Back when he was a freshman at Northeastern University in Boston, Vic Palumbo thought he wanted to be a businessman. However, stints as a production assistant at several production companies made him realize that producing was perfect for him.
"I realized producing was the perfect blend of being a businessman and also going out into the field and executing a job and having something tangible," explains Palumbo. "The part that I really liked was having a final product from your project. In business, it’s all kind of on paper; you never really get results and move on to a new product. That’s part of the reason I think I gravitated towards advertising."
After producing stints at J. Walter Thompson, New York, and Boston agencies Houston Effler (which was later absorbed by Arnold Worldwide), and Hill Holliday Connors Cosmopulous, Palumbo has been producing at Wieden+Kennedy (W+K), Portland, Ore., for the past two and a half years. And he’s accumulated plenty of product to be proud of. This year’s "Freestyle," a :60 directed by Paul Hunter of bicoastal HSI Productions, and produced by Palumbo for Nike, has received an Emmy nomination for best primetime commercial. (The other nominees are: PBS "Light" and "Photo Booth," out of Fallon, Minneapolis, and directed by Errol Morris of bicoastal/international @radical.media; and two spots for Mercedes-Benz USA out of Merkley Newman Harty & Partners, New York. Those ads are "Modern Ark," directed by Gerard de Thame of bicoastal HSI Productions and Gerard de Thame Films, London, and "Aaooga," helmed by Victor Garcia of bicoastal Morton Jankel Zander.)
This isn’t the first Emmy-nominated project that Palumbo’s been involved with: He produced Nike’s "Driving Range," a golf-themed spot directed by Lasse Halstrom, then of bicoastal/international Propaganda Independent, that received a nomination as well. (Halstrom has since shifted his representation to bicoastal/international @radical.media.) "Driving Range" features Tiger Woods, whose mere presence inspires a row of golfers to perform a balletic series of shots on the driving range, accompanied by the strains of the "Blue Danube Waltz." That spot lost at last year’s Emmys to another Nike entry: "The Morning After," also out of W+K, and directed by Spike Jonze of bicoastal Satellite.
"It’s maybe okay to lose to something else in your own agency," Palumbo laughs. As for this year’s nomination, he says, "Yeah, I think ‘Freestyle’ has a chance."
"Freestyle" is a striking visual and auditory creation. The spot features basketball players improvising dance and basketball moves against a black background and silver floor to an infectious, original hip-hop soundtrack of tennis shoe squeaks, bouncing ball sounds, and other organic noises. The players, who are primarily shown individually, include professionals such as the Los Angeles Clippers’ Lamar Odom and Darius Miles, and street players like Speedy Williams and Booger Smith. Easy Roc, a break-dancer from the group Rock Steady Crew, appears in one scene
Palumbo knew that to seamlessly bring together so many elements—dance, sport, sound, and image—would be logistically difficult. "I had a lot of conversations with [editor] Adam Pertofsky [of Rock Paper Scissors, Los Angeles]; with the creative director, Jim Riswold; and the writer, Jimmy Smith, that if it didn’t work, we might have to composite in some balls … I had backup plans that were very well thought through in case it didn’t work," says Palumbo. But none of them was necessary.
"When we walked down to the stage the first day and Lamar Odom and Darius Miles were there … as soon as they heard the music, Paul was like, ‘Turn it up and let it go, guys,’ " Palumbo recalls. "And they just started dribbling to the beat, and getting into it, and within about five to ten minutes of watching those guys do it, we all looked at each other and we were like, ‘This is going to be special.’ "
Undoubtedly the spirit of collaboration that Palumbo brings to the table contributed to the success of "Freestyle." "One of the strong points about Wieden+Kennedy, and one of the things I try to bring to the spots I produce, is that it’s a team effort," states Palumbo. "What I try to do as much as I can is keep the team together—including the director, the music guy, the creative team, myself, and the executive producer from the production team or what-ever. And I try to go through the whole process as a team, because that way there aren’t any surprises."
Unlike with a more dialogue-driven spot in which the scenario is very specific and predetermined, the specifics of "Freestyle" were less locked down, so communication was key. "This was a good example of how the group goes through it as a team," Palumbo says. "We share it with Paul, who comes back [with his ideas]; we have a big meeting, he talks about his shot. It’s a normal process, but it seems to be very team oriented."
Palumbo is glowing in his praise for everyone who worked on the spot, from production to editorial to effects and music—the whole ball of wax. And while he doesn’t have a core crew of people that he works with regularly, he does believe that "when you have success with people, it’s very easy to go back and work with them." As an example, he cites working with HSI Productions/ P.A.R. on "Racing Marion," directed by Johan Renck, for Nike’s Whatever.com campaign. The commercial was shot from the viewer’s POV. The viewer chases Marion Jones through the streets, and the spot ends just as the viewer "runs" under a man juggling chainsaws; then the image freezes. The viewer was then able to go to Nike’s Whatever.com Web site and view eight different endings for the spot.
Palumbo notes that HSI really got behind the shoot from a production standpoint, making his decision to work again with the firm very easy. "For me, it has a lot to do with the director, but if it’s not a strong production company, it makes it difficult," he explains. "It’s hard to sell a director to me if I know the production company isn’t going to be there to support [the job]."
Currently, Palumbo is working on another Nike golf campaign, set to break in September. Of the roughly 15 spots he produced last year, all were for Nike, although he is not exclusively assigned to that account. Palumbo doesn’t mind his recent stretch of work solely for Nike. "At Weiden+Kennedy it’s like you have an opportunity to make something great almost every time," he concludes.
