I’m a kid—a youngster. But I’ve got big plans," says director Joe Schaak of Minneapolis-based Twist. The 32-year-old Schaak makes no bones that directing comedy spots is his first, middle and last love. In fact, he is so committed to being funny, he can’t even play his credits straight. Included in a brochure listing the director’s recent awards is a tongue-in-cheek list of new hires befitting a prima-donna director—an aromatherapist, recreation director, personal chef, Feng Shui consultant, wine steward and dance therapist.
What is not so funny is the slew of medals and trophies Schaak’s comedy spots have won lately. In ’99, Schaak-directed work picked up several kudos at The Show, an awards event sponsored by the Advertising Federation of Minnesota. A University of Minnesota Women’s Sports campaign via Olson+Co., Minneapolis, won gold medals for "Volleyball" and "Hoc-key," while "Soccer" and "Softball" picked up silvers, and "Basketball" copped a bronze. In addition, Absolute Music’s "From the Archives," directed by Schaak through Glen/Glenn, Minneapolis, scored a gold; and another ad he helmed, "Irresistible" for Honeybaked Ham via Carmichael Lynch, Minneapolis, won a bronze.
Asked to pick a spot that best illustrates his style and sense of humor, Schaak bypasses the awards list and chooses "Goalie" for St. Thomas University via Clarity Coverdale Fury, Minneapolis. In the spot, a fictitious St. Thomas sophomore soccer goalie named Jake Martin misjudges every ball coming his way in practice. After the world’s most inept goalie misses numerous shots, a deadpan voiceover says: "It’s a good thing he has his education to fall back on."
Another commercial that showcases Schaak’s understated approach to humor is the aforementioned "Irresistible." The ad features a husband with a face covered in bits of ham trying to convince his wife that he didn’t eat half the family’s dinner on the way home from the Honeybaked Ham store. "We used Spirit gum [to attach the ham]," recalls Schaak. "You don’t know how many sizes of ham pieces we went through. It’s like one of those moments in this industry where you’re looking at X size of ham compared to Y size of ham compared to Z size of ham on this guy’s face, and you find yourself going, ‘This is really surreal. This is really weird that we’re doing this.’"
Schaak often has input on the spots he directs. "I work with an agency here in town, Olson + Co., and we’ve developed a pretty good relationship where they’ll bring me in on some projects earlier than usual and say, ‘What do you think of this? We’re going to present this to the client, is there anything else you think we can do with it?’" This before-the-boards collaboration is not always the norm, according to Schaak. "It depends. The bigger agencies like Martin/Williams or Carmichael Lynch [both in Minneapolis] will come to you with a storyboard and say, ‘Here you go.’"
Twist and Shout
At the moment, Schaak is repped by Minneapolis-based Twist, a company he started in ’98 with executive producer Jim Geib and director Rich Michell. David Green, a New Zealand-based director, was later added to the roster. Up until now, Twist has concentrated on repping Schaak in the Minneapolis market. Until January, Schaak was represented nationally by Trail Head, the hybrid production/post house that has shifted its focus solely to postproduction. "I was sort of handcuffed until the 15th [of January]," explains Schaak. "Trail Head has good, quality people, but they’re going through some major changes and I didn’t know if it was a good fit at this time. I’m a younger director trying to establish myself, and I’m not sure they were able to give me the attention I need-
