Director Walter May has come aboard the directorial roster of Synthetic Pictures. Already at his new roost he has helmed a Red Bull campaign for Omelet LA, and a LeBron James hidden camera stunt spot for Blaze Pizza.
May often works with celebrity talent including Katy Perry, Kobe Bryant, Mike Ditka, Serena Williams and Eminem. May, an L.A.-based director and former 72andSunny creative, is known for his stylized and design-driven visuals for such brands as Toyota, Starbucks, ESPN, Walmart, Activision and Smirnoff.
May brings to Synthetic more than five years experience on the ad agency side of the business as a hybrid director/editor/creative talent at 72and Sunny. He was a writer on the team which created “The Vet and the nOOB” for Call of Duty that won the Grand Effie Award.
In November of 2010, May launched a viral video for his girlfriend entitled “I Hope This Gets To You” which received over 1.3 million hits within 2 days. The song, which he co-wrote with the Daylights, reached Top 20 in both the iTunes Rock and XM Radio charts. The video won the Webbies “Best Viral Video” Award, a 2011 Cannes “Cyber Lion Finalist” award, as well as 2011 ThinkLA “Best Use of Social Media” award.
Synthetic executive producer Allison Smith was introduced to May through mutual friends after she found some of his work online. “He takes risks and his positive energy is invaluable,” said Smith. “Because he’s spent time on both the production and agency sides, he’s not afraid to get his hands dirty and figure out what will make the project work for the creative and the client. He’s not too precious about it, and that makes his work all the more interesting. It’s highly stylized and designed, but still accessible.”
May related, “My goals are to help adapt and define the new era of where production is going. Synthetic has an open mind about how to tell the stories, and they’re willing to understand my ideas and help guide me at the same time. It’s a great match.”
May’s directing has also been transitioning into the content world through documentary and web series. He filmed a documentary on Katy Perry’s Super Bowl XLIX Halftime Show performance. His web series “Trailer Park Heroes” starring Zac Levi, Nathan Fillion, Jason Biggs, and others was featured on Break.com and received millions of impressions within the first week of its launch. May’s love for music videos, photography and painting continue to be a creative outlet. In March 2016 his mixed media artwork with visual artist Tyler Ramsey went on display at CTRL Collective in Los Angeles, sponsored by TOMS, and multiple celebrities, creatives, and entrepreneurs were at the premiere party that saw nearly a dozen pieces sold on sight. May’s work combines his passions for storytelling, fashion, and visuals.
Synthetic Pictures specializes in commercials, branded content and filmed entertainment. Founded in 2002, Synthetic Pictures has offices in Los Angeles, Austin, and New York City.
