BASIL SCHLEGEL
Director, VILLAINS
Basil Schlegel’s international spot work includes campaigns for advertisers such as VISA, Sony, Burger King, and PepsiCo. Toward the end of 2006, he completed projects for Cannon via Dentsu/Beijing and Astro TV via Dentsu Y&R/Indonesia. The director recently turned down work overseas in favor of developing relationships with US agencies. The Frankfurt native has maintained a Los Angeles residence since 2003, and has now settled in full time.
Schlegel, who began his career in Germany, has shot extensively in Asia, Europe, Latin America, and the UK, racking up numerous awards and honors along the way. To the US market, he brings a unique creative sensibility and vision shaped by his vast exposure to advertisers the world over.
Schlegel’s work as a visual storyteller paints the filmmaker as one in touch with the full spectrum of human emotion. He describes his ads as "mini-movies," striving to work on the same scale and quality as contemporary features. Schlegel started directing while still attending high school in Frankfurt. He teamed up with a classmate, Claudio Malasomma, on a number of documentaries, including Was Heisst Hiet Pervers? ("What’s Perverted About It?’), an exploration of male prostitution. The project caught the eye of German television and led to newsmagazine assignments. Music videos for Jam & Spoon, The Free, and Paris Red followed, and the duo soon established their own production company, T-Team. Schlegel and Malasomma went on to study film in college, but business was brisk and the pair left school to dedicate themselves to the venture full time.
With Schlegel directing and Malasomma producing, T-Team expanded into commercials, the first of which - for Journal Frankfurt – was honored by the German Art Directors Club, the New York Festivals, and Epica France. Soon after, Schlegel was directing for Cobblestone Pictures and other top production shops in Hamburg.
By 1998, he was helming the launch for the Gugenheim Bilbao Museum in Spain, spots for the British Museum for Photography, Film, and Television in the UK, and Miller Beer in the US. His work for PepsiCo’s Rockaletta brand and Mabe in Mexico resulted in consecutive top honors from that country’s prestigious El Gran Jurado, voted on by consumers.
A director whose work has always been rooted in a team effort approach that embraces "fun, humanity, and the excitement brought on by the unexpected," a vibe that Schlegel brings to his new roost.
January 2007
Read More »SAVANT
Hailing from Stockholm, directing collective/design & animation house WAYTION are now making a name for themselves in the wider world of production. Their continually evolving body of work, a combination of live action, 2d/3d animation and graphics, has recently garnered industry attention and international acclaim. Recent clients include: Chiat\Day Los Angeles, DDB San Francisco and Wexley School For Girls.
With his memorable brand of madcap humor, JAKE KNOWLES brings a quirky yet stylistically accomplished body of work to the screen. From scientific oddities (Lakerol) to Western parodies (Renault) to just plain strange (CEZ), Jake’s hilarious imprint is certainly instantly recognizable. And with his recently completed viral campaign for PlayStation, Jake continues to bring his fresh take to an ever-expanding client base.
German filmmaker ERIC HILLENBRAND is an exciting new talent who brings to his work both the sensibilities and execution of an industry heavyweight. From his introduction as a nominee in the Lions Academy, Eric’s career is quickly moving from strength to strength. Recent projects include several high-profile commercials: an epic spot for Canon EOS, a beautiful and gritty piece for Rimowa suitcases, and two campaigns for Rexona.
Following a freshman win for Best Spec Spot at the AICP/MoMA show, JIMMY DIEBOLD continues to build a name for himself with his refreshing and youthful visual style. An Art Center graduate, Jimmy has attracted a growing list of clients, such as Reebok, Footlocker, Tanqueray, Budweiser, Clorox and Gateway.
With a solid dual repertoire of humorous real-people work and outright comedy, MATT CARTER threads all of his work with a strong visual sensibility. From his early days working on BBC graphics, through his transition into live-action direction, Matt has continued to find interesting perspectives and people to tell his stories. His recent campaign for Skype offers interesting, untold slices of true Americana.
A skilled filmmaker and editor, RICHARD CARROLL brings a distinctive stylistic composition to his commercials and short films – achieved by creating depth through shot composition, element layering and sound design. His recent short films of the artist Gravleur, commissioned by Johnny Depp’s company Infinitum Nihil, are a perfect example of this eclectic approach. Richard’s live-action and stills work has been featured in shots, ‘boards, Print & Graphics International and on the Sundance Channel. On this side of the puddle, he has worked with TBWA\Chiat\Day, FCB, and the Martin Agency.
