Director/DP Damien Toogood has signed with Accomplice Media for U.S. representation, and stepped straight into working with DDB San Francisco and its creative director Sam Brown.
“Damien’s visual style and quirkiness, when it came to casting, were exactly what we were looking for,” Brown said. “Utilizing his skills in cinematography, in addition to his directing talent, made our collaboration a smooth and exciting process. He’s also a very funny guy!”
Toogood was previously represented by Believe Media’s comedy unity Dapper. He has directed spots for Dodge, Samsung, Ford, Nescafe and Hyundai, among others. His work has been recognized in awards from Cannes to One Show, D&AD and others as well as garnering millions of views online.
“Damien is a storyteller. He’s a funny guy and his work lands very naturally in the comedy and performance world,” observes Accomplice Media executive producer Jeff Snyder. “He also has a lot of range and interests. You see it in projects like UNOS (a PSA for the United Network for Organ Sharing) that have touches of humor but tend toward the heart-warming. He is brimming with ideas and energy.”
As well as being a director and cinematographer, Toogood has worked with both agencies and clients on ideation and scripts. Among his recent efforts is the UNOS spot. Produced in conjunction with Publicis, New York, the spot has generated more than 45 million unpaid views. His “Guilt Trips” spot for the Australian rail company V/Line was part of a broader campaign out of McCann in Melbourne that won a Cannes Festival of Creativity Grand Prix for Creative Effectiveness.
“Script and cast, that’s all that matters,” said Toogood. “Comedy is binary and elusive. It’s either funny or it’s not, which is why I have a strong vision and love working closely with the team as the spot evolves in pre-production.”
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