Director Patricia Murphy, an established European spotmaker via her London-based Patricia Murphy Films, has signed with Bravo Zulu, Santa Monica, for exclusive stateside representation. At press time, Murphy was in the midst of a live action/visual effects combo spot for Whirlpool out of Publicis, London, and Publicis & Hal Riney, Chicago. The job is being produced by Patricia Murphy Films.
Murphy hasn’t been repped in the U.S. for several years. But upon serving as a judge at London’s Design & Art Direction (D&AD) Awards in ’99, she was favorably impressed with the quality of work coming out of the U.S. This prompted her to decide to re-enter the American ad market. After consulting with whom she described as being "a few good U.S. sources," recommendations led her to Bravo Zulu founder/executive producer Ron Hacohen.
While she had other offers, Murphy said she opted for Bravo Zulu due to its being "a small, focused company that can guide me to the right projects." Murphy’s addition brings Bravo Zulu’s roster up to two directors; the other being John Mastromonaco.
"Coming from a larger company [bicoastal HKM Productions]," related Hacohen, "part of my goal in forming Bravo Zulu last year was to have a situation where I could focus on a director’s work and actually spend time on projects from the beginning through post. I was astounded by Patricia’s reel and wanted the chance to work with her."
Other recent Murphy-helmed spots include a One to One mobile phone assignment for Bartle Bogle Hegarty, London. The commercial entailed shooting characters at different speeds and then employing complex compositing. Over the years, Murphy’s work has garnered recognition from numerous awards shows. For example, she has won best and silver direction honors at the D&AD competition for, respectively, Kodak’s "The Birthday Party" in ’92 out of Young & Rubicam, Paris, and Kiss FM’s "Are You Tuned In?" in ’91 via Abbott Mead Vickers/ BBDO, London. In ’98, Murphy won both gold and silver honors in the direction category from the Chicago Festival: the gold for Volvo’s "Climber," the silver for Yellow Pages’ "Life," both from Abbott Mead Vickers/ BBDO. "Life" also earned Murphy a gold for direction at last year’s Montreaux competition.
Collaborator
Murphy is no stranger to collaborating with American agencies. Besides the aforementioned Whirlpool assignment involving Riney, her credits include MCI via Messner Vetere Berger McNamee Schmetterer/Euro RSCG, New York. The MCI job was facilitated by New York-based Cine International.
Hacohen said that Murphy is suited to a broad range of American projects. He noted that she’s "a high-end director who is a natural" for spots that require "a strong visual style," as well as ads that mesh effects and live action.
The last company to represent Murphy in the U.S. was the then Tony Kaye Films, Los Angeles and London, which at the time also handled her in the U.K. She was later, albeit briefly, marketed in the U.S. through an independent rep. "Since she hasn’t been actively repped here for so long," said Hacohen, "it’s like getting a new director to introduce to U.S. agencies. She’s getting a fresh start in this market."
Bravo Zulu’s sales force consists of independents Keri Weber of Superglue on the West Coast, Rich Newman in the Midwest, and Mary Knox and Alyson Daniels of Help! on the East Coast. Hacohen launched Bravo Zulu nearly a year ago (SHOOT, 5/7/99, p. 1) after a long tenure at HKM Productions.
