By KATHY DeSALVO
Manarchy Film, Chicago, has signed episodic director Todd Holland (The Larry Sanders Show, Felicity) for commercial representation.
Manarchy executive producer Dan Lundmark said it was Holland’s work on the ’92-’98 HBO cable series The Larry Sanders Show that prompted him to approach the director about spots. Blending fiction and reality, the award-winning series featured real-life celebrities playing themselves in a wickedly funny satire of Hollywood and talk shows. Lundmark related he had sought a director to do commercials focused on behind-the-scenes, heightened reality fare, which is the stock-in-trade of The Larry Sanders Show.
Holland served as lead director on The Larry Sanders Show, helming more than half of the program’s episodes. His direction of an episode called "Flip" won a ’98 Emmy Award for outstanding directing for a comedy series. Holland also has two feature films to his directorial credit: Krippendorf’s Tribe (’98), starring Richard Dreyfuss and Jenna Elfman, and The Wizard (’89). Among his other directorial credits are episodes of My So-Called Life, Friends, Twin Peaks, Tales From the Crypt, Max Headroom, and the aforementioned Felicity.
Lundmark tracked down the director, who was talking to bicoastal/international Propaganda Films at the same time. It was a difficult decision for Holland, who ultimately chose Manarchy, which he deemed a better fit due to its directorial roster. "Propaganda has so many directors, I was afraid I might duplicate someone," Holland said. "I really thought the people [at Manarchy] were sincere. They seemed like good people who are genuinely interested in building a career in commercials and building a relationship [with me]."
Holland graduated with a master’s degree in film from UCLA in ’85, and broke into episodic directing that year on the former TV series Amazing Stories after Steven Spielberg, an executive producer on the show, saw a short student film Holland had directed. "Chicken Thing" was an effects-heavy piece about a 12-year-old boy whose scary movie viewing comes back to haunt him at bedtime when he imagines his bedroom dresser transforming into a giant chicken monster.
Holland’s Spielberg connection helped him win his first spot-directing assignment: two holiday-themed Italian-airing ads for Motte Pannetone Bread. Milan-based Movie Magic, the production company on that job, sought a director versed in special effects and contacted him. "They were looking for a young Steven Spielberg," said Holland. "At that time, because I’d worked for him and done ‘Chicken Thing,’ it seemed to fit." He didn’t pursue spots after that because "I don’t travel in that world. It’s nothing I’m familiar with and I’m very busy in television."
Lundmark said that Holland will have select windows of opportunity for spotwork. At press time, the director was in the midst of filming episodes of Malcolm In The Middle, a FOX comedy slated to debut in January. At the earliest, he will be available for commercials in January or February.
"What I see, and hope agencies see," said Lundmark, "is that [Holland] is very, very good at working with celebrities. [His forte] is directing actors in situations that appear to be so real that you’re not sure if they’re actors or not."
Holland affirmed he is comfortable with celebs, observing that he had very successful experiences directing such reputedly difficult personalities as Roseanne and Sharon Stone for The Larry Sanders Show. "My whole interest now is in [directing] human interaction," Holland said. "I would like the verité spots that [show] the quirky, dark side of human behavior. I’m not into broad, goofy comedy; I like the ones that are a little slicker and quieter in their humor."
Holland joins a directorial roster also composed of Dennis Manarchy, Peter Van Vliet and Bob Shallcross. Manarchy Films is repped by L.A.-based Siobhan McCafferty on the West Coast, Chicago-based Gay Guthrey in the Midwest and New York-based Maggie Klein on the East Coast.
Jury Presidents Named For The One Show 2025
The One Club for Creativity has announced the global creatives from around the world who will serve as jury presidents for The One Show 2025.
These creatives will lead judging for each discipline, and have a vote on the work.
Confirmed One Show 2025 Jury presidents, by discipline, are as follows:
--Brand-Side/In-House: David Lee, CCO, Squarespace, New York
--Branded Entertainment: Malcolm Poynton, Global CCO, Cheil Worldwide, London
--Creative Use of Data, Creative Use of Technology: Nancy Crimi-Lamanna, CCO, FCB Canada, Toronto
--Cultural Driver: Bianca Guimaraes, partner, ECD, Mischief, New York
--Design: Liza Enebeis, creative director, partner, Studio Dumbar/DEPT®, Rotterdam
--Direct Marketing: Vicki Maguire, CCO, Havas London
--Film & Video: Javier Campopiano, global CCO, McCann Worldgroup & McCann Global, Madrid
--Gaming: Taj Reid, global chief experience officer, US CCO, Edelman, New York
--Integrated, Experiential & Immersive: Chris Beresford-Hill, worldwide CCO, BBDO New York
--Fusion Pencil: Walter T. Geer III, CCO, Innovation North America, VML, New York
--Green Pencil: Barbara Humphries, ECD, The Monkeys, Sydney
--Health & Wellness, Pharma: Wendy Lund, chief client officer, WPP, New York
--IP & Product Design: Ronald Ng, global CCO, MRM, New York
--Moving Image Craft & Production: Irene Kugelmann, chief creative officer, DDB Group of Companies Germany, Berlin
--Music & Sound Craft: Joel Simon, CCO, JSM Music, New York
--Out of Home, Print & Promotional: Kainaz Karmakar, CCO, Ogilvy India, Mumbai
--Public Relations: Patricia Ávila, regional director for Latin America, Ágora, São Paulo
--Radio... Read More