The words "live" appear in the left-hand corner of the screen. A grainy image of a man running through the streets of a city at night appears. An arm holds up an 8" x 10" placard. "He’s training," it reads. The arm holds up another card: "You’re not." Then, a third card. This one shows the Nike logo.
Simple in concept, yet remarkably complex in execution. The spot, "City Runner 1," is one of 18 live commercials for Nike’s "Latin America Live" campaign that was directed by Henry Lu, a senior producer at Wieden+Kennedy (W+K), Portland, Ore. The package is noteworthy because, in Lu’s words, "it’s nice to work with a place where they trust you enough to shoot the stuff yourself." Indeed, in a larger sense, the campaign exemplifies what W+K is all about: collaboration, trust, and a sense of daring.
It is the kind of daring that has seen the production department execute an ambitious project that started on TV and ended on the Web. It is the kind of daring that allows a production team to improvise a new commercial during the downtime of a scripted one. And it is the kind of daring that has found producers and creatives working in the sort of idea-rich, collaborative environment that is often talked about, but is not always a reality.
The agency has collaborated with directors such as Dante Ariola of bicoastal/international Propa-ganda Films, Johan Renck of bicoastal HSI and Stockholm-based PAR, Ralf Schmerberg and Tarsem of bicoastal/international @radical. media, and Spike Jonze of bicoastal Satellite.
At the center of all this activity is the production department. With 10 producers on staff at the Portland headquarters, the agency also uses a pool of three to five freelancers on a continuing basis to create a wide variety of ads in a range of budgets. According to Ben Grylewicz, head of broadcast production at W+K, the producers are brought into the creative process early on, even before boards are sketched out. "After we’ve chosen a director, we will prepare a storyboard," he notes. "That gives the directors a little more input as to what it’s going to look like."
Adds Lu: "We are very focused on the common good of the spot. We have adopted a ‘teamwork’ attitude."
Yet, paradoxically perhaps, it is the sort of team that, Lu says, "never agrees"—except on the idea that quality comes first. "I have a lot of conversations with creatives even before the production process begins," notes senior producer Vic Palumbo. "I try to get their vision, to understand what they’re trying to do. But the creatives don’t see everything exactly the same way. All the key players see it slightly differently." Nonetheless, Lu doesn’t feel these differences are a drawback. "Through diversity, you get better creativity," he says. "It’s what [president/executive creative director] Dan Wieden calls his ‘chaos theory.’ "
Matter of Choice
The producers help select location, actors and music. The big choice is the director. He or she is often chosen for a number of reasons. "We usually work quickly," Grylewicz explains. "If the turnaround is in four weeks, that eliminates a slew of other directors. If there are thousands of commercial directors, we consider 100 to 150."
Consequently, the agency frequently works with, and looks for, new talent. "Creatives come up with an idea and sell it to a client, and they may have a director in mind, but he may be booked for the next two months," observes Grylewicz. "Rather than wait, we try new people. We send producers to the Sundance Film Festival every year, looking for fresh directors, and to the Aspen Comedy Festival. We are always looking for somebody new who understands the way we work. Oftentimes, we take a chance on someone and find new talent." He cites Johan Renck, who helmed the "whatever.nike.com" campaign, as an example.
Lu also praises veteran helmers. "Guys like [director Joe] Pytka [of Venice, Calif.-based PYTKA], and @radical.media and its directors, who move jobs for Wieden+Kennedy. It’s great to produce work that’s coveted as something people want to touch," he notes. "The creative directors, art directors and writers make it easier for us to work when a good idea comes through."
Speed is often an issue in production. "Nike is trying to be fresh and topical, and there is frequently so little time," says Grylewicz. "Often, athletes [featured in spots] are only available on a certain date. We have a limited time, and everyone understands this."
"Horror," for instance, features Olympic distance runner Suzy Favor Hamilton, and was completed in a little under eight weeks. "Horror" was directed by Phil Joanou of Villains, bicoastal and Chicago. Chris Noble, the agency producer on the spot, says Joanou was tapped because the ad had a feature film look, and Joanou fit the bill, having helmed movies such as Entropy.
