On February 27, DGA members heard from some of the powerhouse Directors of the commercial space when the Focus on Women Committee (FOWC) meeting featured the discussion, February, Football & Female: Women Directors of Super Bowl Ads.
During a conversation moderated by FOWC Co-chairs Ellen Athena Catsikeas and Alanna Campbell, Directors Nicole Ackermann, Jess Coulter, Kim Gehrig and Rachel Morrison discussed the making of projects which have been featured on the world’s biggest, priciest stage.
Following a screening of some of their spots including Ackermann’s Universal Studios spot, Coulter’s Wells Fargo spot, Gehrig’s Nike spot and Morrison’s Michelob Ultra spot, the panelists spoke about how they got into commercial directing work and what it’s like to direct a spot for the big game.
Gehrig revealed that her first Super Bowl commercial was for Nike, who hadn’t done a Super Bowl for 27 years, and wanted to do a female-focused piece for the big game. She added that after all those years of directing commercials, that was her access point to the campaign – through female subject matter, which she found kind of interesting.
Morrison shared that she believes despite not having many previous commercial directing credits, she believes she booked her Michelob Ultra Super Bowl commercial through the fact that she had a larger body of work that spoke to the exact Super Bowl ad they were looking to make. She could speak to the celebrity-driven, sports-driven theme, and it required shooting on film.
Coulter recalled getting her start in advertising as a copywriter and eventually, a creative director working at a lot of big New York agencies. When she decided she wanted to switch over and be a Director, she was encouraged to continue writing while directing some of the things she wrote until she had a solid reel.
Ackermann noted that in booking a commercial shoot she has to put together a treatment — which is an art form in itself — and the level of detail they sometimes go into for commercials is insane. Once you've put together this beautiful vision, you pretty much have an obligation to stick to that.
ABOUT THE PANELISTS:
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Nicole Ackermann
Jess Coulter
Kim Gehrig
Rachel Morrison
FOWC Co-Chair Alanna G. A. Campbell (co-moderator)
FOWC Co-Chair Ellen Athena Catsikeas (co-moderator)About the Committee:
Originally a sub-committee of the Eastern Directors Council, in 2020 the Focus on Women Committee (FOWC) was designated an official and permanent committee of the DGA National Board for women members residing in the Eastern Region. The Committee would like to remind members that while their events are designed with a special focus on women Directors, all DGA members are welcome to attend.
- For more about the FOWC and to see coverage of other events, click here to visit the Committee's webpage.
