Interrogate, which maintains shops in L.A., NY and Sydney, has added director Lee J. Ford to its roster for commercials and branded content. The production company will rep him in the U.S. and Australia.
Ford’s inaugural project at Interrogate–working with its exec producers/partners George Meeker and Jeff Miller–was a spot for Blizzard Games’ Diablo III out of L.A. agency Omelet. Based on the experience, Ford said of the two EPs, “They understand passion, and aren’t afraid to get their hands dirty to create something great. It was instantly obvious we just knew how to talk to each other. I’m looking forward to many more memorable projects with them.”
A British native, Ford worked as a creative in the advertising industry for years before pivoting to directing. A cinephile since youth, Ford grew up next to a video store and would stay up late re-watching The Hills Have Eyes, The Exorcist, Exterminator and other banned-in-the-UK movies until he failed his classes. This led him to drop out and go to art school to study graphic design. Studying at The University of Brighton and the esteemed Central Saint Martins School of Art helped inform Ford’s preferred minimalist aesthetic, and gave him his first hands-on experience with art direction.
After graduation, Ford worked his way through the advertising industry as a creative, working for various agencies including 180 Amsterdam, Ogilvy London, TBWA London, and Saatchi&Saatchi London. While he ended up as a creative director, Ford never forgot his dream of directing, so when working at an agency in Amsterdam and the opportunity to direct Top Gear came his way, Ford leapt at it.
His agency experience allows Ford to see the stages of making commercials from every angle, which lets him “understand the politics and daily struggles the creatives are facing throughout the process, and will continue to face” long after he’s done directing the piece. Ford’s background as an agency creative also means that he can jump in and offer collaborative and creative solutions with script changes and on-the-fly ideas that preserve the integrity of the concept and everyone involved.
From crafting a gritty, high-energy glimpse at New African Icons for SportsPesa to a moody nighttime drive for Audi, Ford’s visual aesthetic is always refined, and tailored for what the brief requires. His visual sensibility is on full display in the short film he directed for fashion designer Roland Mouret. A surreal and visceral narrative based on childhood memories of Mouret watching his father, who was a butcher, the film spurs an emotional response in an unexpected way. Prior to joining Interrogate, Ford was repped by PRETTYBIRD in the U.S. and U.K.
First-Time Feature Directors Make Major Splash At AFI Fest, Generate Oscar Buzz
Two first-time feature directors who are generating Oscar buzz this awards season were front and center this past weekend at AFI Fest in Hollywood. Rachel Morrison, who made history as the first woman nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar---on the strength of Mudbound in 2018--brought her feature directorial debut, The Fire Inside (Amazon MGM Studios), to the festival on Sunday (10/27), and shared insights into the film during a conversation session immediately following the screening. This came a day after William Goldenberg, an Oscar-winning editor for Argo in 2013, had his initial foray into feature directing, Unstoppable (Amazon MGM Studios), showcased at the AFI proceedings. He too spoke after the screening during a panel discussion. The Fire Inside--which made its world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival--tells the story of Claressa “T-Rex” Shields (portrayed by Ryan Destiny), a Black boxer from Flint, Mich., who trained to become the first woman in U.S. history to win an Olympic Gold Medal in the sport. She achieved this feat--with the help of coach Jason Crutchfield (Brian Tyree Henry)--only to find that her victory at the Summer Games came with relatively little fanfare and no endorsement deals. So much for the hope that the historic accomplishment would be a ticket out of socioeconomic purgatory for Shields and her family. It seemed like yet another setback in a cycle of adversity throughout Shields’ life but she persevered, going on to win her second Gold Medal at the next Olympics and becoming a champion for gender equality and equitable pay for women in sports. Shields has served as a source of inspiration for woman athletes worldwide--as well as to the community of... Read More