Filmmaker Jordan Brady conducted his first Commercial Directing Bootcamp in Los Angeles in 2015, and has held quarterly sold-out seminars every year since. From the outset, prospective attendees from out-of-town inquired about an online version. Brady has now launched his online Commercial Directing Masterclass, teaching directors how to have a career telling stories for brands. While the course’s 2-minute trailer boasts enough credits and star-studded snippets to convey Brady’s bona fides, he is further distinguished by his willingness to demystify the process for posterity.
“The day my jobs for April and May cancelled, it was time to answer the call to an online masterclass. I had to be creating – why not make teachable content that can help filmmakers?” Brady related. Pre-COVID, he had completed “Horsepower Challenge” for Dodge starring WWE legend Goldberg via Publicis Sapient, along with two projects that have not yet aired: a Buick project around the NCAA featuring cast members from the Netflix hit “Cheer,” via Leo Burnett Detroit (even sans broadcast exposure, an on-set Instagram post from cheerleader Morgan Lynn fetched more than 1.8M views), and Black Bear Diner via Loomis in Dallas.
Released two weeks ago, the Commercial Directing Masterclass has already garnered 5-star reviews. “I completed Jordan Brady’s online Masterclass & it’s worth its weight in gold!” said Dallas filmmaker Joe Harris. “It’s got voodoo & first hand on set BTS to go along with years of experience…for young commercial directors or those trying to level up…I highly recommend it!” “Great stuff! While I still want to attend the in-person bootcamp, this was well worth it,” added Brendan Cravitz, who lives in Tokyo. “I'm making this required viewing for everyone on my team.”
Additional online courses featuring other production industry experts are in the works, with a schedule to be announced by summer.
Created “on lockdown” in the midst of the current pandemic, the Commercial Directing Masterclass is rooted in principles of leadership that are both of the moment and evergreen. Brady credits his son, Ben, with making this masterclass possible. “I could not have done this without my son being a great DP and budding director,” he said. Fortuitously, Ben Brady – whose recent work as a director includes “Great Things,” a Gospel R&B music video that dropped last week, and a Jimmy Choo spec featuring Cara Delevingne – also shot the BTS footage around one of his father’s Toyota projects, which serves as a Case Study in the Commercial Directing Masterclass. That BTS, along with glimpses into a Brady-helmed Chrysler Pacifica campaign starring Kathryn Hahn, could alone serve as a masterclass in working with actors – and agencies – given the wealth of experience and information that is skillfully poured into Brady’s online tutorial.
With three other kids currently in college, where online courses currently make up 100% of the curriculum, Brady and wife Jeannette Godoy, also a director (represented through Hummingbird Content), are offering the Commercial Directing Masterclass as a turnkey solution for film, advertising and marketing colleges.
The Commercial Directing Bootcamp will carry on, Brady said. “Bootcamp is an eight-hour deep dive. Nothing beats an in-person, interactive seminar.” Filmmakers are already signed up for the next iteration June 27, 2020 in LA, with the limit lowered to 15 filmmakers in its 50-seat theater for appropriate distancing. Bootcamp alumni have variously gone on to secure commercial representation, garner trade press for their spot work, and receive nominations for the Cannes Young Director Award and other honors.
Visit http://www.commercialdirectingmasterclass.com/ for more information. Attendees completing the course by April 30 receive a 20-minute one-on-one consultation with Brady, as well as a discounted admission to Bootcamp.
About Jordan Brady
Jordan Brady directs commercials and owns a hot sauce brand.
