and The Flower of Life (2018). Her spotmaking credits include such brands as Procter & Gamble, Nestle and Blue Cross/Blue Shield. SUPERLATIVE has already worked with Abend, together producing a new ad campaign for digital agency Tinuiti and The Honest Company, a consumer goods corporation featuring eco-minded products.
“We found Claudia through her poignant documentaries on the festival circuit,” said SUPERLATIVE creative manager Stefan Dezil. “We are excited about her textured narratives, emotional storytelling, and her powerhouse long-form storytelling abilities, currently on her third feature film. As SUPERLATIVE continues to build our brand after premiering our latest films at Sundance and SXSW, Claudia is the kind of multidimensional artist we are excited to partner with on branded content and beyond. Fluent in English and Spanish, her reel shows real prowess with infants, food and skin products, families both young and old. Great visual storytelling and inspirational doc work.”
Abend began her career in her native Uruguay, studying film and editing in college. “My dad would show me films like Citizen Kane,” she said. “I love cinema and became an editor. It was here that I learned all about communicating human emotion.”
From the get-go, Abend hit it big as a documentary director, teaming with Adrianna Loeff on Hit, a movie chronicling pop artists of Uruguayan music. Abend took home a Best Editing... Read More