![]() He mentioned last year's Microsoft commercial, which finished third in USA TODAY's Ad Meter rankings, as one example. Though 30-second Super Bowl commercials might not carry the same prestige as Academy Award nominations, Buckley takes them just as seriously - and has found them to be just as meaningful. It’s over, in my mind," he said. "And how do you get to top five? How do you get there? It’s not easy. "If you’re not top-five, then you’re not talked about. And Buckley said it's becoming increasingly difficult for an ad to resonate. With 30-second advertising slots during the Super Bowl broadcast now selling for between $5 million and $5.6 million, the pressure to get it right is immense. Decisions on casting, location, script and final edits can all fall within Buckley's purview - in addition to, of course, the actual filming and framing of the ad. ![]() Others have a general idea and trust the director to make it work. Some companies or ad agencies give the director an airtight script and little room for change, he said. In 2011, he directed six ads for six different companies.īuckley said the beginnings of each commercial, and his influence within it, can vary. He directed three commercials apiece in 20, and four in 20. A guy shows up on set and tells hockey players what to do? (That) didn’t seem like a director to me."īuckley eventually warmed to the title, though, and after the ad in 1999, his Super Bowl seasons grew increasingly busy. "I didn’t call myself a director for the first year, year and half, because I was embarrassed," Buckley said. He called it "film school on ice, basically." He co-directed an estimated 30 to 40 editions of the now-famous "This Is SportsCenter" campaign and about 180 hockey-related spots. Instead, Buckley ultimately found steady work co-directing some commercials for a then-burgeoning sports channel called ESPN. "We sold a screenplay to Columbia Pictures and we thought, 'Oh, this is easy! Hollywood!'" Buckley said. So he's not one to get caught up in labels. His 2012 short film "Asad," in which the entire cast consisted of Somali refugees with no prior acting experience, also received an Oscar nomination.ĪD METER: The funniest Super Bowl commercials of all timeīuckley believes all of his work "ties together," whether it's a comedic 30-second spot for CareerBuilder or an emotional 23-minute opus. His short film " Saria," which tells the stories of two young female orphans in Guatemala, was recently nominated for an Academy Award. I’m very conscious of that."īuckley is directing two Super Bowl ads this year: A Boston-themed Hyundai commercial featuring Rachel Dratch, Chris Evans, John Krasinski and David Ortiz, and a 30-second spot for SodaStream.īut he's also evolved beyond commercials. "You realize that we’re creating pieces of pop culture here, that go out there and can influence things in many different ways. "I just feel very fortunate to be in this position, to do work that’s going to be exposed at such a large level," Buckley said in a telephone interview. And he's been behind the scenes of several memorable Super Bowl commercials, from E-Trade's brilliant waste of $2 million to an inspiring Microsoft commercial last year. He's directed multiple Super Bowl ads in 16 of the past 20 years. ![]() "Because it's the Super Bowl," Buckley said, "the stakes are so, so high." Become a panelist: Sign up to vote on all the Super Bowl ads!įew directors understand those stakes like Buckley, a 56-year-old Massachusetts native who has directed more than 50 Super Bowl commercials over the past two decades. But the initial reactions - including in USA TODAY's Ad Meter, a ranking of Super Bowl ads by consumer rating - were tepid, Buckley recalled. And eventually, it came to be considered one. "I want to be forced into early retirement!" says another.īuckley thought it would be a hit. "I want to claw my way up to middle management," one says in the 1999 ad. It was a 30-second spot for, shot in black and white, with children speaking directly into the camera about their comically bleak career goals. Bryan Buckley's first Super Bowl commercial aired more than two decades ago.
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