Directing Dana Carvey as King Charles for PetSmart

I recently had the chance to direct a PetSmart Commercial with Dana Carvey, where he played King Charles III, which was rad.

As a young lad, I started playing drums at an early age. I had a drum set in the living room that I would beat the crap out of whenever I had a chance. Wearing glasses and being a bit nerdy, I needed a Rock ’n Roll icon to look to for guidance. Insert Garth Algar of the public access show Wayne’s World, or better yet, that man behind the frames - Dana Carvey.

When I ran Wayne’s World through my parent's VCR, I felt like Garth was speaking right to me. When Wayne’s World 2 dropped, I couldn’t believe Garth found a wife with the same matching glasses!

Working with Dana Carvey as a director for PetSmart was an experience I will never forget. Everyone was cracking up when he stepped onto the set as King Charles III. A constant performer, he would switch between multiple characters between set-ups and take the pressure off the crew.

One of the things I appreciated most about working with Dana was his attention to detail. He would review every line of the script with us, ensuring we understood the intention behind each word. He was also very open to feedback and suggestions, which made the process feel collaborative and supportive.

Another thing that stood out to me was how approachable Dana was. Despite his celebrity status, he was down-to-earth and easy to talk to. He would take the time to chat with us on breaks and ensure that everyone was feeling good about our work.

The spot was developed by MAXIMUM EFFORT and produced by SixTwentySix.

More Monochromatic Commercial Sets

Somehow, year after year, my monochromatic commercial journey continues. I’ve managed to collect most of the colors on the rainbow, but sadly I wasn’t smart enough to have the fore thought to create some sort of music video, short film, or passion project in between set ups to really capture the true magic of all the monochrome sets. I never set out to direct monochromatic commercials, but after the first phone call when someone asked if I could do “monochrome”, “minimalist”, and an “abstract” set, they just kept coming.

Here are a collection of screen grabs over the years. Most of them are monochromatic office sets for some sort of tech or insurance company. But there are some outliers in there for food brands, make-up companies, and energy drinks.

A Minimalist Blue Monochrome Set for HP

The Family Continues to Grow!

Well, on November 27th, 2022 our family of four turned into a family of five. Katie and I welcomed Ryder Bear Morris into the world at 10:40pm. His sisters, Henrietta and Nori, are very excited to have him here.

The First Thing About Being A Director

When I jumped on a plane in 2007 and moved to LA in a flash, I had a job as a camera PA. I was fired up. I was excited, and I couldn’t wait to be a part of my first “Hollywood” production. I was especially excited to see the director in action, as I had only been making my own “One Man Band” films for the last eight years, and although I had watched tons of Behind the Scenes Featurettes, I was still convinced the Director did everything.

On the job, I was disappointed. For the first half of day one I was trying to figure out who the director was. No one was talking to the actors. I didn’t ever see a blocking rehearsal. Pretty quickly I got bumped up and started pulling focus, putting me in the action right next to the camera, and never once did someone come touch the thing, minus my friend who was the DP. I did very quickly become familiar with the Assistant Director though. A very shouty guy, who was anxious to hurry us along.

My dream of what a director was started to fade. I had these iconic images of Steven Spielberg standing next to a Panavision Camera pointing, or laying on his chest with a viewfinder, getting into the action fueling my imagination. I was starting to think the director was a mystery figure behind the curtain, using different crew members to do his bidding. Eventually the director became more apparent on the production, but it was usually in a frantic or panicked way, when we were falling behind schedule, or I eventually failed to get a shot in focus that was a one take situation.

When I got the opportunity to direct a few months later in film school, I promised I would do things differently. I was going to throw the party that everyone wanted to be at. I quickly knew how important it was to “Set the Tone” - to be a presence. There seems to be this big illusion about what a film set is. Don’t get me wrong, it is an action packed, amazing experience, but it often is faced paced and said to be something like war.

Despite all the department and various crew members, I always put the responsibility on the director. Being a director myself I put the responsibility on myself. Every day I show up early, map out my shots, greet each crew member, and make sure people know what’s about to go down. I have noticed over the years that people want to be passionately involved in your production. You have to invite them in to that experience. You need to be the one that believes in every choice you are making and constantly keeping the day alive. People feed off that energy.

If you create a tone that is professional, intentional and collaborative the cast and crew are going to respond. If people believe that you want to make this movie with everything you have, even if it’s terrible, they will get behind you. I have a great respect for the AD department, the Production Manager, and all of my crew members, but I don’t want to blame anyone else when things aren’t going right on set. Be the biggest cheerleader for your production. Films aren’t easy to make. Emotions run high. Be the person that people can depend on.

I AM NOW A FATHER.

I recently had two beautiful twin baby girls. They were born in Los Angeles, on Wednesday, April 28th 2021. Here they are. Pictured on the right: Henrietta Wilde Morris. Born at 3:15pm. Birth Weight: 6lbs 8.9oz. Height: 19.25 inches. Pictured on the left: Nori Oak Morris. Born at 3:17pm. Birth Weight: 5lbs 0.08oz. Height: 18.5 inches. This photo is them at one month old.

A DAY SHOOTING PHOTOS

During the Pandemic I started taking more and more photos as a creative outlet. My wife and I are close to having twins, and I wanted to get one last epic shot before the babies come out. This video documents my experience trying to accomplish that goal.

Directing a new movie - YouTube Re-Boot

I have been going pretty hard on my YouTube channel lately. Trying to get more behind the scenes action up on the channel. I recently started developing a new feature film, and as luck would have it, my friend had a nice Panavision camera package so we went out and shot a little teaser trailer. Get a look behind the scenes, and check out the YouTube Channel if you wanna follow along.