Why Research Is Everything for Eric Maldin
Eric Maldin's love for film was born out of a middle-school media class with his best friends, many of which he still works with to this day. With a culturally obsessed eye for trends, Eric’s style blends youthful vitality with stylised vignettes. As a partner and co-founder of LA based production company STADIUM, his depth of knowledge in the production space extends to his sets, honing the ability to scale up or down to suit any needs. With a passion for visual storytelling, automotive, and all things outdoors, Eric’s love for bringing ideas to life has landed him work for brands like Toyota, Audemars Piguet, Cadillac, Bumble, Sirius XM and more.
LBB> What elements of a script sets one apart from the other and what sort of scripts get you excited to shoot them?
Eric> At the end of the day, as a commercial director you must get excited about every script you pitch on, otherwise you should pass on the opportunity if you aren’t fully dedicated to make the project come to life. Obviously, some types of projects are more exciting than others, I tend to gravitate towards films that allow you to shoot various exterior locations that take you to amazing scenic environments. Beaches, mountains, deserts, old warehouses, alpine lakes, etc.
LBB> How do you approach creating a treatment for a spot?
Eric> I always try to distil what the boards are trying to do in a single sentence. That helps me ensure whatever I write is positioning itself back to the main objective of the spot. Whether that is an anecdotal story or how I want to light the film, I always cross check back to that sentence. For example, if the agency boards are boiled down to: “Convince people that an hybrid EV vehicle can perform in the rugged outdoors,” I make sure that everything I write and visualise accomplishes the ask for that sentence.
LBB> If the script is for a brand that you're not familiar with/ don’t have a big affinity with or a market you're new to, how important is it for you to do research and understand that strategic and contextual side of the ad? If it’s important to you, how do you do it?
Eric> Research is everything. If you don’t put in the time to understand the ethos of a brand that you are pitching for, again I say don’t waste anyone’s time…you have to do the work.
LBB> For you, what is the most important working relationship for a director to have with another person in making an ad? And why?
Eric> That would be the DP, or your director’s Pal. They help contextualise your ideas to a single frame so working closely with them to make sure your vision is encapsulated visually is dependent on the DP. Hopefully in the end they make it even better than what you first wrote about in your pitch.
LBB> What type of work are you most passionate about - is there a particular genre or subject matter or style you are most drawn to?
Eric> I love shooting people that resemble my friends. I like to create an environment in my work that people can see themselves partaking in. Real people, real worlds. That’s what I like, and those are the types of scripts I get excited about.
LBB> What misconception about you or your work do you most often encounter and why is it wrong?
Eric> I wouldn’t say I have ever had my work misconceived, really I am open to working on any type of genre.
LBB> What’s the craziest problem you’ve come across in the course of a production – and how did you solve it?
Eric> In a film I made for Toyota I wrote in a cliff diving scene, which ended up needing a stunt man to execute. The cliff was a lot larger than it looked (almost 80 FT) so planning that stunt was a new one for me and demanded a lot of patience and prep to ensure it was done so safely.
LBB> How do you strike the balance between being open/collaborative with the agency and brand client while also protecting the idea?
Eric> I lean on my EP’s and producers a lot to protect the integrity of the creative we set out to make. At the end of the day, there are always going to be differences in opinions. Our job is to push creatively without alienating what the agency or company is trying to achieve. At the end of the day the brand is the one who is allowing you to be a part of the show, so it’s your job to make sure everyone is walking away with something they are proud of.
LBB> What’s your relationship with new technology and, if at all, how do you incorporate future-facing tech into your work (e.g. virtual production, interactive storytelling, AI/data-driven visuals etc)?
Eric> All of this we leverage, volume walls to shoot car commercials, AI to embellish shots or help build out storyboards. They are tools in a toolkit, I think they can be seen as a nice lenses or a cool light. They embolden us as creatives and allow us to become solution-based storytellers. But nothing beats the real thing, and I don’t see that going away soon.
LBB> Which pieces of work do you feel really show off what you do best – and why?
Eric> I personally love working with Toyota all the work I have done with them over the year has been some of the most fun work I have done in my career. The 40th anniversary of the four runner was great as we got to shoot with every generation of 4runner. I also love my newest piece for Callaway Golf as we got to utilise motion control and paired with high-end CG which was somewhat new to me. The film I made for Cadillac was a nice challenge as it was the first time I got to work with a Volume Wall with a car that was still a prototype that couldn’t eve move. So, we had to accomplish it all through driving plates that were projected on the volume wall. Lastly, my work with Ray Ban I really love as it got back to my more documentary focused roots and allowed me to tell authentic stories about how artists developed their unique voices and how that translated that into a career.
