NEWS

Searchlight: Omri Cohen

Omri Cohen blew our socks off with his Nike Yards film shot in Mumbai, his first major piece of work after being told he wasn’t going to cut the mustard at film school. Now just airing is his latest work – this time for Google.

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Tell us about your background – where and when you studied or are you self-taught and what you’re up to now?

I went to a state film school in San Francisco on a scholarship and they kicked me out in my first year.  They never let me finish my first film and said that no one would ever let me work my way in the professional world… I never really got the message.

We hear you’ve just been on a long shoot in Spain – can you tell us about that please?    

I just wrapped on my latest spot in Spain and decided to stay in the old town of Palma on Mallorca for a week to research my next project.  I spent my days getting lost, sailing to secret beaches and scouting ancient ruins. It’s impossible to explain how I spent the last month. I was working on a dream project based out of Palma de Mallorca, Spain with Green Dot and Palma Pictures. We started in Mallorca, hit Barcelona where I had my whole life stolen in the form of a backpack, travelled all over the Mediterranean sea and Italy. We shot for seven endless days. I’ve said too much already but the word should be out about it very soon.

How long have you been signed to Green Dot Films?

I signed at Green Dot less than a year ago, my first US home. Straight up family there, from the owners down to the PAs. Rick is my dad, Rich is my mom, Darren is my shorter older brother, Brent is my cool Uncle and Jane is his smart young hot wife.

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How did the shoot for Nike Yards come about?

A good friend at Nike called me one day and said, “What are you doing?” I said, “What am I doing?” Nike guy says, “You need to get your ass to India right now.” Click.

I call back. “Umm, ok, where in India?” Two days later I was shooting a commercial for the World Cup of Cricket on the streets of Bombay. It was the first time that it had taken place in India in the last 28 years, over 2 billion people watched, and India won! I spent the night of the finals documenting the celebrations and ended up in front of the fireworks at the stadium. I had no clue about how the sport was played through the whole shoot.

What were the key lessons you learnt from directing Nike Yards? And did you apply them to your next shoot?

The thing about Yards is that we had to do a project that normally would take months for a very high profile event in a matter of days. When I arrived I had no idea about the World Cup, the sport of Cricket, or India and the brief was completely open. We created everything from the concept to the soundtrack in under a week. It was one of those impossible projects where you do not have control of anything except your camera, and there is no time to over think or judge the process. I just stayed completely open to everything around me and let things happen in front of my eyes and captured it all. I felt like I was completely in my element in all that chaos. It reminded me of that project that got me kicked out of film school. The lesson: Your process is your process, live and die by it.

Also reaffirmed ‘you are nothing if your team doesn’t believe in you’.

 The followup to Nike Yards…
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Shooting in India could be considered a bit tricky even for the most experienced director. How did you find the experience and what were the main challenges of the shoot?

It’s like a video game. You can do anything, go anywhere, cast anybody. The people and the land give endlessly. Cows, elephants, kids, slums, eagles, high rises, old people, music video extras, rickshaws, crazy curry, rats, chapati, shanti love. Smile you’re in India.

I just tried to get to the heart of the people and the sport and everything worked like it was supposed to. I can see how people can go there and have a total nightmare of a shoot. I don’t judge when I shoot in foreign countries but I laugh a lot. I think if you go abroad and expect America, maybe you should stay home and eat McDonald’s.

Did you storyboard each scene in detail or was a more spontaneous shoot?

Huh?

What is the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given about filmmaking?

Film School Teacher: “Omri, I’m sorry.  You cannot work like that! No one will ever let you do that in the professional world!”

How would you sum up your directing style?

Fuck continuity.

What would you like to be doing in five years time?

Starting on the third film of my feature trilogy or doing the backstroke in Mallorca.

And finally… anything else?

I think that people forget that your work is your life and I believe that we should enjoy every minute so I try to create a trusting, open environment for the crew, cast, agency, and client. It’s all an adventure for me and I feel like the vibe on set and the intention behind what I do always ends up deep between the frames so I try to create a world where it is safe to explore, and ask questions, and act on impulse, and try completely different things. I think what we respond to as an audience is evolving, commercials are evolving, content is evolving so the core is what makes us respond? Heart.

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