not like Buddy Lee. He’s not as quiet. No offense to Buddy Lee, but L’il Penny went to Wake Forest University, and so he’s an educated man, and he’s not naïve," says Morrison, tongue firmly in cheek. "He knows what to ask for."
sing-along
Morrison also works on non-celebrity-oriented fare. Leagas Delaney, San Francisco, recently called on him to helm three spots for adidas, all of which ended with the tagline "Long Live Sport." "Mascots" finds two football team mascots getting into a rumble; "Dog" depicts a boy scrambling over a fence to fetch a lost ball, only to encounter the neighbor’s dog; and "Shaved" shows a female swimmer shaving off her hair—even her eyebrows—before a big swim meet.
Morrison also helmed three Volkswagen spots for Arnold Communications, Boston. In "Crazy Guy," a man sits in his car in an empty parking lot, and appears to be talking to himself. When his friend approaches the car and opens the door, the Styx song "Mr. Roboto" blasts out of the car’s stereo. Turns out the "crazy guy" wasn’t talking to himself; he was singing along with the tune. His buddy joins in as they drive away.
The agency had chosen four or five potential songs, including "Rock Me Amadeus." "During auditions, we were casting actors, but we were also testing the songs to see which worked best," he says.
Morrison enjoys being involved in the creative process, but notes that lately most of the work he receives is thoroughly scripted. A few years ago, when the "mockumentary" was in vogue, Morrison (who has directed many episodes of Comedy Central’s Upright Citizens Brigade) was doing more improvisational work. For example, "Sightings" for Energizer, via TBWA/Chiat/Day, Los Angeles, follows a group of guys seemingly hunting for a UFO. At the end of the spot, though, the kicker is revealed—it wasn’t E.T. they were after; it was the elusive Energizer bunny.
With all of the humor-driven work on his reel, it isn’t surprising to find that Morrison has been labeled a comedy director. "Not too long ago, I might have tried to say, ‘Oh no,’ but I feel OK about that now." He admits it’s hard to avoid being categorized, but is confident that he will branch out into other areas.
Morrison’s only real fear is that he’ll wind up in SHOOT’s "Flashback" column. "I always say to the people at Epoch, ‘You better hope my name never turns up in the five—or especially ten—years ago thing in SHOOT, because man, once it does, I might have a breakdown!’ "c
