Jonny Zeller is Challenging the Myth "That If It’s Not On Your Reel, You Can’t Do It"

A lot of people can come up with great ideas. Jonny Zeller can do that with the best of them, but he also has the resources to actually bring just about any crazy idea to life. Toss in his curated network of best-in-class actors, musicians, and influencers, and it’s hard not to want to jump on board.

When he’s not on the other side of the world crafting campaigns, you can probably find him hitting jumps on his snowboard, scuba diving (hopefully with no sharks around), or hunting down the best food in LA. If you ask nicely, he’ll probably share some of his secret spots.

Name: Jonny Zeller

Location: LA, Global

Repped by/in: REEL FACTORY (Oceania), Versus NYC (US East Coast), Tidetivity (US West-Coast), and Mol (South America)

Awards: More than my parents expected. Far fewer than Scorsese.

LBB> What elements of a script set one apart from the other, and what sort of scripts get you excited to shoot them?

Jonny> Scripts that leave space for interpretation always stand out because that’s where I get to inject a bit of myself into the process. And part of that is wanting viewers to feel like the campaign wasn’t just made for them, it was made with them in mind.

The reality is, you often get hired for what’s already on your reel, which doesn’t always line up with the work you want to be doing. So when a script lands that feels like my style, but bigger, bolder, and/or more stylised, that’s the dream.

I immediately see this as a chance to elevate the work, and it's a project I’m excited to add to my reel.

LBB> How do you approach creating a treatment for a spot?

Jonny> First off, a round of applause to the agencies that give us a proper timeline. It’s always a bummer to get a brief on Friday afternoon with a deadline of Monday EOD.

My process always starts the same: lie down on the couch, close my eyes, and try to visualise the spot like it’s already finished. Then I bang my head against the wall trying to figure out how I can complement or elevate what’s in the brief. Eventually, there’s a moment where the concept clicks and I find my unique take. That usually comes from seeing the intersection of what’s cool, what the client needs, and what the audience cares about.

I’ve got a spreadsheet of reference videos that I’ve built up over the years, so I draw inspiration from that and, of course, source images that already feel like the world we’re trying to create. From there, I work with a designer to make it beautiful and hopefully irresistible.

​LBB> If the script is for a brand that you're not familiar 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?

Jonny> I do a lot of research. Based on my research for all the projects over the years, the YouTube and Google algorithm has no idea who I am anymore.

I try to understand the entire ecosystem around the brand, their competitors, the industry, and even the tone of their previous campaigns. I want to show up as if I already work on their internal marketing team. I think that level of prep helps the client feel seen and helps me craft something that actually works.

LBB> For you, what is the most important working relationship for a director to have with another person in making an ad? And why?

Jonny>  It’s a tie between the creative director and the DOP.

They’re both partners on set, but in very different ways. There’s often a lot on the line, and stress levels can be high. It’s not worth doing this job if you have to do it with assholes or people you don’t care about.

With the creative director, it’s about trust and alignment. If we’re aligned, we can make quick decisions under pressure. When things inevitably shift, we don’t panic, we adapt. They help protect the brand, and I help protect the execution.

The DOP, on the other hand, is my closest collaborator on set. They often act like a sounding board and confidant for me. Sometimes, I’ll look at a scene and if I’m not totally convinced, I can pull the DOP aside and say, “Is this working? Am I crazy?”.

Then I take their feedback to heart. I think it's always important to have that person you can trust who’s going to give you a straight, no-bullshit answer.

Also, we shouldn’t forget the production company EP. They’re the ones who work hard so that I even have the chance to be on set in the first place. Thanks to my production partners, Reel Factory, Versus NYC, Mol, Current Resident, and Tidetivity.

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?

Jonny> I’m drawn to projects that have action, narrative, and a sense of scale. I love building worlds that feel a few degrees off from ours, close enough to relate to, weird enough to get lost in, so I enjoy including VFX with a little surreal twist on reality.

I get the most fired up about transmedia and multi-platform storytelling. I often think about what makes someone stop scrolling and lean in. Because of that, when I’m developing a project, I’m already thinking about how the story can unfold across formats: short film, social, interactive, and even live experiences. It’s so fun to develop content that sucks the audience in and where every deliverable has its voice specific to the platform it’s on.

I could nerd out about world-building and narrative ecosystems for days.

LBB> What misconception about you or your work do you most often encounter and why is it wrong?

Jonny> People assume that if it’s not on your reel, you can’t do it. It’s such a common trap and even I catch myself doing it when considering DOPs or an editor. But it’s not the right way to approach it. A reel reflects what you've been hired to do, not the full scope of what you're capable of doing.

We’re constantly evolving as artists. Just because there’s not a moody black-and-white fashion spot or a gritty documentary-style piece on my site doesn’t mean I don’t have a killer one in me. I wish people made space for a little more curiosity and a little less checkbox thinking.

LBB> Have you ever worked with a cost consultant? How have your experiences been?

Jonny> Oh yeah. I’ve been part of many projects that went through the cost consultant gauntlet. I get it. Their job exists because of years of inflated budgets and bad behaviour across the industry. So yeah, there’s a place for them -- and I’m sure they’re nice people!

