Why It’s an Exciting Time to Be a Commercial Director
Nema Vand is a TV and film director at VaynerX’s Eva Nosidam Productions, where he creates a variety of content for Fortune 100 brands and artists, routinely directing high profile celebrity talent in campaigns.
His work frequently surpasses the one billion organic impression rate, and he has directed work for both Duracell ('I Buy My Own Batteries' with Ariana Madix) and Jimmy John’s ('MILF & Cookies' with Yung Gravy).
Before joining VaynerX, Nema spent four years starring on BravoTV’s hit show, ‘Shahs of Sunset’, and credits his time in front of the camera as foundational to his success in working with high profile and celebrity talent now that he’s behind it.
Name: Nema Vand
Location: New York City by way of Los Angeles
Repped By: VaynerX, Eva Nosidam Productions, VaynerWatt
Awards: Cannes Lions Shortlist for Innovative Use of Influencers/Creators 2024, Duracell - 'I Buy My Own Batteries'.
LBB> What are some upcoming projects that you're excited about? Tell us a bit about them?
Nema> I just wrapped a project with a big cellular carrier that I'm really excited about. The client came to us and wanted to create something that put the story first, which is core to the brand. We walked away with something really impactful, and I can’t wait for the world to see it.
I was also a co-director on CeraVe’s latest 'Hey It’s Me, Your Skin' remix campaign. Everyone knows the iconic CeraVe TVC campaign at this point, and the brand came to us looking to reinvigorate it.
We looked to TikTok for insights on how to do just that and found that remixes of original sounds were going very viral –– the ‘6'5” blue eyes’ finance remix is the best example.
Using that insight, we wanted to attempt vitality by creating a sound remix of the original TVC, and we brought in skincare influencers and dermatologists. We’re big believers at VaynerX that social is always at the centre of good creative, and this campaign held true to that.
I’m also spending a bit of my time working on brand integration into TV and streaming at VaynerWatt, a new production studio for original long and short-form content for linear networks and streaming services. We’re working on some really cool projects – more to come soon!
LBB> What excites you in the advertising industry right now, as a director? Are there any trends or changes that open new opportunities?
Nema> At the risk of sounding biased, I’m absolutely loving reality stars driving tremendous relevance for brands.
When you look at the cultural explosions that have happened among moments like 'Scandoval' and 'Love Island', it's a bit of validation for all of us. Brands that strategically leverage these moments in an authentic way are seeing the biggest ROI of any cohort that exists.
Reality audiences closely follow their favourite stars, and they are deeply invested in their lives and what they do on social media. Rachael Kirkconnell's recent appearance on 'Call Her Daddy' showcases exactly this – the attention was unmatched.
We’re actually working on a new social series to launch this year for VaynerX channels called 'Reality Bites' that will focus entirely on the impact unscripted stars are having on advertising.
LBB> What elements of a script sets one apart from the other and what sort of scripts get you excited to shoot them?
Nema> I get most excited when there’s a cultural moment that we're able to borrow against. And I love making people laugh. When I’m reading a script, I know that if I laugh, then the odds are others will too.
One of my favourite scripts I’ve worked on was for Eva Nosidam’s Buffalo Wild Wings campaign with Nick Cannon. We saw that his 12 kids were going viral because of an outrageous Disney receipt, so we created a hero video where Nick opens the cupboard and there are 12 ‘Best Dad’ mugs and the Disney receipt on the refrigerator.
It’s these types of authentic homages to culture that people connect with, but you have to have that moment for it to work. If it's just Nick Cannon talking about a ‘buy one, get one wing’ promotion, nobody will care. But because he's the guy with 12 kids; who is better than him to need a deal like that?
We’re looking for those fun, light-hearted moments that people already care about that we can pull into ideas.
LBB> How do you approach creating a treatment for a spot?
Nema> Unpopular opinion: I think treatments have a bit of outdated energy.
The best directors that I came up under used Google Docs for their treatments. I try to convey what my vision is in the clearest possible way and I use a simple formula: here’s the idea; here’s how we’re going to execute it; and here’s the social insight we're using to champion it.
I'm so bullish on social insights driving winning concepts, and the best treatments will make that connection clearly.
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?
Nema> If I'm working with a brand that I have no context on, I will dive deep on everything I possibly can. I start with a full audit on their social handles to understand how they are currently communicating to their audience. I need to understand the brand’s position on social biblically. Then I want to buy the product, live in the product, eat the product, whatever I need to do.
It’s essential to try the products that your client is selling and, as a bonus, it lets them know that you care. I'm very lucky that a lot of the brands I work with are products that I organically interact with every single day.
LBB> For you, what is the most important working relationship for a director to have with another person in making an ad? And why?
Nema> Outside of the client, who is ultimately the most important relationship you have as a director, the second most important person on set is the talent.
I want the talent to not only feel comfortable, but excited about the campaign too! Brands pay top dollar for celebrity talent and they’re trusting you to represent that partnership on set. It's important to make sure that both sides walk away really happy.
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?
