much fun as I thought it was going to be, and that I’d be broke doing it.
"I’d always wanted to get into film, but thought that architecture was a more respectable profession," he continues. "I had no contacts in the film world. It seemed like neither [career] had a promising future, so I chose the one that was more fun—film."
He returned from Italy and transferred again, this time to Colgate University, Hamilton, N.Y., where he majored in English literature while taking film classes. By the time he graduated, Celentano says he had acquired two of the talents that make him such a successful director—a sharp visual eye and the ability to shoot a camera.
"Until about five years ago, I used to shoot all of my own commercials. Then I started hiring highly paid professionals who can say no," he says with a laugh.
Celentano is known as an expert at getting the best work out of his crew. His secret: "I’m specific." He shows the DP a new and unique reference so that they see how much better a spot can be than they’d originally thought. He gives the actors personal time and attention. And he remembers the production assistants’ names. While he leaves the photography work to his DPs, Celentano does get to use his camera every once in a while. The occasion presented itself on "Mobile Home": In the spot, a couple travels across country in their mobile home as a voiceover sings the praises of Kelly Tires.
"We had one day to shoot the commercial," he recalls. "The producer was smart and booked the shoot way ahead of time. I started shooting some footage in New York. Then I had a job in Los Angeles between the conference call and the start of the job, so I took my Bolex to L.A. and shot palm trees and Randy’s Donuts."
Celentano lensed more footage after the spot’s pre-production meeting in Cleveland. "The agency guys said, ‘Bring your Bolex and we’ll rent a convertible and shoot some more stuff.’ I didn’t realize Cleveland had such great architecture. By the time we had our one-day shoot, we already had a bunch of stuff in the can, thanks to my trusty sixteen millimeter Bolex."
Apart from stunning shots and creative camera tricks, "Mobile Home" has something that many viewers will find familiar. "Whenever I shoot couples, I always want to inject some spontaneous bickering," says Celentano. "Car fights are standard procedure. I got some really good old-fashioned fighting in the car."
Whether the board is locked in or not, Celentano always comes prepared with a list of ideas on how to enhance the spot. "Whenever I get a job, I try to see how flexible the agency is with the board. I write down everything that comes to mind, and encourage the agency to do the same," says Celentano. "It’s not very sexy, but there are always a lot of lists.
"Good ideas are precious, vulnerable little things," he continues. "The best ones can usually get squashed with one comment, so you have to be really careful in the beginning. The good ideas always separate themselves from the not-so-good ideas, but there’s no way to get the good ones on paper unless you take a chance and put the bad ones down too."
While Celentano is currently working on spots for undisclosed clients, he is also involved in another unspecified assignment set in his favorite locale. "I’m currently working on a project that shoots on the streets of New York [City]. My early reels were filled with guerilla docu-cam [footage] of New York’s streets, and I’m excited about doing more of these kinds of spots in the future."c
