Director David Cornell, who at press time was wrapping the final job at longstanding production house Headquarters, is set to join Form, the Los Angeles-headquartered shop headed by executive producer Craig Rodgers and director Jesse Dylan.
Via phone, SHOOT reached Cornell in Australia where Headquarters’ swan song assignment, J.C. Penney for DDB Chicago, was being filmed. He said the move to Form will enable him to focus on directing as he sheds the responsibilities of running a company that he had shared with his partner, Headquarters’ president Tom Mooney. As reported earlier, Headquarters is officially closing on Jan. 31 and will honor all its financial obligations. Word is that Mooney is teaming with director Joe Pytka and executive producer Tara Fitzpatrick of Venice, Calif.-based PYTKA to open a shop. Mooney will anchor the New York office of the new venture, which is will operate under the ongoing PYTKA umbrella.
Cornell said that he remains firmly committed to directing commercials. “I love to work,” he says, contending that his spot commitment will be enhanced at Form. “It’s all about the work,” related Cornell. “I don’t want to feel I have to take on a job because of overhead. I’m done with that. It [no longer owning a company] is liberating. I can continue to work based on the quality of the projects and for the enjoyment of teaming with creatives I enjoy collaborating with. By no longer having to help run a company, I can devote more of myself to my family and the work itself.”
While Headquarters was in the process of winding down operations during the past several months, Cornell has been busy helming assorted jobs. Prior to J.C. Penney, he completed spots for Valtrex via Euro RSCG, New York, Oscar Mayer for J. Walter Thompson, Chicago, Disney World for Yellow Shoes, Orlando, One Touch Ultra for Anderson DDB, San Francisco, Discovery Networks via TM, Dallas, Publix out of WestWayne, Tampa, Canon for Grey, New York, Ocean Spray for Arnold Worldwide, Boston, and E*Trade from BBDO New York.
Normally when word gets out that a director of Cornell’s stature–and considerable business volume–is about to become available, the courting frenzy begins. However, Cornell opted to avoid that process of being wined and dined. Despite getting emails and communiqués from numerous companies, he instead limited himself to talking with people he knew of at several select houses. However, Rodgers–whom Cornell had never met before–was persistent. So Cornell got together with the exec producer and Dylan, and was favorably impressed. This led to Cornell making an immediate decision to start the next chapter of his career at Form.
After first establishing himself in his native South Africa, Cornell moved stateside some 20 years ago. He soon became a leading helmer in the American market, initially at now defunct Spots Films before partnering 14-plus years ago in Headquarters. Cornell won the Directors Guild of America (DGA) Award as best commercial helmer of 1989. He was nominated a second time for the DGA honor 11 years later. Over the years, Cornell has directed spots that have aired in the industry’s highest profile showcases such as the Super Bowl and the Olympics. In fact, the alluded to DGA nomination as best commercial director of ’00 came on the strength of five spots out of BBDO New York, including three Summer Olympics-themed Visa ads (“Synchronized Commercialism,” “Tattoo” and “I Enjoy Being A Girl”), and a ’00 Super Bowl commercial (“Retirement”) for Charles Schwab.
Cornell also directed and lensed one of the Sony “Dreams” HD shorts in ’04: Revenge, which entailed some underwater cinematography, and told a tale of sibling rivalry.