Start Editorial's Louis Lyne Sees the Story in the Footage
The editor's long form work on documentary campaigns for the US Navy, Ford and other brands has given him a deeper insight into the narrative process.
Start Editorial's Louis Lyne Sees the Story in the Footage
His long-form work on documentary-style campaigns
for the US Navy, Ford and other brands has given
him a deeper insight into the narrative process.
Senior Editor Louis Lyne joined Southfield, Michigan-based Start Editorial last year. His work has been honored with D&AD Pencils, BTAA Arrows, Clios, a "Best in Show" at The Bessies and recognition at Cannes and the Caddies (now called the 'D Show,' for work produced by Detroit agencies), traveled the world honing his craft, and worked with top agencies and directors.
In 2010, he's continued to impress. Delving into emerging media, his long form videos for the 2011 Ford Super Duty via Team Detroit (featuring "Dirty Jobs" star Mike Rowe; click here to see one) took home D Show honors in that category. Lyne also received AICE nominations for his work on the Navy's "Melanie Molina" spot, which was part of a larger campaign, and "Manicure," for the Ad Council's Fatherhood effort, both via Campbell-Ewald.
The Navy campaign reveals both the tough and tender sides of women in the Navy, while the Fatherhood campaign tackles a front-line social problem in America, inspiring fathers to become more involved in their children's lives. Lyne has been editing spots for the latter effort for several years now.
"Louis is a great storyteller," says Jeff Warner, CW at Campbell-Ewald, who collaborated with Lyne on the AICE-nominated Ad Council and Navy Women projects, both directed by Peyton Wilson of Nonfiction Unlimited.
The Navy campaign was comprised of several spots - "Hello Girls" and "Amanda Hodges," along with "Melanie Molina" - ranging in style and scope. "When you're dealing with documentary footage, it can be overwhelming. You don't know what the story is going in," Warner says. "Louis has the same dexterity with narrative, conceptual commercials as he does with documentary projects: he sees the story in the footage."
In Lyne's work with Team Detroit on the Ford Super Duty web videos, Rowe conducted a road test in which the 2011 Super Duty F-150 went head to head with its Dodge and Chevy competitors to see which truck would provide the best fuel economy, with the Ford model winning hands down.
The subject matter is matched by Lyne's agility and commitment to his art, according to Kelly Trudell, Producer at Team Detroit. "In the past, all of our collaborative work was very well received. With the Super Duty launch, we had a lot of work to do with little time for the web site to go live, so my first instinct was to go right to Louis." Trudell adds one anecdote in particular that demonstrated everything one needs to know about Lyne: "He got married in his edit suite, halfway through the Super Duty project." With fast approaching deadlines, the brief wedding ceremony was celebrated at Start with cake and champagne, before Lyne went right back to cutting.
Trudell cites Start's collaborative atmosphere as the perfect environment for Team Detroit. "Dan Succarde is one of our go-to guys, as well as Adam Pillon," he says of the editors working with Lyne at Start. "They worked on all of these projects." Trudell also expresses appreciation for Start's support team of assistants, noting "Erich Weimer and Kevin Jones - without those guys, the project would not have been possible. It's a big group effort."
For Lyne – who comes from a filmmaking family, as he's the son of legendary English director Adrian Lyne - many of his versatile projects from different agencies share common ground. "All of the work takes an honest, direct approach and reveals information we wouldn't otherwise receive," he explains, "whether it's Ford taking on its competitors or a young woman as Master of Arms in the military."
Campbell-Ewald's Warner, who created the Navy Women campaign with Art Director Al Majewski, adds that the spots were shot on various formats, a mix of 16mm, RED, Phantom and D5, and were created for platforms spanning :90, :60, and :30 second cuts for theatrical screening, web, and web banners, with the finish done in-house at Start. "Louis' work is seamless, regardless of the challenges," he concludes.
Lyne's most recent project with Campbell-Ewald is a six-spot Navy Chaplains campaign, which explores the role of chaplains embedded with the armed forces. "It was very emotional, interesting work," Lyne reflects.
Published 7 December, 2010
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