By Robert Goldrich
In this issue, our Fall Directors Series includes our ongoing Up-and-Coming Directors coverage identifying promising new filmmaking talent. We have two such formal features a year along with regular reporting on emerging directors and of course, our annual New Directors Showcase.
As we were putting together this latest installment of our Directors Series, news came through that Peter Moore Smith, executive creative director at Saatchi & Saatchi New York, had left the agency to pursue a directorial career full-time by joining Aero Film.
Smith was featured in the Up-and-Coming Directors feature in our March 2015 Spring Directors Series—even though at the time there was no public inkling that he would be, or was even interested in being, on the open market as a director. SHOOT included him in that coverage simply based on his work, specifically an emotionally poignant and thought provoking PSA titled “The Talk” which he wrote and directed for the Brotherhood/Sister Sol, a New York-based development organization.
The spot depicted several discussions between African-American parents and their sons about how to avoid potentially dangerous encounters with the police. This is a common dialogue dubbed “the talk” in black households. In sharp contrast, the piece next shows a white father telling his teenage son that the police are there to help and to seek out an officer if there’s trouble. Then the question is ultimately asked, “Do we want one America—or two?”
In our Spring Directors Series coverage, Smith related that he was “passionate about the project and jumped at the chance to direct it. After learning about this painful discussion taking place in African-American homes, I felt it was important that, first of all, everyone knows that it’s happening, and secondly, that we start to examine the reasons why. It’s our hope—and it’s my personal belief—that positive, constructive conversation about ‘the talk’ can bring about positive change….I think there’s agreement that we want one America when it comes to this issue and how people are treated.”
It’s that purposeful sense of work—and the quality of the filmmaking work itself—which fuel our coverage year-round, particularly for our Spring and Fall Directors Series coverage.
Rep Report for September 20, 2024
Rakish, the L.A.-based production company co-founded and led by managing director Preston Garrett and Golden Globe-nominated feature film director Marc Forster, has entered into a strategic partnership with Emily Friendship of NYC-based Commonwealth for sales representation on the East Coast. Friendship will manage Rakish’s commercial and branded content projects and dovetail with its latest successes, including the launch of the company’s new long-form division headed by Zack Williams, head of creative development. Friendship will also collaborate closely with Chiara Useche, Rakish’s head of sales. With a 15-year career in feature film production and international sales, including her notable tenure as SVP of international sales at Inferno Films, Friendship expertise to Rakish’s evolving vision across the combined advertising and long-form narrative space. Her extensive background in feature films and subsequent transition to advertising provides a solid foundation in talent relations, creative development, production, and sales. Rakish joins a client roster at Commonwealth which includes Farm League, Lost Planet, Happy Place, and Domo. Rakish’s representation is rounded out by Hero Management on the West Coast, Nikki Weiss & Co. in the Midwest, and ENID in the UK and Amsterdam....
Jacksonville, Fla.-based creative and production studio TigerLily is expanding its national footprint, securing U.S. representation with L.A.-based reps Deirdre Rymer Rivard of Blush Creative and Lisa Gimenez of Lisa G & Co Represents. Leaning into TigerLily’s talent and multifaceted offerings spanning creative strategy,... Read More