In our pilot episode, director/producer Adam Lisagor discusses his history with commercial production, how he co-created an iphone app that led to him becoming one of the most sought after directors of start-up product-intro spots, his job as a visual effects PA on the Joseph Kahn directed classic "Torque", and what it means to go "full retard".
You can check out Adam's work here: www.sandwichvideo.com
In the continuation of our Adam Lisagor interview, Adam discusses how he developed the concepts for several of his spots, production budgets, casting, and his thoughts on the 1991 film, "Mannequin: On the Move".
Check out Adam's website to see the videos discussed: www.sandwichvideo.com
Commercial director and author of the book "The 30-Second Storyteller", Thomas Richter discusses the state of the commercial production industry, the effect of the recession and technology on commercial production, transitioning from one genre to another, commercial production budgets, and how to work well with clients.
You can find his work at and purchase his book at:
You can also find him at:
At one point during the show, Thomas mentions this website as a useful source for those looking for scripts to shoot for their spec spots:
Episode 04 - Jason Wingrove
(Commercial Director, Co-Host "The RC")
1 hr 51 mins - 1-11-2012
Commercial Director and Co-host of the immensly popular film making podcast "The RC", Jason Wingrove discusses the DSLR revolution, the subtleties between directing non-actors versus directing actors, the origins of the RC, and how to put your creative stamp on director's treatments.
You can find the podcast he co-hosts, The RC at:
You can find his work at:
Here are links to some of the projects of Jason's that we discuss:
Sea Pools mini-docs:
Mitsubishi Evo:
Pfizer:
You can find the excellent short film he directed, "Moving Day", here:
Commercial director David Jellison discusses transitioning from assistant directing to directing, why brands are afraid to take chances, copyright issues in spec spots, why Nebraska loves "Two and a Half Men", the evolving styles of comedy, and how the music industry is filled with awful people.
You can find his work on his personal website:
The production company that currently reps David:
http://www.accomplice-media.com/home
Below are links to some of his spots that are discussed:
You can find a link to his first spec spot here in the Viral section of www.jellisonfilmgang.com
You can find a link to his "Chicken Up" spot here:
http://www.accomplice-media.com/directors/David-Jellison/161/174
You can find a link to one of his Denny's spots here:
http://www.accomplice-media.com/directors/David-Jellison/161/361
You can find a link to his spec Snickers spot here:
http://www.accomplice-media.com/directors/David-Jellison/161/178
Here is the Sony "Killer Instinct" spot we discuss:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rio5di6oarI
We discuss the Old Spice campaign:
http://www.youtube.com/user/OldSpice?feature=pvchclk
We discuss "The Force" Superbowl spot:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R55e-uHQna0
We discuss the unfortunate law suit against videographer Joe Simon:
We briefly discuss the David Fincher Adidas spot, which you can see here, along with the making of:
Photojournalist turned film maker Vincent Laforet discusses his transition from stills to moving images, his evolving relationship with Canon, what’s so great about the C300 camera, the importance of persistence, working with creatives, and developing an original feature film in the current climate of reboots and remakes.
You can find his work at: http://www.laforetvisuals.com/
You can purchase his book, "Visual Stories", here: http://tinyurl.com/7aer5rz
His first video project, "Reverie", can be found here: http://vimeo.com/7151244
His latest short film, "Mobius" shot on the C300: http://vimeo.com/31525127
The Famous Footwear "Neighborhood" spot we discuss: http://vimeo.com/17355509
The Mountain Dew "White Out" spot Vincent directed and DP'd: http://vimeo.com/15237626
The "Get a Pair" spot we discuss: http://vimeo.com/16668976
Canon's "Behind the Still" campaign: http://vimeo.com/19096657
The VW spec spot Vincent did for Canon: http://vimeo.com/12056425
Director/DV Rebel Stu Maschwitz discusses his experience working with George Lucas on the "Star Wars" upgrades, how the overuse of FX can be crux to film makers, how his first major directing gig was for a million dollar Cher music video, why traditional advertising is dead, the nature of his blog and how it aids his work, and why Adam Lisagor is the future of advertising.
You can find Stu's excellent blog ProLost, here:
You can purchase Stu's DV Rebel Guide here:
The Cher "A Song For the Lonely" video, which was Stu's first major directing gig:
You can find Stu's commercial reel (which includes all of his spots discussed) here:
Adam Lisagor's work: http://sandwichvideo.com/
Director Peter Atencio discusses how he got Comedy Central to allow him to direct all 8 episodes of the 1st season of "Key and Peele", the decision on whether or not to include a laugh track in the show, completing 8 episodes on a tight schedule and budget, what it was like directing content for the now defunct website SuperDeluxe, striving to bring a cinematic aesthetic to web and sketch comedy, and how directing a DTV horror feature did little to nothing for his career.