Nema> I’m a TV guy. I came from TV and my roots are in commercials, but I’m really excited to see where brand integration in streaming is going, whether that's brand integration or owned production. I believe we’ll see a huge emergence of this in the coming months.
As a pop-culture junkie I’m also loving the progression of social listening and bridging insights to brands. I'm on TMZ and TikTok all day long always looking for some insight that we can tap into.
LBB> What misconception about you or your work do you most often encounter and why is it wrong?
Nema> The outdated ideology that a director can only work in one genre. If you can tell a story, connect to an audience, and understand the value of a script, you can do that across any genre.
Of course, there are nuances to each genre that have to be learned. I was told many times, “You're not a comedy guy, you're the reality guy.” Then I had the opportunity to work on the script for Eva Nosidam’s campaign with Buffalo Wild Wings and Nick Cannon, and suddenly I was the comedy guy. At the end of the day, I'm a director. A good director can work in any genre.
LBB> Have you ever worked with a cost consultant, and if so, how have your experiences been?
Nema> I have never personally worked with a cost consultant. I am very empathetic to the fact that brands have to be mindful of the budgets they have, and as a director, you drive a lot of that. Clients will always appreciate it if you can approach projects with empathy to their budgets. I want my clients to look at our relationship as a partnership, not a transaction.
LBB> What's the craziest problem you've come across in the course of a production, and how did you solve it?
Nema> I was on a three-day job once where a very high profile celebrity talent did not want to come out of her trailer on day one at all. We lost an entire day of filming. On day two, we were told that someone was going to stop by to speak to her – it was another high profile celebrity. They pulled up, went into the trailer, spoke with her, then left. In ten minutes, we were told she's ready to go and she absolutely crushed the rest of the shoot.
When things like that happen on set, you have to stay positive. In those moments, your clients are navigating the same stress that you're going through, except it's costing them millions of dollars. I always try to be the best partner by thinking about how I can support our brand partners and make sure everybody walks away happy.
LBB> How do you strike the balance between being open and collaborative with the agency and brand client, while also protecting the idea?
Nema> For me, it's more about protecting the insight versus the idea. The social insight is what's going to drive relevance for the brand. The idea is the execution. I'm very blessed that everyone at VaynerX is bought into our social-at-the-centre ideology. I will not take a job if I don't think that it's aligned with the core social insight, but there’s always a need for flexibility with the idea because brands will have their own tone, identity, etc. that may evolve ideas.
Ultimately, I have a professional obligation to score a cultural win for the brands we work with – that's my job and it’s not going to be right for everyone. I think more directors need to be honest about not being the right director for every job. That's okay.
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?
Nema> We spend a lot of our time developing directors in house at Eva Nosidam and we have a creator-led production program for our incredibly talented shooter-editors who we’re training to think like directors. These creators who show strength in filmmaking, filming, or editing are being brought in at the earliest level to master our social-at-the-centre production philosophy.
TikTok has also opened a ton of doors, and the TikTok-ification of content means that anyone can grab a phone and make great content in your dorm room or wherever you are. We're seeing so many people making commercial, branded campaigns right in their dorm room, editing with After Effects, and achieving amazing visual creations. It’s a really exciting time to want to be a commercial director, because the barriers to entry have never been lower if you want it bad enough.
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)?
Nema> Zero. As a director, I am always thinking about making the best thing. Different pieces of content are going to land on each platform in different ways. VaynerX is brilliant at creating a surround sound strategy that optimises to those platforms. As a director, I'm always focused on the hero story, and I trust the brilliant people around me to scale and optimize it for different formats and platforms appropriately.
LBB> What’s your relationship with new technology and, if at all, how do you incorporate future-facing tech into your work?
Nema> AI is probably the most prevalent space where I work, and I’m very bullish on it. I've spent a lot of time learning at the platform level. For example, YouTube’s AI studio is now showing you how the first six seconds of your edit determines whether someone’s going to watch your whole video. These insights are critical for filmmakers to think about because that performance is what drives business impact.
Generative art is also something I'm really excited about. We're not there yet, but we'll be there soon. Being able to paint a stadium, for example, and have an audience change from one fan base to another fan base in an instant is something that will allow filmmakers to really push the boundaries of their creativity.
LBB> Which pieces of your work do you feel show what you do best – and why?
Nema> Duracell’s 'I Buy My Own Batteries,' and 'I Always Bought the Batteries' are both close to my heart and projects that I’m very proud of. People loved Scandoval, which inspired the ads, but I was most proud that Duracell came out the winner, not Scandoval. There were thousands of comments hyping and praising Duracell for its ability to successfully tap into the moment. The brand really won. The spot was also shortlisted at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity in 2024 - which I’m really proud of.
Another one is Jimmy John's 'MILF & Cookies' spot featuring Yung Gravy. Matt fully understood the assignment and leaned in hard to the Bachelor spoof concept. I loved that it didn’t feel like an ad. I remember a conversation I had with Gary (Vaynerchuk) before production. He said, “If my Dad watches this and thinks it's a real TV show, you’ve won. If he thinks it's a commercial, you’ve failed.” Challenge accepted - and I think challenge won!
