Bicoastal and Chicago based Villains has signed director Phil Joanou for exclusive commercial representation. Joanou’s last commercial roost was now defunct O Pictures.
Villains’ executive producer Robin Benson and co-founder/ principal John Marshall are both supportive of directors who have feature pursuits, which was attractive to Joanou. "For us, it’s just as exciting as having the Coen Brothers as it’s exciting to have a guy like Phil … He fits in nicely in an area where we’re used to working with people of that level," said Benson.
While Joanou said he never before fully committed himself to pursuing a commercial career, he has now made the shift because he saw an opportunity at Villains to do something creative and exciting. "There is some really good work being done today in the commercial world where people are able to stretch the boundaries, and I see it as a great way to experiment and push the envelope," related Joanou.
Joanou attended USC Film School, Los Angeles, where he graduated in ’84. His student film Last Chance Dance caught the attention of Steven Spielberg, who subsequently hired Joanou as a director at Spielberg’s Universal Pictures affiliate Amblin Entertainment. His directing credits with Amblin included two episodes of Steven Spielberg’s Amazing Stories, "Santa ’85" and "The Doll," and the feature Three O’Clock High. During that period he also directed U2: Rattle And Hum through Paramount Pictures. Joanou left Amblin in ’89, and in ’90 he moved to New York to direct the Orion Pictures feature State of Grace.
Joanou got his start in commercial production in ’93 when he joined O Pictures. He had been friends with O Pictures founder/executive producer Sharon Oreck who suggested he come aboard. "We had a very loose relationship where if something came in that I really wanted to do, I could do it," explained Joanou.
His first commercial work at O Pictures was a four-spot package for Coca-Cola via Creative Artists Agency (CAA), Los Angeles, which was handling advertising for Coke at that time and was incidentally also representing Joanou for features. From ’94 to ’96, Joanou was shooting the movie Heaven’s Prisoners, but managed to fit in four music videos with O Pictures: U2’s "One" and "Who’s Gonna Ride Your Wild Horses"; and Tom Petty’s "You Don’t Know How It Feels" and "Walls." He also directed spots for Discover Card and Hanes.
Joanou left O Pictures in late ’96 to focus on his feature work. While working on the film Entropy, Joanou shot the music video "If God Will Send His Angels" for U2 and a music video tie-in for the DreamWorks SKG feature The Prince of Egypt. He also freelanced a commercial job for Hugo Boss through The Good Film Co., London.
"The way I look at it is I am starting on the commercial front from scratch. I am just going to try to bring my visual approach and my experience working with talent and try to push around the medium a little bit and see what we can do," said Joanou.
Joanou is currently represented for features and TV through Los Angeles-based Endeavor. He joins Villains directors the Coen Brothers, Harry Patramanis, Leonardo Ricagni, Ken Fox, Abel Ferrara, Mr. Viril, the Pate Brothers, Bill Mather, Timothy White, Scott Bibo, Eric Yealland, Jeffrey Fleisig, Brett Ratner, Steve Carr, Daniela Federici and Jim Giddens. Villains is represented on the East Coast by Carl Forsberg & Associates, New York; in the Midwest by Marsha Icko and Marilyn Clancey, Chicago; and on the West Coast by Novick & Associates, San Francisco.