January 2007
Read More »MONA EL MANSOURI
Director, VILLAINS
An international director by any definition, Mona El Mansouri was born in Cairo to an Egyptian father and a Czech mother. El Mansouri went to school in Paris and Munich, before attending a fashion academy in Amsterdam, where she earned a Master of Design degree. She complemented that with a Master of Advertising degree from the Advertising Academy in Berlin. As a commercial director, El Mansouri shoots all over the world, and makes her home on Mallorca, Spain.
Early in her career, El Mansouri worked as an Assistant Stylist at Cosmopolitan magazine in Germany, where she had the opportunity to collaborate with notable photographers such as Yvonne Kranz, Jim Rakete, Ute Mahler, and Ben Oyne. Exploiting her training and her way with words, she garnered experience in the ad world as a Copywriter for agencies Haye Needham + Partners, Lehner + Schumacher, and JWT.
Gravitating to production, El Mansouri worked as a 1st AD on feature films and commercials for several years, in the company of acclaimed directors Jean Paul Seaulie, Dan Rech, Ben Oyne, Detlev Buck, Roland Suso Richter, Nikolai Karo, Roman Kuhn, Paul Henman, Robert Fraisse, Sönke Wortmann and Clay Coleman. She started directing commercials in 1996, and has since helmed groundbreaking campaigns for Unilever, Beck’s, and other top brands in Germany and across Europe, becoming one of the most highly regarded directors in the European ad market.
VILLAINS is proud to represent Mona El Mansouri, bringing her singular visual style and wit to clients in the US.
January 2007
Read More »TERRY RIETTA
Terry Rietta is currently represented by TWC Films
“I love to eat meat,” says Terry Rietta, “I always will. I hope that won’t interfere with advancing my career as a director.” So far, so good. Rietta kicked off his career as a spot helmer with a series of AICP/MoMA-honored interstitials for the Mill Valley Film Festival and remains on a roll. “It seems like a lot of people are vegetarians here in California,” says the University of Texas grad in evaluating his decision to settle in LA. “My whole family loves to eat meat, but I think I have the strongest feelings and pride about it.”
If Rietta seems determined to squeeze every ounce of potential humor from a subject, it’s a gift that has served him in good stead. His short film, “Crank Calls,” has been garnering high praise of late. “I’m really proud of my film,” he says. “It has been great seeing other people respond to it. It makes me feel less embarrassed about my own lack of maturity when people laugh at sick stuff and bad behavior.”
Before helming spots and making “Crank Calls,” Rietta worked as a creative for advertisers such as Coca-Cola, Amazon.com, Southwest Airlines and MasterCard. His work on the agency side has been decorated by the One Show, Clios, Communication Arts, and D&AD. As a CD on the Mill Valley account, he was honored with a One Show Gold, and a Bronze Lion at the 2003 Cannes Film Festival.
Doesn’t every Creative Director think they can make it behind the camera? “Yes,” Rietta concedes, citing the Coen Brothers, Alfonso Cuaron, Steven Soderbergh, and David Fincher as major influences. “But, honestly, I’ve listened to loads of director commentaries on my DVDs and it sounds like a pretty simple gig, doesn’t it?”
January 2007
Read More »THE BROTHERS STRAUSE
Directors, tight
The Strause Brothers recently returned to spot work, having completed their feature directing debut, ALIEN VS. PREDATOR 2, for Twentieth Century Fox.
The sons of an IBM executive, Greg and Colin Strause had access to computers from a young age. They were basically self-taught, learning how to create visual effects through trial and error and sheer enthusiasm.
The effort paid off, and after graduating early from high school in 1995, the brothers moved to Los Angeles; within two weeks of relocating, they were hired on The X-Files. High-profile projects followed, such as THE NUTTY PROFESSOR, VOLCANO, and the iceberg sequence of the Academy Award-winning TITANIC. Recent feature credits include FANTASTIC FOUR: RISE OF THE SILVER SURFER, LIVE FREE OR DIE HARD, 300, and X-MEN: THE LAST STAND.
The pair broke into the commercial and music video arena with special effects assignments for Spots for Nike, Jeep, Pepsi, U2, Britney Spears, Aerosmith, and others. In 2000, Colin won a MTV Video Music Award for Best Art Direction for the Red Hot Chili Peppers video, "Californication," and the duo began directing under the moniker The Brothers Strause. Their Linkin Park clip "Crawling" received a VMA nomination for Best Direction and Best Rock Video, and The Brothers Strause have since directed videos for Flyleaf, A Perfect Circle, Nickelback, Disturbed, and Staind. Spot credits include: Toyota, Coca-Cola, Playstation, Fresca, Gatorade, Starbuck’s, and the United States Marine Corps, work which has garnered Clios and a Cannes Gold Lion, among other honors.
