 |
| Packed and ready to hit the road Jan. 1, 2012 |
It has been some time since I updated my site. A move to California was the culprit, and once I landed on the West Coast I found very little time, and thankfully very little need to find work, so the website has weathered…
I landed on my feet running in San Francisco thanks to my old friend, Rob Lee, who said that there might be the odd, internal agency job, that he could throw my way, every now-and-again. I had been in Chicago for 17 years, and though I will miss those dreamy winters, the "odd internal" was enough for me to heave-ho out of there.
The kind of jobs I ended up doing for the Agency, DDB San Francisco, have changed the way I look at advertising forever.
 |
| Rob Lee at the helm |
In Chicago I was part of the production company circuit. People who owned these companies, also had a relationship or two with various advertising agencies around town. Producers would come to me when the Advertising Agency had made up it's mind about what it wanted, and then, if all the stars had aligned, I'd get to shoot and edit something. Weeee!
There was however a very clear and definite line drawn, usually by the Prod Co, between Advertising Agency Creatives, and myself. This is called, "preserving your clients", as everybody knows, the leading cause of death to the average production company is a pimply-faced kid with a DSLR in his hand, and ripped version of FCP 7 on a laptop in his backpack.
This opportunity with DDB SF was different in that there were no barriers between me and the inner workings of a massive ad agency. The type of creative work they set me to, has defined me as a filmmaker.
 |
| San Francisco in my sights |
My very first job in the agency world was for Steve Weiss, owner of, Zacuto Films in Chicago; way before they started making aluminum bits for your cameras (their bits are great btw
www.zacuto.com).
The first one was a Rippo for Jim Beam. A Rippo is a mash-up of audio and video that helps create a mood. That mood then helps guide the Client in the direction the Creatives at the agency would like to go with the campaign. Rippos are always cut together with found footage.
When I made Rippos for Steve, we would send an intern to Blockbuster, (remember them?) to rent stacks of DVDs, all within thematic boundaries. Now we pull with glee and absolute freedom from youtube and vimeo!
Please no belly-aching over rights management! No one is selling tickets to see this crap; it's shown to a roomful of people, and then it's dead. It is no more illegal than you cutting up your favorite Mag-Rag, and collaging out an idea for a sexy outfit, which I'm sure everybody does…
I am posting this Rippo as an example for filmmakers who still don't know what I'm on about, or for those who are just curious. It was created for the launch of Explorer 9.
The Rippo is a great place to start for young filmmakers because you can concentrate on what the images actually mean, and how that meaning can change simply by rearranging the sequence. Go, find me shots that say, "future!" It can be a fun challenge, and it's paid the rent more than twice.
The best internal agency gigs are the "Micro-Docs." They are in fact, small, or short, documentaries.
"Yo, Edward. We need 3 minutes or less on why our agency will kick everyone eles's ass!"
"Roger, Roger."
These videos are fun because you get teamed up with some really amazing people from inside the agency. The short deadlines and minuscule budgets keep everyone on their creative toes, and when it hits, it hits. There is nothing more magical than magical realism.
In this example of a MicroDoc, we were charged with defining the hiphop culture.
"3 minutes or less, please."
Since I moved out to California I have been asked by some of the friends and coworkers that I left behind, "don't you miss doing the bigger stuff?"
The answer is, no. Those that would tell a story only if the Many will hear it, are sycophants, not sorcerers. The videos I've reared with DDB San Francisco have helped win clients like STP, Ross, Amgen, Wells Fargo, and most recently, the telecom giant, Qualcomm. Winning those clients means that some director in L.A. down the road will get handed a set of boards. Good for him, or hopefully her. Make sure you stay between the lines. I helped create them.
written by: Edward Seaton
