Gillette x NBA — Commercial

After years of producing, I have created a short list of rules for myself. One tradition from this list is that if I can’t be on-site for shoot day, I don’t say “Yes.” Maybe it’s the same reason I love watching the BTS featurette after each movie I see. The energy of being amidst the action and watching it all come together is thrilling. Days are often lengthy; work days start incredibly early, but by the time I lay down at the end of the day, I am still reeling from all of the excitement of the day’s events. There is a passion that keeps the engines running at full steam. It all goes back to my desire when I was a little kid playing with my legos, pretending every lego build was a film set and wishing to live out those dreams one day. This industry has consumed so much of my life, but 20 years later, I still get excited to do what I do. 

When asked to work alongside Picture North and Nike Communications on this spot for Gillette featuring Zach Lavine, I couldn’t say no. I said yes immediately, even though it broke my rule. It was mid-march, and I was hiding away in Vegas at a JW Marriott producing a week-long project. My production Coordinator and I spent all our free time at an empty hotel cafe or backstage, jumping between the various projects and exclusively eating cocktail-hour-sized snacks. I had worked with Zach previously on a CarMax campaign, but this project had a much smaller crew with a more intimate setting, and I was excited to see Director Jake Zalutsky’s vision for a deeper, more soulful spot come to life. It was so exciting to be involved, even if the position was remote. 

I spent my time on my usual tasks of sourcing crew and gear and sitting in on meetings with our Director and my counterparts at Nike Communications, helping guide the project to an executable place. It was down to the wire as always, but in the eleventh hour, it all came together. Being remote was strange, only seeing a photo or two from the team on set and responding to a text here or there. But months later, when the project was released, It blew me away! Not only did the crew on the ground create magic, but Jake was able to tap into a deepness with Zach that doesn’t always happen in a commercial setting. 

The post-production team was composed exclusively of heavy hitters. Talia Pasqua, Joseph Bicknell, Nikolay Anatova were the perfect team. The edit, color, and sound came together harmoniously. Although I missed out being on-site for such a unique project, I’m very proud to have had the opportunity to be a part of a branded piece that felt so meaningful.