based Doug Nichol returned to his native Los Angeles to shoot Pets.com’s "Don’t Go," via TBWA/Chiat/Day, San Francisco, the director, who is represented in the U.S. by bicoastal/international Partizan, didn’t exactly get a warm welcome.
Well, at least not from one annoyed resident of the neighborhood where Nichol and his crew shot the spot, which debuted during Super Bowl XXXIV. "There was this completely irate neighbor who came out and screamed at the top of her lungs for five minutes for no reason. Everybody was standing there dumbfounded," recalls Nichol. "Everybody just looked at each other like this woman was insane."
Apart from that incident, the two-day shoot proceeded smoothly. That was a remarkable feat, given that Nichol was working with stars known for being temperamental: animals. Nichol reveals, "We’ve got a good animal trainer. Even the goldfish did what we wanted."
"Don’t Go," Nichol’s first spot for the U.S. market, depicts the sadness that pets feel when their owners leave the house. The commercial opens with a dog staring at his master as the man backs out of the garage and heads to the pet store. The Pets.com sock puppet, who is handled by puppeteer and stand-up comic Michael Black, appears and begins singing Chicago’s "If You Leave Me Now," as other pets-a parrot, turtle and goldfish-deal with their own feelings of abandonment.
While TBWA/Chiat/Day had the ad thoroughly mapped out, Nichol was able to add some memorable touches. The first scene, for instance, originally called for the dog to be sitting in a window, watching his owner leave. "I changed it to the car pulling out of the garage and having the garage door close, bringing him into darkness. It was more graphic and interesting," he explains.
Nichol was pleasantly surprised that his input was welcomed. "I’d always heard stories where American agencies tell you what to do, but these guys were great," says Nichol, who moved to Paris 10 years ago and eventually ended up in London.
In Europe-where he is represented by Serious Pictures, London, for U.K. spots, and Partizan Midi Minuit, Paris, for other European work-Nichol is involved in both the conception and execution of ads. "When you work with an agency in London, they come up with the basic idea which isn’t storyboarded at all. It’s just a couple of paragraphs. Then you take that, come up with the visuals, and bring it to life," he explains.
Just before he did the Pets.com spot, Nichol collaborated with the creatives at Euro RSCG Wnek Gosper, London, to bring to life a quirky five-spot campaign for Microsoft’s MSN Internet site (www.msn.co.uk). One of the spots, "Pamela," finds a guy shopping for clothes. After finding something to try on, he goes into the dressing room, pulls the curtain closed and strips down to his underwear. Much to his surprise, a gorgeous woman whips the curtain open and steps into his stall. The spot ends with the slogan "Life’s Great," and MSN’s Web address.
What is striking about much of Nichol’s work is the way he combines humorous situations with cinematic imagery. For example, Toyota’s "The Bicycle," via Saatchi & Saatchi, Paris, is shot in black and white. The ad features a man riding a bicycle into the countryside to retrieve eggs for his wife. He places his precious cargo in a basket, and by the time he returns home, all of the eggs are broken. His irate wife sends him back for more; once again, they are destroyed by the bumpy ride. Finally, the man arrives home with a basketful of whole eggs. Turns out he discovered egg cartons. After that revelation, the spot turns to color, and we see an overhead shot of passengers safely tucked into a Toyota minivan. Nichol is particularly fond of the spot. "I think that a bit of comedy with a good sense of style is fun to do," he says.
The director’s flair for cinematic imagery shouldn’t come as a surprise. While still a film student at Los Angeles’ University of Southern California (USC), Nichol worked as a cameraman, shooting documentaries on the making of Steven Spielberg films, including Empire of the Sun.
Upon graduation, he continued working on documentaries and shot music videos for artists such as New Kids on the Block, Sting, Lenny Kravitz and Aerosmith. (His efforts for Aerosmith’s "Pink" garnered an MTV Video Music Award for Best Rock Video in ’98).
Nichol has feature film aspirations, and is currently working on a script with a writer friend. "I’d rather not talk about it until something happens. I don’t want to be one of those directors talking about ‘his script.’"
Is it possible that feature or commercial work could bring him back to the States to live? Maybe to Hollywood? Actually, a move to the San Francisco area, where his family is based, is more likely. "What I’d like to do is split my time a little bit more between America and Europe," Nichol says. "My wife and I are going to figure it out this year."
Nichol says he doesn’t have to choose to live in just one country, although he might want to make sure he is in the states the next time he has an ad running during the Super Bowl. Although he did receive plenty of unsolicited reviews. Nichol’s friends and colleagues in the U.S. flooded him with calls after the spot aired. "Everybody said they liked it," he says. "I’m glad, because I liked working on it. It was a blast."c
