How to shoot hidden camera Superbowl spots with Director Michael Addis.

Comedy director Michael Addis is my hidden camera guru. He’s the go-to guy for successfully mining humor from an unsuspecting public. ย I chatted with Michael the night before his shoot for a Superbowl spot. The thrill of the unknown, shooting without a net in New York City, is what he lives for. In this episode, […]

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Shooting On Fake Airplanes With Ghosts And Ted Haler.

Chatting with Ted Halerย ofย Aero Mock-Upsย reveals many insights about respect. During prep, Tedย offered nothing but solutions, so I knew he’d be a great guest. ย We talked on the day before myย Ogilvyย shoot about world peace, movies versus commercials, and the ghost of Stan Laurel. Ted is a wise soul who reminds me humility is a huge part

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Cinematographer Jordan Levy Beseeches Young Filmmakers to Respect The Process.

My friend Jordan Levy is a great cinematographer, always in demand. ย He’s been busy shooting comedy spots, high fashion, luxury cars and Comedy Central’s The Jeselnik Offensive. ย He claims comedy is harder to shoot than fashion. Who knew? Find out who’s a bigger diva: Oprah or Snoop Dog? ย This episode settles into a very technical

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Ad Agency Insights from Copywriter Toby Nunez.

Toby Nunez shares his journey from starving artist (while working on the Ford assembly line making windshield wiper motors) to his first agency gig as an art director. ย Today Toby is a highly prolific copywriter at Doner in Detroit. ย He still cranks out some pretty twisted artwork on his personal site. Toby tells me that

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Editor Bill Marmor Puts the Puzzle Together Perfectly.

Working with a great editor, like Bill Marmor, ensures your footage will be fully realized into a great spot. Bill explains his process for editing commercials. ย We discuss how he finds those magic moments and why he did not like “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty”, which I loved. We also chat about objectivity in

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Top 5 Steps to Make Your Dream Project a Reality.

This episode will surely invigorate your creative juices! My 5 easy steps get your passion project off the couch and onto the screen. Enough already! I was lucky to have a mentor in Al Burton, a crazy, genius producer that taught me his “10 Steps to Success” in show business. ย Sadly, I can only remembered

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It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia Director Richie Keen Gives Us The Lowdown.

Richie Keen directs hit sitcoms, most recently “New Girl” & “Mixology”. He makes hilarious sketches. (See:ย Funny Or Dieย shorts,ย  “Important Things with Dimitri Martin”). And he’s shot commercials in the former Soviet Union. If it makes him laugh on the page, he’s usually game. ย And after directing multiple episodes ofย “It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia”, it seems

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Director Keith Schofield. Brilliantly bizarre.

His spots are meticulously executed, while his music videos are wonderfully bizarre. Director Keith Schofield won the prestigious Gold Lion at Cannes and helped define “viral video”. I love that he posts his treatments on his website for all to see, which indirectly influenced me to start this podcast. Hear why… Oh yeah. I need

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Comedy Super Duo: The Sklar Bros.

Randy & Jason Sklar are two of my favorite stand up comedians. Together & individually. They’re hilarious comics/actors/podcasters/hosts/writer/producers… and true gentlemen. The brothers just took their maiden voyage into directing with a wickedly funny music video for The Sheepdogs. Relevant to the spot world, the play “Tech” & “Service” in a series of Time Warner

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Jed Hathaway directs stop-motion comedy for Happy Honda Days.

I’ve always marveled at how “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” was shot. Now straight from the real Island of Misfit Toys, Director Jed Hathaway of Shadow Machine breaks down this intriguing world of stop-motion animation. This episode plays like a crash course in shooting puppets for advertising, as Jed explains how he twisted the Happy Honda

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