Jeff Low Does Something For The Guardian

Everybody needs a pastime. Be it the whittling of wood, the baking of cakes or the dancing of salsas, having an activity to occupy the mind and body makes someone a richer person. However, taking on too many tasks in one fell swoop can result in utter mayhem, as the hapless hobbiest in this cracking spot for The Guardian from BBH London goes to prove.

Following on from last year's 'Own The Weekend', 'Do Something' details the aftermath of a guy left to his own devices on a Saturday morning with only The Guardian's weekend supplements for inspiration. Shot by Biscuit's Jeff Low, the ad marks itself out with some crashing audio cues, a deliciously sly VO and a fantastically-realised steadycam shot taking you through the pandemonium.

We caught up with Jeff to ask about the commercial's setup, the anarchic comedy and the company's obvious disdain for garden furniture.



How did you get involved in the project? What was the hook in your treatment?

Conceptually, it was / is a 'trustable' idea that felt as though injecting sincerity rather than trying to "make it funny" was the way to go. This of course is always a balancing act between not being too goofy and not being too passive about the comedy which I felt like we achieved (phew!). Practically I just made a huge list of things our man could do or 'half do'. Things that made me laugh - like he went out and collected all the missing cat posters, he made a birthday banner, he practiced archery, he dabbled in graffiti etc. Ideas like that with an emphasis on 'movement' from our props was a big part of my approach.

The ad follows on from last year's well-received "Own The Weekend". Did you feel the pressure in following it up?

Tim (Godsall) did last year's and he's my friend so I didn't really feel pressure - maybe I should have but I think because he's such a nice man and I see him quite often that sense of competition or pressure wasn't really there for me. Plus the guy's at BBH are so talented that they make it sort of impossible for guys like me to screw anything up too badly.

The spot has a deliciously anarchic spirit – from the mayhem on screen to the music and VO choices. Did it feel like stepping away from convention?

The whole thing was sort of an experiment and perhaps my favourite thing about it is that it doesn't slot into many of the formulas I can see unfolding in a lot of comedy work….my own included. So yes it did feel like we were stepping away from convention.



How was the shoot? Did you run in to any problems?

It was shockingly smooth. The only "problem" was getting that middle shot timed out because I was hell bent on not cutting until we saw the burning shed….oh the goat did poop on the rug which wasn't ideal.

The middle of the spot is an impressively controlled tracking shot. How did you achieve that? Did you channel your internal Wells/Scorsese/ Cuarón /DePalma (delete as appropriate)?

It was all Scoresese for me. That guy made steadicam cool for all time.

There's a heck of a lot to fit on screen. Any cheats?

Not really. There were people operating certain things off camera but nothing out of the ordinary for a shot like that.



How many of the home mishaps featured have happened to you in real life?

Just the archery incident of '97 that we won't discuss.

After the shed explosion in this and the Ikea ad from Mike Maguire, we're starting to think that the directors at Biscuit have a thing against garden furniture. Care to comment?

I know that Mike is a staunch hater of gardens & furniture.

Did much need to get done in post? How involved were you with the tone of the VO?

I actually did the original VO as a guide track and with my voice it came across as sort of a "disappointed Jon Hamm" type character which we all felt really worked. It was important that the VO felt a bit 'surrounded by morons' without being overtly condescending.

What's up next for you?

A few things. KitKat in the immediate future should be pretty interesting.