Riess/Hill direct a trio of filmmakers for Movielink ad campaign

For Movielink, the leading online movie download service, the GARTNER directing team of Riess/Hill interviewed a unique trio of filmmakers, all of whom comment on the challenges associated with their craft. The ads, created via agency Donat/Wald Company, Inc., convey the message that, while making movies is hard, downloading them from Movielink is easy. The spots star Dennis Hopper, Catherine Hardwicke, and Scott and Gary Marshall talking about film, directing and more.

Riess/Hill filmed Hopper at his home, and over the course of the afternoon established a rapport with the icon that led to some unexpected, revelatory moments. "What do you do when you're interviewing a celebrity that has been interviewed many times?" the duo remembered asking themselves. "Do your homework, and try to press them into areas that are new and insightful. Hopper is a multi-faceted and very talented person. Our goal was to dig deeper than usual and he let us."

Like Hopper, Hardwicke was filmed at her home, where she was mixing her upcoming feature, "The Nativity Story." "Artists often come alive through their work," Hill said, "they've all faced challenges and pressed on and put those victories up on the screen. It was interesting, knowing Catherine's work, to hear her talk about some of that."

"Gary was delightful, fantastic," Hill said of the elder Marshall. "You always expect schtick from him, but there was something about filming him in his office, surrounded by all his stuff, that brought it home for him." As Hill and her directing partner/husband Chris Riess spoke with the Marshalls, one theme resonated above the humor: "It was clear to us that family and friends are everything to him," Hill recalled. "Scott was wonderful, too, and there was a lot of mutual love and admiration in that room."