Director Lenard Dorfman has signed with O Positive for commercial representation. His first campaigns at his new roost are for FedEx via BBDO New York and the New York Lottery out of DDB NY, which will begin airing this month.
Among his notable credits are the Village Voice's 2012 Cannes Gold Lion-winning campaign "New York Writes Itself" for Leo Burnett, NY, Coca-Cola's "The Commentary" in which we feel the passion of a blind football fan in a stadium, and Volkswagen's "Grand Slam," a subtle comedic spot which demonstrates the car's remarkable sturdiness through the unabashed habits of its door-slamming owner.
Dorfman was last represented by RSA Films following a lengthy tenure at @radical.media. He has directed commercials for Nike, AmEx, IBM, GE, Guinness and Mercedes-Benz, among others. Among his more recent endeavors are the "Tribes" campaign for the FFA Hyundai A-League Football championship, Bank of America's "Morning," and a film and ad campaign starring French football legend Zinedine Zidane that helped the Middle East win its historic bid for the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Dorfman has earned numerous accolades, including Cannes Lions, D&AD distinction, One Show Pencils, AICP Show honors, BTAA Arrows and a 2001 DGA Award nomination for Best Commercial Director of the Year. He became a DGA nominee on the strength of such work as his two Summer Olympic-themed IBM spots–"Harlem Fencer" and "Senegal Women's Basketball"–for Ogilvy & Mather, New York.
Dorfman began his career directing documentaries, with his first films–Dancing With Cowboys, The Lost Cowboys and The Youngest Cowboy–commissioned by Canal Plus France and broadcast globally. He also counts the pilot of Sundance Channel's pioneering Iconoclasts series, featuring Tom Ford and Jeff Koons, among his credits.
"I've been fortunate to work regularly on either side of the pond," said Dorfman. "This has enabled me to pursue a variety of work that I love doing, namely narrative storytelling and subtle comedy along with more documentary, real people storytelling. I think this range of work makes for a terrific fit to the directors here at O Positive."
Mindy Kaling and Kate Hudson Take On Pro Basketball In Netflix Series “Running Point”
In Mindy Kaling's new Netflix series, "Running Point, " Kate Hudson stars as Isla Gordon, the new president of the Los Angeles Waves, a pro basketball team that's been run by her family for years. Hudson's character has to prove herself as a woman in a man's world not only to her passed-over brothers, but also to players whose egos need checking and other executives who don't take her seriously.
If Isla's story rings a bell, take a look at the list of executive producers on the 10-episode season dropping Thursday: Among them is Jeanie Buss, the president of the Los Angeles Lakers, who was embroiled in similar turmoil over control of the storied NBA franchise after the death of her father, Jerry Buss.
Buss not only has given the show her blessing, it was her idea said Kaling. Buss was a big fan of "The Office" and approached Kaling with the premise about five years ago. Kaling ended up as the co-creator, writer and executive producer alongside Ike Barinholtz and David Stassen.
"She's in a very serious, stressful job but she loves comedy. She does not take herself seriously," Kaling says of Buss. "That's really rare when someone has that much power and that much to lose."
Jeanie Buss' blessing
In fact, Kaling said, Buss wanted the show to be funny and had "no ego" about using her real life as inspiration.
"She's had some extremely interesting things happen to her as the president of the Lakers. Some of it is she literally dated the coach for many years and she's like, 'Do whatever you want,'" Kaling says, referring to Buss' former relationship with Phil Jackson. "To get that kind of carte blanche, I'd never heard that from someone who is so famous and, you know, pretty private."
Shortly after the news... Read More