Bicoastal Tool of North America has signed director/DP Bob Richardson to its spot roster. Richardson, who formerly helmed commercials via Los Angeles-based Morton Jankel Zander (MJZ), will be based on the East Coast.
Before leaving MJZ, Richardson wrapped a three-spot U.S. Army package ("Special Forces," "Jobs" and "College") for Young & Rubicam, New York, and a United Airlines campaign via Fallon McElligott, Minneapolis, which included "Spinning World" and "Gatherings."
Richardson is best known for his work as a cinematographer on features such as Salvador, Platoon, Born on the Fourth of July, The Doors, JFK and Nixon, all directed by Oliver Stone. Richardson was most recently the DP on Snow Falling on Cedars, directed by Scott Hicks, and on Martin Scorcese’s Bringing Out the Dead.
Five years ago, Richardson entered the spot arena when he and editor Hank Corwin, owner of bicoastal Lost Planet, co-directed spots for the Massachusetts Lottery and Converse, both through Hill, Holliday, Connors, Cosmopulos (HHCC), Boston. After Richardson introduced Corwin to Stone, Corwin went on to edit the features Nixon and Natural Born Killers. Richardson signed with MJZ for commercial representation in ’95.
For the bulk of his time at MJZ, Richardson worked on features as a DP, but in February ’99, he reentered the commercial arena with two campaigns, the more recent being for PricewaterhouseCoopers via HHCC. This came right on the heels of a humorous three-spot campaign for chip manufacturer 3dfx Interactive through Goodby Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco. The spots were entitled "Proud Worker," "All White Meat Chicken" and "Modern Medicine."
In "Modern Medicine," which was featured as a SHOOT Top Spot (4/16/99, p. 14), the consumer is presented with a wonder chip that has the power to revolutionize medicine, thereby allowing people to live longer, healthier lives. We see images of a utopian society where a middle-aged man is healthy enough to robustly walk on a treadmill, while an elderly man celebrates yet another birthday. But the proverbial bubble is burst when the narrator announces that 3dfx has decided to use the chip for video games instead, and all the earlier scenarios are reversed. The man on the treadmill clutches his chest, presumably having a heart attack, and the elderly man celebrating his birthday drops dead, face first, into the cake.
In April ’99, Richardson began looking for a new production roost. To better familiarize himself with the inner workings of other companies, he served as a cameraman on projects at various production companies, including Tool. "I have always shot [as a DP] when I was unhappy with the type of boards I was getting; my relationship with MJZ allowed me to do that," Richardson explained.
Working as a DP on a Eurythmics music video with Tool director Erich Joiner fueled his decision to join the firm, Richardson said. Although the video never aired, the two established a relationship. "Erich brought me to Tool," Richardson said.
Richardson joins a Tool directorial roster comprised of Joiner, Scott Burns, Peter Berg, Chris Hooper, Clint Clemens, Tom Routson, David Jellison, and the team of Kate Flather & Jonas Morgenstein (a.k.a. Heavy). The company is repped on the East Coast by New York-based Meredith Bergman, in the Midwest by Chicago-based Liz Lane, and on the West Coast by Stacey & Annie, Santa Monica.
