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
Judge Upholds Dismissal Of Involuntary Manslaughter Charge Against Alec Baldwin In “Rust” Shooting
A New Mexico judge has upheld her decision to dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge against Alec Baldwin in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on the set of a Western movie.
In a ruling Thursday, state District Court Judge Mary Marlowe Sommer stood by her July decision to dismiss an involuntary manslaughter charge against Baldwin. She said prosecutors did not raise any factual or legal arguments that would justify reversing her decision.
"Because the state's amended motion raises arguments previously made, and arguments that the state elected not to raise earlier, the court does not find the amended motion well taken," the judge wrote, adding that the request was also untimely.
A spokesperson for Baldwin's lawyers said Friday that they had no immediate reaction to teh decision.
The case was thrown out halfway through trial on allegations that police and prosecutors withheld evidence from the defense in the 2021 death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film "Rust."
Baldwin's trial was upended by revelations that ammunition was brought into the Santa Fe County sheriff's office in March by a man who said it could be related to Hutchins' killing. Prosecutors said they deemed the ammo unrelated and unimportant, while Baldwin's lawyers say investigators "buried" the evidence in a separate case file and filed a successful motion to dismiss.
Special prosecutor Kari Morrissey can now decide whether to appeal to a higher court.
Baldwin, the lead actor and co-producer for "Rust," was pointing a gun at Hutchins during a rehearsal on a movie set outside Santa Fe in October 2021 when the revolver went off, killing Hutchins and wounding director Joel Souza. Baldwin has said he pulled back the hammer โ... Read More