Director Ruben Fleischer–whose feature directorial debut Zombieland, an action comedy/buddy picture starring Woody Harrelson, Jesse Eisenberg, Abigail Breslin and Emma Stone, opened last week–has joined the commercials roster of Caviar, which maintains offices in Venice, Calif., Brussels and Amsterdam.
Fleischer is no stranger to spots, having broken into the ad arena via Stink, London, several years ago, and bicoastal Smuggler stateside. Via the latter, he directed Burger King’s “Up Late” for Crispin Porter + Bogusky, Miami. During a relative brief hiatus from commercialmaking, Fleischer directed the DVD documentary Gumball 3000: 6 Days in May, and then co-created the reality series Rob & Big and its sequel Fantasy Factory for MTV, Fleischer then returned to spots, joining production house Sandwick where he helmed for such clients as ESPN and Boost Mobile.
The director has also been active in music videos for the likes of Kanye West, M.I.A. and Dizzee Rascal. Fleischer’s virals, including Funny or Die exclusive web series Between Two Ferns with Zach Galifianakis, have drawn millions of hits online. He has also directed several episodes of Jimmy Kimmel Live! on ABC.
Fleischer first cut his filmmaking teeth as a director’s assistant to director Miguel Arteta on Chuck & Buck and The Good Girl. Fleischer was able to get first-hand experience in every aspect of the filmmaking process from pre-production to post working with Arteta. With this trial-by-fire film education, Fleischer went on to amass some $40,000 in credit card debt making shorts and music videos that eventually landed him commercial representation.
Disney Pledges $15 million In L.A. Fire Aid As More Celebs Learn They’ve Lost Their Homes
The Pacific Palisades wildfires torched the home of "This Is Us" star Milo Ventimiglia, perhaps most poignantly destroying the father-to-be's newly installed crib.
CBS cameras caught the actor walking through his charred house for the first time, standing in what was once his kitchen and looking at a neighborhood in ruin. "Your heart just breaks."
He and his pregnant wife, Jarah Mariano, evacuated Tuesday with their dog and they watched on security cameras as the flames ripped through the house, destroying everything, including a new crib.
"There's a kind of shock moment where you're going, 'Oh, this is real. This is happening.' What good is it to continue watching?' And then at a certain point we just turned it off, like 'What good is it to continue watching?'"
Firefighters sought to make gains Friday during a respite in the heavy winds that fanned the flames as numerous groups pledged aid to help victims and rebuild, including a $15 million donation pledge from the Walt Disney Co.
More stars learn their homes are gone
While seeing the remains of his home, Ventimiglia was struck by a connection to his "This Is Us" character, Jack Pearson, who died after inhaling smoke in a house fire. "It's not lost on me life imitating art."
Mandy Moore, who played Ventimiglia's wife on "This Is Us," nearly lost her home in the Eaton fire, which scorched large areas of the Altadena neighborhood. She said Thursday that part of her house is standing but is unlivable, and her husband lost his music studio and all his instruments.
Mel Gibson's home is "completely gone," his publicist Alan Nierob confirmed Friday. The Oscar winner revealed the loss of his home earlier Friday while appearing on Joe Rogan's... Read More