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Director: Rob Jones
Writer: Colin James
DP: Adolfo Nowak
Producers: Rob Jones & Jerome Burks
Associate Producer: Candace Kimble
Editor: Michael Griffin
Makeup: Latina Jones
Color Correction: MTI Film
Why this script/concept? How does it reflect your vision as a commercial director?
Quite simply, I laughed everytime I read it. It was clever, understated, and sarcastic. I feel I have a good grasp of sarcastic, kind of mean humor. I wanted to showcase my skill in directing performances, timing and production value. I also liked how there was no dialogue. A simple concept, where you didn't see the punchline coming.
What was the casting process like?
I first created specific character breakdowns (Steve Carrell-esque, 35-45yo, Caucasian...etc). But instead of putting a blind blast out on Now Casting or Breakdown Services, I sent it to all my actor friends who might know someone that fit the description. Referrals basically. I got 4 choices from those people and I auditioned them that way.
How did you search for/lock a location?
This is always the hardest part for me, in that most places are weary of a film crew shooting in their space, especially for no money. My plan was to write a query letter and go door to door to all the music stores in our area. We told them we had a skeleton crew and the shoot would be one day. Most stores referred us to their corporate offices which lead to "No's". However, we kept searching and got extremely lucky by meeting a manager who viewed our commercial as a way to help bring attention to the store. He allowed us to shoot during business hours to use the customers as "background actors" as well as having free reign at the store. This rarely happens. His only request was that we display a logo of the store in a shot. We did. The rest is history.
How did you select your DP, crew?
I used people I've worked with before, referals, and people who expressed interest in helping. This was the first time I had worked with this DP, but I had seen his work and he was a friend of a friend. He also happened to work at a camera house which allowed us access to the Sony F3 at a VERY discounted rate.
How did shooting go? Any challenges?
The shoot could not have gone any smoother. One challenge we did face was the fact we had to shoot during store hours. Luckily we shot M.O.S so the noise wasn't an issue. We occasionally had to move chords so that customers didn't trip over them, but again we had full support of the staff so they had our back in that area.
Tell us about editing and finishing.
We had a few special effects that needed work in editing. The dream sequence gloss at the beginning took some time to find the right amount. Also, the title sequence at the end needed to be created on a DaVinci machine. Again I pulled my resources from the time I assisted on a television show, and got the Producer to allot me time to color correct and finish the spot for free! I was very lucky, but I had built up the relationship and kept him in the loop with my projects. The color correction was honestly what made the spot look professional.
In retrospect, is there anything you would have done differently?
Honestly, no. I set a date for when I wanted to shoot the spot and used that as my guide on how to schedule my time. That's it. We planned everything out at the beginning and basically colored in the lines.
Rob Jones
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