A director of photography better known as a (DP) is responsible for creating and managing the visual look of a film or video production. They work closely with the director and other key members of the crew to conceptualize and execute the production's visual style. The DP oversees the camera and lighting crew and makes decisions about camera equipment and lenses to use for each shot. They also manage the technical aspects of the production, including budgeting, scheduling, and equipment rental. The DP's goal is to bring the director's vision to life and enhance the storytelling through stunning visuals.
I recently had the opportunity to sit down with Jeremy "JB the DP" Bell Director of Photography at Bidduhh Works, his black-owned production company, on the heels of a nationally broadcasted Krystal commercial. As a creative who has cemented his place in Atlanta's landscape as a premiere DP in the music video world, the opportunity to create outside of that box presented a fresh opportunity for JB. While most creatives feel this form of boxing in is due to the major success garnered from operating in a specific theme in a particular medium, JB sees it as an opportunity to diversify his portfolio. Jeremy spoke to this "People hire you for what they see, I don't post commercials so how the **** can I get hired for a commercial? It was just God blessing me with meeting the right person." That person is Director Bari also known as ABG_GFX on Instagram who was the one who took a chance on JB and trusted that what he had to offer would fit the vision of the visual.
When asked about his first opportunity to shoot a commercial video, JB let me know that he really enjoyed the experience. Aside from arriving to the set 90 minutes tardy he was very delighted with the process of the production and he was able to be in control of who he had working with him on his crew. "It was pretty cool, I liked it." jokingly he says "The fact that I got there an hour and a half later than I was supposed to had me flipping. Other than that I think it went well. Working with that many "above the lines" can be very stressful when you have clients, agency, and management...when you have four checkoffs above the director it's a lot." Jeremy further adds that he was able to create a very laidback atmosphere in the midst of a high-stress environment he stated, "I love the fact that I got to hire my crew, I think if it was any other crew it might've not gone as smoothly, it's a synergy thing."
With the aforementioned long resume of JB's in the music video world, shooting this commercial opened his eyes to a few things that can possibly make his work experience next time smoother. He wanted more of his story to be told but was limited to 00:15 seconds in the final product. "I wish they would've given me 30 seconds instead of 15, there were a lot of quick cuts, we had to tell a lot of story in 15 seconds." He wants to take more of a lead role in the preproduction of these types of shoots "As the DP I should've taken the initiative to shot list it out." While music videos in principle apply the same storytelling techniques, oftentimes when dealing with musical artists things can rapidly change on the fly due to an artist's diva ways, and this usually manifests itself in the way of late arrival by them and also models who are featured in the videos. So with a more foundationally sound setup with a client such as Krystal, Jeremy now understands that the preproduction work that he would present would be more likely to be executed more precisely as opposed to a music video. The tighter ran productions of commercials also have the budget to hire those people who are able to help adjust what's needed rapidly and smoothly. Such as on-site writers and also the agencies that help direct these commercial clients who are "above the line" to keep things on brand and make sense.
I asked JB did he feel that the shoot was successful or not and if it would lead to more opportunities such as these with commercial brands, "I definitely think my first commercial was a success, it WILL lead to more opportunities. It's going to bring way more opportunities, the agency that hired us, gave another ten clients to fulfill their commercial needs following the completion of this." I could hear the excitement in JB's voice as he gave me this information. This had me thinking about JB's future as DP and the kind of work that would be coming to his doorstep.
I further wondered did he see himself transitioning outside of the music video world into the commercial world, "I really don't know how it will play out, currently, I'm ninety percent music videos and ten percent other things so to see it flipped for me is kind of hard to see. Would I want that? Sure! Heck yeah, I believe so." While working with commercial brands means working with big commercial budgets. I asked JB to further elaborate on the differences in the atmosphere based on those higher budgets, "I believe there is a substantial difference between Music video budgets and commercial budgets. Music videos you're working all day, commercials you're walking all day too, but it's more corporate flow you get treated better, you get crafty, you get breakfast, an hour's lunch for a break, (laughingly) you get respected as a filmmaker, BIG DIFFERENCE, as I get older I wouldn't mind more of the commercial."
Even with that insight JB still felt like he has an outsider-looking in point of view due to his lack of work he has in the commercial realm. But friends in his network who are on even bigger budgeted commercial sets have given him stories of high-paced anxiety-riddled sets that are making sure the vision is being executed to perfection.
In conclusion I asked JB if there was any piece of advice he would share with directors of photography out there looking to get into the commercial production space and he said, "Act like your dream client is always watching, even though you're not there yet, or at least have that in your mind at times." Wise words from a wise man.
You can check out the finished product of the commercial below, JB also offers film production education classes periodically throughout the year so visit the website to learn more if interested in getting plugged-in access to film sets. You can also follow JB on Instagram at @bidduhh_kinship. Thank you for taking the time to read this story!