A spoof of horror movies, the spot involves an isolated cabin at night and Favor Hamilton being pursued through the woods by a chainsaw-wielding man in a mask. He walks quickly after her, saw buzzing all the while; she moves like the track star she is, nimbly darting through the dark woods. Coming to a pile of debris, she leaps over it effortlessly. But her pursuer is not as agile—he laboriously climbs over it, and soon is huffing and puffing. She eventually zooms out of sight as the maniac collapses in an exhausted heap. (The ad, which aired during the coverage of the Summer Olympic Games in Sydney, was pulled by NBC after viewers’ complaints; "Horror" continued to air on other networks.)
Producing such a commercial quickly may be done for practical reasons, but Lu insists that speed is also an aesthetic choice. The fast execution fits in with the agency’s "chaos theory" of creativity, ensuring spontaneity and an edginess that W+K producers feel is crucial to the success of the spots. "Dan Wieden wants to shake it up," Lu observes. "He wants it to be a little chaotic. No cushy schedules. When you have to get on the air in three weeks, that forces you to think on your toes. You don’t start staring at stuff and overproducing it."
Post Interests
Such ideas also mean the post houses are important. "We count on the editorial input a lot," says Lu, who cites three houses and editors the agency returns to again and again: Rock Paper Scissors, Los Angeles, and Angus Wall; Lost Planet, Santa Monica, and Hank Corwin; and FilmCore’s Santa Monica office, home to Paul Norling. (FilmCore also has an office in San Francisco.) "[Those editors] have a shorthand which we understand," says Lu. "Every person, every piece of the puzzle is absolutely important and critical."
The underlying principle in such a situation—and at the agency in general—is trust. And Grylewicz says the agency is lucky in the trusting nature of its clientele. "Nike is a great client and Miller is a great client because they have faith in us," he notes.
Such feelings can lead to firsts like the "whatever.com" campaign, which employed two different media. In "Racing Marion," helmed by Renck, world champion sprinter Marion Jones challenges the viewer (represented by a POV camera) to a foot race through the streets and alleyways of Santa Monica while people, dogs, and glass doors fly by. As Jones dashes down the beach promenade, dodging street performers and tourists, the viewer (in hot pursuit) slams into a man juggling chainsaws. When the roaring saws fall back to earth, the screen goes dark with a note telling viewers, "Continued at whatever.nike.com."
To resolve the cliffhanger, viewers must trade their remote for a mouse. At whatever.nike.com, they choose from up to seven different endings for the unfinished TV ads. From a disarming experience with the chainsaw to a boxing match or a spirited game of one-on-one basketball, the Web site provides viewers/surfers with a chance to find the ending they like best.
Agency-client faith was also a key component in the creation of "Hackysack," a Nike commercial directed by Doug Liman, who was then with now defunct Propaganda Independent. The ad featured golf pro Tiger Woods bouncing a golf ball on the end of his club for almost 30 seconds before hitting it into the air. (Liman is still affiliated with former Propaganda Independent exec producer Susanne Preissler, who has yet to make a decision on her next roost.)
According to Palumbo, the spot was shot on the fly during downtime on a scripted commercial called "Driving Range," which was helmed by Lasse Halstrom, who was then with Propaganda Independent, and is now with @radical.media.
"We asked Tiger if he could do the trick with the ball, and he said, ‘yes,’ and then we shot it," recalls Palumbo. "Nike and the creatives were open to a good idea. They had the flexibility to burn extra film, even though the idea was not fleshed out. We just locked off the shot and the second-unit director shot it. Tiger did it five times, and we got it in the fourth take. The next thing you know, we had a commercial. It was magical. We weren’t even sure Tiger could do it."
For Lu, such commercials would be impossible without a key element: the willingness to take a chance. "That is the backbone of our work and why I think it is so successful," observes Lu. "Because of that, we are all able to throw shit against the wall and see if it sticks. Dan Wieden’s philosophy is, ‘Here are the keys to the brand new Cadillac, go out and fuck it up, and have a good time.’ It’s a good philosophy. That’s the way stuff happens."Û
