Detroit.) Robinson says he enjoyed working with American agency creatives, and doesn’t see any substantive differences between them and their European counterparts. "There are good creatives and bad creatives throughout the world," he reasons. "Language and country really don’t have anything to do with it."
Robinson particularly enjoyed working with the creative teams from Camp/Arbues and Leo Burnett because they helped to create cooperative working environments. "We worked as a big team [on the PeerLogic spots], which is the way I like to work," he explains. "It’s stressful at times because everybody is chip-
ping in with their ideas, and you have to accommodate that. But at the end of the day, you get some really great stuff."
On the sets of the PeerLogic and Toysrus.com spots, Robinson was glad to have the freedom to improvise. "On PeerLogic, there was a hell of a lot [of improvisation], and especially on [Toysrus.com’s] ‘Raincheck.’ We just kept coming up with things like throwing the stick, and the kid trying to get the raincheck to chase the stick," he relates. "All those different things—we just made them up on the day. I love that. That, to me, is when the ad actually starts coming alive and starts becoming genuinely funny, not just a script."
Robinson appreciates a good script, of course, given his background as an agency creative. He was an art director at London’s TBWA and, more recently, at Howell Henry Chaldecott Lury (HHCL). There, he and Alan Young, a fellow creative he had worked with at previous agency roosts, began to write and direct their own work, including spots for the beverage Apple Tango. Robinson says he originally began to direct his own ads because, "I got frustrated with the directors, especially in London, because they saw it as a real comedown to do a commercial. I was a bit angry about that, and I thought, ‘All right, I’ll direct my own stuff.’"
Ultimately Robinson quit the agency (Young remains there as creative director) and formed Quiet Storm with his wife, producer Terri Robinson.
And while American agencies are hiring Robinson to simply direct at this point, European clients are coming to him seeking a complete package, with Robinson writing, producing and directing spots.
He does find it odd that stateside agencies don’t want to take more advantage of directors, particularly when it comes to post. Robinson was thrilled to get the chance to be involved in the posting of Toysrus.com’s "Raincheck"—an opportunity generally not afforded directors by American agencies.
If Robinson had his way, he would always be included in post. "I think a lot of the originality and creativity comes when you’re editing," he explains, "and it just feels like half of your job as the director is seeing the whole job through.
"There are so many ways a commercial can go wrong. I want to be involved with all of those processes," he stresses. "And if it is going to go wrong, let me make it go wrong rather than some client or account guy."µ
