Director Nick Spooner has come aboard the roster of PRISM, a Brooklyn-based production company and content studio founded by executive producer Tom Rossano and director Elliot Kealoha Blanchard.
Spooner’s directing credits span such brands as AT&T, Ford, Ikea, Tide, Budweiser, Volkswagen, Bounty, Nissan, Apple, Mazda, Dodge, Yoplait, Burger King, McDonald’s and HBO. Prior to joining PRISM, he had been handled by The Sweet Shop.
Spooner cut his teeth in the industry right after high school, working on the crew side making commercials and rock videos, gaining first-hand experience in virtually every department on set. The Boston native took this practical knowledge and enrolled at Harvard to major in film and animation, where he joined the storied organization, The Harvard Lampoon.
Starting as a staff cartoonist (he draws his own storyboards to this day), he eventually become The Lampoon’s President. After graduating with honors, he took a creative position at Ogilvy & Mather where he was trained in the art and craft of effective television advertising and brand-building. Spooner transitioned to a job at Comedy Central in NYC where his combined expertise in comedy and branded content allowed him to take on leadership roles as writer, producer, and director on many of the network’s formative campaigns.
Spooner then went on to direct spots for assorted brands. He balances advertising work with his own creative passions; his cartoons frequently show up in magazines, and his short film, a Lovecraftian, SFX-driven dark comedy titled The Call of Charlie, has played in 82 festivals around the world, winning over 40 awards and distinctions.
While comedy is his first love, Nick has had the good fortune to work across all genres, saying, “Comedy–especially in commercials–can be hard to get right, but it’s the perfect foundation to take on almost any type of content. There’s nothing I love more than telling these short stories, whatever form they take.”
EP Rossano said, “Not only does Nick have a strong foundation in writing, but he creates his own opportunities. You want directors to be self-starters, and Nick is someone who actively seeks out new collaborations. On top of that, his work stands out–it’s quirky, it’s funny, it’s subtle. And that’s a rare combination.”
Director Mike Flanagan’s “The Life of Chuck” Wins People’s Choice Award At The Toronto Film Fest
The Toronto International Film Festival’s People’s Choice Award went to “The Life of Chuck,” handing director-writer Mike Flanagan’s Stephen King adaptation one of the most-watched prizes of the fall film festival circuit.
The award for “The Life of Chuck” was announced Sunday (9/15) as North American’s largest film festival drew to a close. “The Life of Chuck,” based on King’s 2020 novella of the same name, stars Tom Hiddleston as Charles “Chuck” Krantz, an ordinary man living through apocalyptic cataclysms. Mark Hamill, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Karen Gillan and Jacob Tremblay co-star.
TIFF’s People’s Choice Award is regarded as a reliable Oscar harbinger. Since 2012, every winner of the festival’s top prize has gone on to be nominated for best picture at the Academy Awards. Last year, Cord Jefferson’s “American Fiction” won, and went on to be a major awards contender.
But “The Life of Chuck” could test that track record. The film is up for sale and doesn’t yet have distribution. It could be acquired and quickly readied for release this fall, or it might end up a 2025 release. “The Life of Chuck” drew mixed — though mostly positive reviews — out of Toronto, though audiences were clearly charmed by the uplifting drama.
Runners-up for the People’s Choice Award, which is voted on by festival attendees, were both films that first premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in May. The first was Jacques Audiard’s “Emilia Pérez.” The second runner-up was Sean Baker’s “Anora,” the Palme d’Or winner at Cannes.
The audience award for top documentary went to Mike Downie’s “The Tragically Hip: No Dress Rehearsal.” In the festival’s Midnight Madness section, the prize went to... Read More