WHAT do Martin Scorsese, Sir Ridley Scott, Francis Ford Coppola and Michael Mann have in common? They are all Hollywood directors with Oscar nominations to their names — but there is more to their association.
Each of them has turned their hand to hawking products for a corporation, not always successfully.
Coppola, who shot to fame for making Apocalypse Now, made a commercial for the Italian coffee house Illy in 2000. Scorsese followed up directing The Color of Money by making a documentary about Giorgio Armani, funded by the eponymous fashion house. Neither production set the film-making world alight and nor did they significantly contribute to sales of Illy coffee or Armani suits.
So why do successful Hollywood directors shoot commercials? It is not the money — while a top commercials director can earn £10,000 a day, most Hollywood directors earn millions of pounds for a film.
More often it is for the creative challenge. Though it would seem easier to make a short advertisement than a film, the former process can be more difficult.
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Andy Gulliman, head of TV at Saatchi & Saatchi, says: “They have to show that they can shoot an idea in 60 seconds before I’m going to be taken by the wow factor of their name. Plus it tends to be more expensive, because they bring an entourage and a Hollywood lifestyle.”
A case in point is Chanel’s recent commercial for its No 5 perfume, directed by Baz Luhrmann and starring Nicole Kidman. The budget bloated to a reported £18 million, including £2 million for Ms Kidman’s services, and the commercial was handed in weeks overdue.
Sometimes such ventures can produce successful results. The directors Spike Lee and Terry Gilliam have both made popular Nike commercials, while Mercedes hired Michael Mann, who directed Heat and Collateral, to shoot a trailer for a non-existent film starring Benicio del Toro.
BMW tapped a string of directors, including Ang Lee and the Briton Guy Ritchie, to make a series of ads starring Clive Owen.
Directors often got their start by making ads. Jonathan Glazer made commercials for Guinness and Levi’s before making Sexy Beast and Birth.