Celebrity

PRODUCTION DESIGN

I love the idea of creating this fantasy store practically on stage and then using our cinematic freedom to move around and compose an even bigger world with seamlessly integrated visual effects. It’s a classic Broadway show taking advantage of the magic of cinema. We construct dazzling set pieces and props, utilizing the merchandise as visual eye candy within a stylized world for our stars and chorus to practically interact with, but allow our camera to pop around - discovering comedic moments and highlighting human reactions and details within the big show.

The action and movement should be highly choreographed and extremely dynamic. Creative use of lighting will help us create layered worlds within the store allowing us to jump within the set from space to space and create cool visual transitions between moments.

The great news is, since we last worked together, I’ve executed three major films. The experiences have allowed me to tackle some ambitious, large-scale set pieces and leave me with total confidence pulling off the most cinematically special and seamlessly magical version of this spot. It’s going to take some serious planning and choreography but like I said – I live for this stuff. (Don’t tell my wife.) It’s all about making smart decisions and assembling the right teams on both sides of the camera.

Comedy

INTRODUCTION

I remember hearing a story once about a friend’s brother who was going to visit his girlfriend and her family. They wanted him to pick up a movie on the way. So, he does, they’re all sitting around watching and it starts to become uncomfortable. The movie is bad, really bad. Obviously he’s got nothing to do with the movie. But the more they watch, the more embarrassed he’s starting to feel. They sit for about twenty minutes, it becomes unbearable, so they turn it off. Date does not go well.

He comes home and tells my friend about it. What was the movie about? Some idiot heavy metal band. They’d been watching Spinal Tap. They literally had no idea it was a joke. They thought it was just a super bad documentary.

We want to execute this in a way that 99.9% of the audience is in on the joke, but there’s that one guy in the theater that keeps thinking, why is everyone laughing?

Sports / Videogames

THE SPOT

Cut to a packed soccer stadium at night. The energy is palpable, feels more akin to a gladiator match than a typical contemporary sporting event. The epic scale of the thousands of spectators will be seamlessly achieved in post with crowd matching and duplication of our practical fans.

The match is about to start. But instead of kicking the ball an adrenaline-filled player on the field points at someone in the stands. Like moved by an invisible force, suddenly the enormous crowd of fans parts en masse to form an aisle in a scale we haven’t seen since the last Pope was inaugurated. And from a distance we see a single small boy, wearing his team’s colors, hesitantly step out and descend from the bleachers towards the field. This kid is a die-hard fan. He’s been born and raised on soccer. The camera feels elements of his excited hands and eyes in close up.

Food & Beverage

CINEMATOGRAPHY

Within the surrounding negative space, the bottle itself is not a floating, weightless abstraction but rather feels firmly planted (albeit on an unseen surface) but in it has appropriate weight and gravity. Macro shots of discovery feel limitless but still grounded within the space of the bottle.

Pacing for the films is a study of contrasts. The slow drip of condensation or ice slowly sliding down the side of the contour bottle entice the eye. Slow movements reflect ice sliding down the side of the bottle or bubbles finding their way up through the glowing ice. There’s time for discovery, quick cuts reflect the magical pop of a refreshing bottle being opened or the blast of refreshment with the first sip. Sound and image marry in perfect concert.

Comedy

INTRODUCTION

My parents are conservative.

Like really conservative. In a political sense but also in a “the holy spirit goes to bed at ten thirty” sense.

So, I’m 17. It’s Thanksgiving. My new brother-in-law goes to Blockbuster* to get a movie and comes back with “Basic Instinct.” Sounds good at the time, but you see where this is going.

Unsuspecting of what’s to come, I sit down on the couch next to the woman who’s given me life. I love my mom. She’s the best. And I really like “Basic Instinct.” Great film. But my mom + 17-year-old me + Basic Instinct...? No. Combining a lifetime of snuggles and Sunday School with Sharon Stone’s spread legs?

That’s an uncomfortable moment.

*For any millennials reading this, Blockbuster was a place that rented videos. Sorry. Those are sorta rectangular DVDs. DVDs are like CDs but with movies. CD stands for compact... screw it.

Comedy

THE SPOT

We cut inside a bachelor’s kitchen where a guy is trying to show his new girlfriend that he can cook. At this moment, he’s not so sure himself. He’s looking a little flustered - he’s bitten off more than he can chew - and she can tell. The loft scene is nicely framed with candles and nighttime mood lighting. You can tell from the apartment; he’s putting everything on the line here. Maximum effort. He’s chopping and mixing, things are sim- mering and beginning to bubble over. She sits at the counter with a drink he’s prepared her. She looks like she wants to help, but also looks like she’s enjoying the effort. It’s sweet. I think this duo has the charm of a slightly older Joseph Gordon Levitt and Zooey Deschanel in “500 Days of Summer.”