Filmmakers In Advertising

On today’s episode, Justin chats with Daniel Fries, Filmmaker & Executive Creative Director at Perfect Stranger, a full-stack creative company, offering brand, advertising, design, animation, and production. 
Daniel began as a Creative Director, managing fortune 500 clients before founding NY-based creative agency Leroy and Clarkson, and selling the business in 2016. Daniel’s award-winning work spans Emmy-nominated filmmaking and global brand campaigns for FX, ABC, NBCUniversal, and Nasdaq, with recognition from Adweek, Fast Company, and Slate. Trust us, you don’t want to miss this one.
Some highlights from the episode include:
Pitching Kayne West on an existential project inspired by Michelangelo Antonioni’s “The Passenger”
His commercial filmmaking influences, including Mcihel Gondry & Jonathan Glazer
Being a “conductor” by curating top talent
Lessons learned from developing screenplays
Being a self-starter and having never been on a formal job interview
We hope you enjoy!
Links:
Daniel’s IMDB
Daniel’s Vimeo
Daniel’s Site
Perfect Stranger
The Resilience Age | Film Projects
Don-O-Mite | Mad Men Blaxploitation Parody
From CRY, a Creative, Production, and Post house based in New York City.
Brought to you by CRY www.filmcry.com 
Intro mixed by Michael Hartman - michaelhrtmn4@gmail.com

This week, Justin sits down with JD Jurentkuff, Chief Creative Officer of LOLA, USA. They discuss the acclaimed new Adidas campaign: Backyard Legends, which has been taking the internet by storm, along with JD’s storied career path & anecdotes from work on some of the world's best brands with some of the world's best creatives.
JD digs into his scrappy roots as a young ambitious professional finding his way onto the scene, and the artists that influenced him in that time. As he moves through his career journey, it’s filled with stories, mentors, and even analogies about wave energies, which we really appreciated. Along with practical lessons on creating award-winning campaigns, he also give us a fresh take on how rock climbing is a nice counterbalance to the subjectivity of advertising.
As you’ll hear, JD is a passionate, energetic, and fun-loving creative, whose work and career is full of insights and stories you won’t want to miss.

Links:
LOLA, USA
Adidas | Backyard Legends
Apple | Misunderstood
Apple | Share Your Gifts
Boost Mobile | Equal Voting Access for All

From CRY, a Creative, Production, and Post house based in New York City.
Brought to you by CRY www.filmcry.com 
Intro mixed by Michael Hartman - michaelhrtmn4@gmail.com

This week’s episode is a fun one, with guests Bonnie Dennison & Alison Barton, or the directing duo known as Bonabart. 
They are LA-based directors rostered at Tool of North America, and are known for their comedy chops working with brands such as Wendy's, Subway, Amazon, Spotify, and Liquid Death. They also are writers on the upcoming Amazon series “Ride Or Die” starring Hannah Waddingham and Octavia Spencer, and have a series called “Granted” in development at Warner Bros Animation. 
Bonnie & Alison share some funny stories, insights on the job, and a reminder on how crucial collaboration is for our industry, whether you’re a directing duo or not.
Some highlights include:
Transitions from actresses, to creating their own sketches
How budget changes the approach
Sourcing inspiration from life
Almost quitting the industry
And even how to approach client dinners 
Much gold to be found here. Don’t miss it!
Links:
Ride or Die Season 1
Bonabart's Site
Bonnie & Alison’s Work | Tool of North America
From CRY, a Creative, Production, and Post house based in New York City.
Brought to you by CRY www.filmcry.com 
Intro mixed by Michael Hartman - michaelhrtmn4@gmail.com

Today on FIA, Justin sits down with film director Russell Owen to discuss his career from commercials to feature films, and the path that led to his acclaimed psychological horror Shepherd, a New York Times Critic's Pick and BBC critic Mark Kermode's Film of the Week.
Russell shares the unconventional route that shaped his career, from making an experimental first feature and directing a zombie film to breaking into advertising and ultimately bringing a long-held passion project to life. He also explains how his feature work unexpectedly opened the door to commercial directing, leading to hundreds of campaigns for global brands including American Express and Armani
The conversation also explores Russell's role as co-founder of Kindred Pictures, a London-based production company producing both commercial and narrative work around the world. Along the way, he discusses his passion of storytelling, the creative influences that have shaped his filmmaking, and how folklore, myths, and legends continue to inspire his writing.
Russell is a true Filmmaker in Advertising, and one to keep an eye out for!
Links:
Russell’s IMDB
Shepherd | Feature Film Trailer
Kindred Pictures
From CRY, a Creative, Production, and Post house based in New York City.
Brought to you by CRY www.filmcry.com 
Intro mixed by Michael Hartman - michaelhrtmn4@gmail.com

This week on FIA, Justin is joined by Creative Director Christine Taffe, and Executive Creative Director Heather Larimer, both at Orchard Creative. Also, making her first appearance on the podcast, is Michelle Mundt, Associate Producer at Cry.
In this episode, Christine and Heather discuss their collaborations at Orchard, with stories from award winning projects with Ocean Spray and Etsy. They dig into their approach to collaboration, feedback, and crafting emotionally true campaigns that have lasting impact.
They discuss pitching by closing an “imagination gap,” and finding the “truth under the truth” in the context of products & brands. They also talk about how they create manifestos as a point of view that can become campaigns and how that helps them trend toward confidently useful, profound brand work over just adding to the noise. 
Overall, their discussion is full of wisdom, laughs, and great stories you don’t want to miss.

Links:
Christine’s Site
Heather’s Site
Orchard Creative

“Jiggle” | Ocean Spray - Power Your Holidays
"Who's Waldo" | Etsy
"Little Drummer Boy" | Etsy
“Celebrate Being Human” | Etsy

Commercials That Inspired Christine & Heather:
“Balls” | Sony BRAVIA
“Find Your Gratness” | Nike
“Nothing Beats a Londoner” | Nike

CluesBySam.com (Justin’s recommendation

From CRY, a Creative, Production, and Post house based in New York City.
Brought to you by CRY www.filmcry.com 
Intro mixed by Michael Hartman - michaelhrtmn4@gmail.com