Several Sketches from "Key and Peele" that we discuss:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LGEiIL1__s
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-qv7k2_lc0M&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m1bLXk6UVts
"Wanna See Something Cool?" sketch:
"Drive Recklessly" sketch:
Trailer for the horror feature, "The Rig" directed by Peter Atencio:
A sketch Peter directed for Team Coco:
"Year One" short Peter directed for Sony Pictures:
"Siamese Twins" sketch directed by Peter:
"Show You My Tips" sketch Peter directed for MTV:
An episode of "Freeloader's Guide":
Paul Schneider discusses his transition from design to directing, how to go about picking the right production company to sign with, directing the iconic "Rescue Me" title sequence, guiding your reel to get the jobs you want, scheduling personal projects in between professional ones, how payment for commercial directors tends to work, why it might not be a great idea to put a bunch of directors in one room, and just about everything else.
Paul's short Crossfit inspired film "Breathe":
Paul Schneider's work at "Hello and Company":
http://www.helloandcompany.com/directors/18-Schneider?video=commercials
Episode 10 - Lucia Aniello
(Director of the "Dollar Shave Club" Intro Video)
35 mins - 4-3-2012
Lucia Aniello discusses how she became the director on the instantly viral "Dollar Shave Club" intro video, her approach to comedy, how editing her work has taught her more than ever about comedic timing, and the benefits of producing online comedy videos as opposed to performing live.
The "Dollar Shave Club Intro Video":
http://paulilu.com/post/19182365084/dollar-shave-club
The "Dildo Sport Video" discussed:
http://paulilu.com/post/19309016206/dildo-sport
The MTV V-Jay video discussed:
http://paulilu.com/post/19308969946/mtv-europes-hey-guys
The Primetime Emmy videos:
http://paulilu.com/post/19309000462/emmy-training-day-63rd-annual-primetime-emmy
http://paulilu.com/post/19308983705/life-after-emmy-63rd-annual-primetime-emmy
Episode 11 - Shane Hurlbut
(Feature Film & Commercial Cinematographer)
1 hr 5 mins - 4-6-2012
Shane discusses shooting "Act of Valor" a feature action film starring active duty Navy Seals on the 5dMk2, how driving a grip truck on the B-horror sequel "Phantasm 2" led to his pursuit of cinematography, the differences between shooting on commercials as opposed to features, and managing over 125 cinematographers for an ad.
Shane's blog:
http://www.hurlbutvisuals.com/
Shane's feature film work:
http://shanehurlbut.com/features.php
Smashing Pumpkins "Cherub Rock" video shot on 8mm:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-KE9lvU810
Blog on the making of the "Prudential" ad, as well as the ad:
"Pirelli" ad we discuss, shot on the 5dMk2:
Short film Shane shot for Canon on the 5dMk2:
Navy Swimmer ad shot by Shane:
One of the "Terminator: Salvation" webisodes shot and directed by Shane on the 5dMk2:
Episode 12 - Joseph Kahn
(Feature Film & Commercial Cinematographer)
1 hr 8 mins - 4-21-2012
Joseph Kahn discusses why his lack of success in dating precipitated his move to LA, his directorial debut, "Torque", how directing the film bankrupted him, what lead to his start in commercial directing, saving up and spending all of his money on his latest feature film, "Detention", and shaping youth culture through music videos.
Joseph's personal website:
An excellent music video montage detailing some of the highlights of his music video work:
"Detention" Trailer:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4PFz9gIKKM&feature=player_embedded
Ladytron "Ghosts" Director's Cut:
Blink 182 video mentioned:
Saab "Transformer" spot discussed:
http://www.hsiproductions.com/commercials/joseph-kahn/transformer
Adidas Commercial discussed:
Sisqo's Thong Song video discussed:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oai1V7kaFBk
Two Bruce Willis spots we discuss:
Yann's websites:
Other companies mentioned:
Projects mentioned:
Ebay:
Intuit:
Arctic Monkey's video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bpOSxM0rNPM
Creative animation agencies mentioned:
Messaging book mentioned:
Made to Stick by Chip Heath and Dean Heath
Video Hosting company mentioned:
Rachel Routon's donation page:
http://www.gofundme.com/5kgbwc
01 - Adam Lisagor Pt. 1
02 - Adam Lisagor Pt. 2
03 - Thomas Richter
04 - Jason Wingrove
05 - David Jellison
06 - Vincent LaForet
07 - Stu Maschwitz
08 - Peter Atencio
09 - Paul Schneider
10 - Lucia Aniello
11 - Shane Hurlbut
12 - Joseph Kahn
13 - Yann Lomme