Jeremy Arth
Jeremy Arth
American Red Cross of Chicago “Spare Change”
Agency: Young & Rubicam, Chicago
DP: Marc Menet
Editorial: Optimus, Chicago
Editor: Dana Phillips
Affiliation: associate producer, Young & Rubicam, Chicago
How did you get into directing? Not to sound tragically cliché, I used to make movies in my basement when I was a kid. However, I had no idea one could actually make a living by doing that. After a stint as a pre-med major, I switched schools and started maxing out my credit cards on different projects. My reel and my debt have been growing side by side ever since.
Why do you want to direct commercials? It would be a thrill to always be working on something new. That’s one of the great things about advertising. Each project is an intense, focused burst of creativity on a tight turn-around, but you are in constant collaboration with other creative people and I really dig that vibe.
What’s your most recent spot project? I recently finished a PSA for the American Red Cross of Chicago. It was a great concept but we literally had no money. So it became an enormous opportunity for me, both as a producer and a director, and yielded a really smart, solid and exciting spot. Right now, I am working on a couple hilarious spec spots developed by creatives here in Chicago.
Do you have plans to work in other areas–e.g. shorts films or features or TV? Have you ever done any of that in the past? Unabashedly, yes, I want to direct anything I can get my hands on. Each medium brings its own challenges and I really want to experience everything–everything except porn. And even then, I’d do a call.
What do you think is the best part about being a director? I think the best part of directing would be getting paid to do what I’m doing with my free time already.
What’s the worst part? Is there a worst part?
Who is (are) your mentor(s)? I look up to anyone taller than me.
Not counting your own work, what’s your favorite recent ad? Why? I really like the work for Honda, whether it is Malcolm Venville’s “Impact” or “Waste” or Nick Gordon’s “Yume No Chikara.” They have strong but simple concepts that are executed brilliantly, with enough breathing room to let the visuals develop the story.
Alec Baldwin Urges Judge To Stand By Dismissal Of Involuntary Manslaughter Case In “Rust” Shooting
Alec Baldwin urged a New Mexico judge on Friday to stand by her decision to skuttle his trial and dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge against the actor in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie.
State District Court Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer dismissed the case against Baldwin halfway through a trial in July based on the withholding of evidence by police and prosecutors from the defense in the 2021 shooting of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film "Rust."
The charge against Baldwin was dismissed with prejudice, meaning it can't be revived once any appeals of the decision are exhausted.
Special prosecutor Kari Morrissey recently asked the judge to reconsider, arguing that there were insufficient facts and that Baldwin's due process rights had not been violated.
Baldwin, the lead actor and co-producer on "Rust," was pointing a gun at cinematographer Halyna Hutchins during a rehearsal when it went off, killing her and wounding director Joel Souza. Baldwin has said he pulled back the hammer — but not the trigger — and the revolver fired.
The case-ending evidence was ammunition that was brought into the sheriff's office in March by a man who said it could be related to Hutchins' killing. Prosecutors said they deemed the ammunition unrelated and unimportant, while Baldwin's lawyers alleged that they "buried" it and filed a successful motion to dismiss the case.
In her decision to dismiss the Baldwin case, Marlowe Sommer described "egregious discovery violations constituting misconduct" by law enforcement and prosecutors, as well as false testimony about physical evidence by a witness during the trial.
Defense counsel says that prosecutors tried to establish a link... Read More