Welcome to SHOOT’s fall edition Directors Series, featuring helmers who have helped to shape advertising in traditional and new forms, a look at new directorial talent and conversations with cinematographers about their ground-breaking work in collaboration with directors.
Fittingly, in some instances our profiles of master storytellers uncover their personal stories like Bob Ebel who recently returned to the director’s chair after undergoing heart surgery; director Eric Saarinen who finds himself in an unfamiliar free agent role being courted by production houses after 26 years at one shop, the recently closed Plum, which he cofounded; and Ram Madhvani, who has secured his first U.S. spot representation after years perfecting his craft in India–but surprisingly has acute stateside sensibilities leading his friends to describe him as “more American than Indian.”
And then there’s the body of work reflected in our series of profiles–work that is in some cases transforming the advertising/marketing landscape like the HBO “Voyeur” initiative directed by Jake Scott; new millennium forms of political campaigning, as well as the mini-episodic, intentionally low-fi, home grown-feel Toyota fare spanning broadcast and the web being directed by Dan Levinson, and the brilliant Cingular “Battle,” which definitively shows that art and commerce can successfully mesh (reflected in an Emmy nomination and a Gold Effie) as directed by Alison Maclean.
Then there are the backstories of new, up-and-coming directors whose atypical beginnings have translated into fresh perspectives on commercialmaking and other forms. Consider director Christopher Hutsul who found career initiative and a bright future as a filmmaker from his improbable entree into the field of newspaper journalism. And then we have Alex Ogus who financed his spec reel and shorts through the successful creation and marketing of a salad dressing, which was promoted via his first real-world spot.
SHOOT’s search for new talent isn’t confined to Directors Series editions or our annual New Directors Showcase at the DGA Theater in New York. Virtually every issue of SHOOT provides exposure for emerging artisans, including our ongoing “The Best Work You May Never See” gallery. But in an interesting twist, this week’s “Best Work” entry is from an established star director, Jake Scott, who teamed with agency GMMB to offer a poignant PSA on behalf of the Save Darfur Coalition.
Indeed, among our most enjoyable pursuits is bringing you great work and talent–whether the latter be brand new or already renowned. In that spirit we hope you enjoy this issue and we welcome your feedback.
VCCP Hires Trio Of Creative Duos
Global communications network VCCP has brought three creative duos on board: Charli Camber (née Plant) and Laura Saraiva; Lance Boreham and Tom Dyson; and Jack Snell and Joe Lovett.
Associate creative directors Camber and Saraiva are a British-Portuguese duo known for creating entertaining, culturally influential, and emotionally resonant work. They are best known for “Waiting to Live,” a National Health Service (NHS) child organ donation campaign that placed 233 bespoke dolls representing children on the transplant waiting list in medical waiting rooms across the U.K. The campaign won over 50 awards, including three Cannes Lions, the Grand Prix at the Clios, ADC*E and Eurobest, as well as multiple D&AD Pencils.
Camber and Saraiva join VCCP after three years at VML, where they contributed to four agency pitch wins and worked across global brands including Batiste, Beko, and Duracell. They also helped launch the award-winning mentoring app Magpie and created “Check Me Out,” a provocative cervical cancer awareness campaign that gained traction on social media.
Boreham and Dyson join VCCP as a senior creative team. The duo first met on the renowned Watford ad course in 2014 and later reunited at isobel, where they delivered standout campaigns for Reed, Travelodge and Thortful. Their work has been recognized across the industry for its creativity and effectiveness.
Snell and Lovett also join VCCP as a senior creative team, marking a return to the agency where they spent the first seven years of their careers. During their initial tenure at VCCP, they played a pivotal role in launching major campaigns for Domino’s (“The Official Food of Everything”) and Virgin Media O2 (“Supercharge Your World”), as well as crafting... Read More