Highly coveted and designed to run for four years or more, the United States Marine Corps assignment (via J Walter Thompson/Atlanta) is a visual metaphor comparing the process a rock undergoes in becoming a diamond to the formative course a recruit undergoes in becoming a polished Marine. PlayStation’s "God of War" campaign of 2004 is also a favorite of The Brothers Strause, as is Gatorade "Winning Formula," which re-creates three different historic sports moments and is among the directors’ first assignments at tight.
Greg received a BAFTA (British Academy Award) for his visual effects work on the film THE DAY AFTER TOMORROW. He was also nominated for a Visual Effects Society Award and an Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror Films for his visual effects work on that film. In addition to their spot and clip work, The Brothers Strause directed the eerie, surrealistic short Mystery, on which they collaborated with the German artist Christian Jankowski. Mute is a six-minute sci-fi fantasy created by Alpine’s longtime advertising agency WongDoody. The film’s entertainment-driven approach is part of Alpine’s long-term marketing strategy to subtly promote the 25 year-old brand in a relevant and emotional way to younger consumers.
"tight films offers the most dynamic and broadest window into the industry," say The Brothers Strause, "and the greatest opportunities for its directors. We have always been intrigued by projects that bring together creativity, technology, and talent."
June 2007
Read More »MEET T.H.E.M.
Tony Harding, Owner/Executive Producer
Harding has spent his entire career producing spots, on the agency and
production sides. He produced high profile projects for Arnold, Delafamina, CCA, and ICR Network, to name a few. For Rush Media with Russell Simmons, Harding produced a Brett Ratner-directed Coca Cola campaign featuring Savion Glover and LL Cool J. As Executive Producer for shops such as Conspiracy and Big Picture, he presided over work for Reebok, Burger King, and others. His credits also include promos for HBO, Showtime, NBC, and ABC, as well as music videos for Mariah Carey and the RZA. At Kandokid, Harding was responsible for steering the company into longform branded content.
Elisson Burgos (Fred)
Twenty plus years spent on the dark side has yielded a resume boasting more than 90 clients,
150 products, 250 commercials, and 7 global advertising agencies including J. Walter Thompson, DDB Needham and Saatchi & Saatchi, finally jumping ship as SVP/Group Creative Director at Arnold Worldwide to go it full time as a spot director. Elisson Burgos (we call him Fred) is a writer/visualist, a walking encyclopedia of film and film history, and an avid comic collector. He grew up watching masked Mexican Wrestler films in the Bronx Spanish language theaters before it was "cool". After that it was off to Times Square for Kung Fu and Horror Flicks. Hundreds of commercials later as a top agency
creative, he now brings his talent and experience to his long desired passion: directing. Fred recently completed a package of spots for Suddenlink Cable, out of Geile-Leon of St. Louis, and two viral packages – for The Canyons, a Utah Ski Resort, with a series of short sketches including toys, action figures and dolls, citing the resort as the "Ultimate Playground." His recent campaign for Merck, "The Stunners", has already seen over 1.5 million hits. Fred has also directed spots for STIHL power tools though Kandokid. He currently has a dramatic episodic TV show in development with Kandokid Films.
Zoë Green
This British born writer/director hails from a family of circus and vaudeville performers. She cut her
teeth directing theatre at Cambridge University, then won the BAFTA/LA Directing Fellowship to UCLA film school where she took her MFA. Zoë wrote and directed the period short film Daisy Go Home, which received a Highly Commended honor in the Turner Classic Movies Competition. Currently residing in Hollywood, Zoë writes for the UK Guardian/Observer, is a writer on Marvel Studios’ upcoming Wolverine and The X Men and directed the upcoming feature documentary The Rough Ride (about lost souls whose lives become intertwined when they are all stranded by a bus strike). She recently directed three spec commercials at Universal Studios, shot by feature DP Bobby Bukowski.