That said, cost consultants are really good at identifying problems, but rarely offer solutions. It’s frustrating when line items get slashed with no explanation beyond “client wants to spend less.”

Cool. But less what? Less crew? Less safety? Less quality? It puts everyone in a weird spot. The best collaborations happen when the consultant becomes part of the conversation, not just a red pen.

LBB> What’s the craziest problem you’ve come across in the course of a production -- and how did you solve it?

Jonny> Where do I even start? One time, the scene required a massive helicopter to carry a boat over a lake in Mexico. Between cartel payoffs and weight restrictions on the chopper, it became a logistical nightmare. Producer Tim Frazier literally siphoned jet fuel with his mouth to make the math work for the payload weight. Legend.

There was also the time we were stuck in Johannesburg trying to get to Zambia. Thousands of angry passengers were fighting for the same flights, and we had to charm our way through the chaos. Hot tip: if you’re shooting in a developing country, hide your bribe money in your shoe.

Or the “picture boat” crashes into a wall while being trailered and then has to get repaired and new graphics ready for our sunrise shot the next day (we got it).

Or the sinkhole that swallowed half our parking lot the night before the shoot. Or the mistaken identity police chase in Thailand.

LBB> How do you strike the balance between being open/collaborative with the agency and brand client while also protecting the idea?

Jonny> I get emotionally attached to the concept.

I can’t help it. When I sign on, I start living inside the story, so when creative changes or logistical pivots pull it apart, it stings.

But here’s the thing: it’s a team sport. You learn to pick your battles and be fluent in creative diplomacy. My past life of shooting action sports has trained me to make decisions quickly and think three steps ahead on the repercussions of each pivot. Not every hill is worth dying on, and not every compromise is a loss. My job is to create the best version of the idea while ensuring the agency and client feel heard and safe throughout the process.

At the end of the day, we’re all trying to make cool shit that we’re proud of.

LBB> What are your thoughts on opening up the production world to a more diverse pool of talent? Are you open to mentoring and apprenticeships on set?

Jonny> I’ve had great mentors throughout my life, and I try to return the favour whenever I can. Mentorship matters. I’ve worked with a lot of mentees over the years, and I get just as much out of it as they do.

Also, let’s be real, most of the crew on set either wants my job or thinks they could do it better. And that’s fine. That hunger is what drives people to level up. Every director has their own style and perspective, so while technically we’re all competing, I don’t really see it that way. The more voices, the better.

LBB> How do you feel the pandemic has influenced the way you work? Have you picked up new habits that you feel will stick around for a long time?

Jonny> I became more of a homebody than I ever expected. I live in Santa Monica by the beach, so it’s not exactly a terrible place to be grounded, but I used to thrive on movement.

Planes, locations, new people. Now I catch myself defaulting to “close to home".

That said, I’m working on snapping out of it. I’m an extrovert at heart, and I get my best ideas from being in the world. The pandemic created some habits I didn’t see coming, but it also reminded me how important it is to stay connected.

LBB> Your work is now presented in so many different formats. To what extent do you keep each in mind while you're working (and, equally, to what degree is it possible to do so)?

Jonny> I’m obsessed with storytelling across platforms.

I try not to think in shots, but in ecosystems. So that means that I’m constantly aware of how the project can work across formats -- paid media, organic social, retail screens, broadcast, immersive, you name it. Each deliverable should drive toward something bigger than itself.

I also actually enjoy thinking about campaign strategy. Creative directors are often surprised when I start talking about content funnels or where a particular asset fits in the customer journey. But that context helps me make sense of why we're doing this. If I know how and where the content is meant to live, I can craft something that not only looks amazing, but actually works.

To me, that’s part of the fun. And it’s all possible with good communication early on. I tell CDs and producers all the time, “Bring me in early and let’s sort all this stuff out from the start.”

Then we can be proactive with the creative rather than reactive.

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)?

Jonny> I’m all in. Virtual production is one of the most exciting tools in my toolbox right now. I’ve also worked on a few immersive 360 VR projects, and enjoy dreaming about “what’s next” for how we engage with audiences.

I’m also into interactive storytelling and gamification because they turn passive viewers into participants. I think there’s huge potential here. I wish we got to do more of it, honestly.

AI is interesting too. I use it for ideation and development, but I’ve definitely heard, “Can we just use AI to cut costs?” a few too many times lately. That’s when it gets dicey. It’s a tool, not a replacement. At least, not if you want the work to feel human.

LBB> Which pieces of work do you feel really show off what you do best -- and why?

Jonny> Crossfire: Sierra Squad -- A high-octane, immersive VR experience that shows my love of world-building and working with virtual production. And explosions obviously.

Kia EV9 -- Clean, cinematic, with some good character moments.

Wise, Debinha in the airport -- Fast, full of energy, and I still can’t believe we closed off a section of an international airport and filled it with 100+ crew and nearly 150 extras.

Montejo, Defy the Ordinary -- Massive multi-platform campaign, a glimpse into the culture of Southern California, stylised and raw.