SANTA MONICA-Tom Routson, an associate creative director at Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco, had another Super Sunday. For the second consecutive year, he directed for the agency a package of high-profile Budweiser "Lizards" spots that debuted on the Super Bowl. The work also represented his last staff directing gig at Goodby. Routson has decided to pursue a full-time directing career, joining Santa Monica production house Tool of North America.
At press time, Routson was in the process of wrapping up some loose ends at Goodby, including a creative assignment for the California Fluid Milk Processors Board’s "Got Milk?" campaign.
Routson started at Goodby as an art director in 1992, then joined Fallon McElligott, Minneapolis, in the same capacity three years later. In spring ’96, he returned to Goodby as an associate creative director. And in ’97, he began directing for the agency; his first job was a low-budget package of spots for San Francisco radio station KGO. He later got permission from Goodby to independently direct and help conceptualize some FOX station promos via Tool. And then came his big directorial break, Budweiser "Lizards" fare, which included four spots on last year’s Super Bowl, in collaboration with visual effects house Digital Domain, Venice, creature-creation shop Stan Winston Studios, Van Nuys, and noted DP Stefan Czapsky.
Helping secure the plum package for Routson were his Goodby colleagues, copywriter Steve Dildarian and art director Todd Grant. "If I were them, I wouldn’t have picked me to direct," quipped Routson. "But it was a tremendous opportunity and I was surrounded by top people."
Routson had to wait a year for his next directorial endeavor: the ’99 Budweiser "Lizards" campaign, which included three spots on the Super Bowl earlier this week. The same creative and support team was involved on the job, which was again co-produced by Innervision Studios, St. Louis, and First Avenue Films, Venice.
The yearlong wait between directing gigs helped Routson formulate his decision to pursue a spotmaking career. "You can’t be a director as a hobby," he said. "You either have to do it or not. I simply love directing and decided to do it once and for all."
Routson said he chose Tool based on its people, including directors Erich Joiner, Scott Burns and Chris Hooper, and exec. producer Dierdre Harrington. "They’re not a let’s-do-lunch kind of production company," said Routson. "These guys love humor and want to tell humorous stories."
Routson also felt simpatico with his Tool colleagues in that Joiner and Hooper were former Goodby creatives, and Burns as a freelancer worked regularly at the agency in a creative capacity. They’ve all made the transition to directing at Tool while retaining some creative involvement on projects. "These guys write and direct," related Routson, "and it’s appealing to me to be able to direct and still get the chance to be creative, in a sense, at a production company."
Agency partner/creative director Jeff Goodby, who also occasionally directs, said of Routson, "Tom is a really talented, unusual guy, so at first I was upset [he was leaving]. But when I thought about it, I decided, "Hey, we can still pay a lot of money and work with him’-which is pretty much what we’ve been doing all along."
Tool’s directorial roster consists of Burns, Joiner, Hooper, Routson, Clint Clemens, Heavy International and Peter Berg. The company is repped by CMP in New York and Chicago, and Stacey & Annie, Santa Monica, on the West Coast.