Jim Tozzi
The puppet and animation designer for MTV2′s hit series Wonder Showzen, Jim also appears in
season two in the segment "What is Jim Drawing?" featured smoking a pipe while dressed in a speedo bathing suit, sweater vest and sailor hat. Jim has directed lottery spots for so many states that he now knows the secret code for scratch off numbers and has become a billionare, no longer needing to direct for cash. His TRUTH spot based on the Brady Bunch is a classic, as is his work for TWIP, the imaginary product used to launch TV LAND, and his work for Miller Lite in collaboration with (creative team Linus and Paul) featuring a song and dance cheerleader search, and the most daring work Leo Burnett has ever done for Kelloggs Rice Krispie Treats out of Leo Burnett Chicago. Jim recently shot programming and promos for "FRIDAY NIGHT MOVIE SHOW" for TV Land featuring a fictional 80′s Finnish Pop duo, and spots for Mattel and Dannon. Jim gets excited about any commercial that will allow him to work with actors in costumes, puppets, or any creative that is genuinely funny. He has an eye for the absurd, is a pop culture vulture, with a very strong art-direction sense. His creature feature PHEADRE is in pre-production with Kandokid.
Lawrence Jacomelli
A 32-yr-old Anglo Italian born and raised in the UK, Lawrence studied Graphic Design at Bristol
University where he specialized in Film & Animation. He helmed his his first spot in 2001, and has since made commercials for international clients including: Orange, Ikea, Fila, Alldays, Persil, Swatch, Tuborg, Carlsberg, Walls, Knoor, Yakult, Danone, Toyota, Vanity Fair.
Lawrence’s Ikea "Game" spot was shortlisted at Cannes and won an Epica in 2003. Last year, he was shortlisted again, this time for the CFP-E Young Director’s award. He was featured in ‘boards as a "Director to Watch" and had several commercials featured in shots. Lawrence won Best Director at the Viral Awards in London and NY last year with Pot Noodle "Precious," a self-financed test spot that he wrote, produced and directed. Most recently he won Best Ad Award at Ad’Or (an Eastern European ad festival) with ANCP ‘Hide and Seek’ in May, and a Bronze Drum at the Golden Drum awards in September with Arctic ‘Movie’. Additionally, Lawrence has written, edited, and directred numerous award-winning short films. He is repped by Great Guns in the UK and by JSA across Europe; he divides his time among London, New York, and wherever else the storyboards lead him.
Michael Uys
Originally from South Africa, Michael works well with actors, non-actors, and celebrities alike. His
work on commercials and promos feature soliid performances, with a real knack for testimonial performance. He helmed the feature documentary Riding the Rails, which garnered 18 major awards including the Peabody and Best Documentary from both the Directors Guild of America and the Los Angeles Film Critics Association; it was also named an Outstanding Documentary of the Year by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Michael is currently at work on a new documentary: The Good Soldier is a feature length documentary that explores the journey of five American soldiers from different wars (World War II, Vietnam, Gulf War, and Iraq) as they sign up, go into battle, and change their minds about war. Michael was a partner in Optic Nerve, through which he directed commercials, promos and television programming. He started his career producing for directors including Albert Watson, Patrick Demarchelier, and many others.
January 2007
Read More »David Nutter
Director, Looking Glass Films
David Nutter is the Emmy-Award-winning director of HBO’s acclaimed mini-series BAND OF BROTHERS, and has the distinction of having all 14 of the Television Pilots he’s directed be picked up for series on major networks, and currently has five shows on the air: WITHOUT A TRACE, SMALLVILLE, SUPERNATURAL, TERMINATOR: THE SARAH CONNOR CHRONICLES, and THE MENTALIST (which debuts in Fall 2008).
On the spot front, he recently directed an internationally-acclaimed campaign for LG Electronics, a leading player in the global flat panel display market. Named for Scarlet, the world’s slimmest LCD TV, Nutter’s was a bold and successful campaign built around the launch of a fictional multi-cultural TV star.
Nutter has worked hand-in-hand with Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, Jerry Bruckheimer, James Cameron, McG, and Laura Ziskin, and won a Golden Globe award as one of the chief architects of THE X-FILES, having directed 15 of the program’s episodes during the course of its initial three seasons.
In addition, he has directed episodes of highly acclaimed dramas ER and THE WEST WING, as well as episodes of the Emmy Award-winning ENTOURAGE for HBO. In 2007, he was nominated for Emmy and DGA awards for THE SOPRANOS, and was nominated for a DGA award in 2008 for his episode of ENTOURAGE.
Nutter recently wrapped production on two episodes of HBO’s prestigious mini-series THE PACIFIC, Tom Hanks’ and Steven Spielberg’s follow up to BAND OF BROTHERS.
Nutter is repped for spots exclusively by Looking Glass Films in the US, and Great Guns in London.
July 2008
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