The Story Behind Adland’s Very Own Version of ‘The Office’

Armand> For years, on almost every job, something ridiculous would always happen where we’d look at each other and say ‘this needs to be a show’. So, we finally decided to make that show. The world of commercial making is such an enigma to most people that it’s so ripe for satire.

Pam> I had been thinking about doing a show about the behind-the -scenes ridiculousness and fun of our business, but when JEAN joined Community and we met to say hello - we realised that they’d been thinking the same thing. We met in August 2018 at Grey Dog Cafe in NYC to say hello, and our little breakfast turned into a brainstorming session where Commercials was born.

Pam> We talked about it and had many phone calls where we shared our experiences and then went off to write some ideas. Early 2019 we started sharing our faves with each other and Community’s EPs Lizzie Schwartz and Carl Swan, and then realised that we really wanted to film some episodes and see what that would be like.

Natalie> The first place we looked for inspiration was to the day-to-day things that we experiencing in the industry. There are a lot of entertaining and, oftentimes, unforgettable moments that happen throughout our days that we were able to draw from. Shows like Veep and The Office were two references we talked about quite a bit. Both of those shows are grounded in reality but pushed just enough to keep things entertaining without getting too broad.

Pam> Honestly, we had so much fun talking about our various experiences on set - but we definitely got inspired by everything from Veep to Parks and Rec to Broad City and beyond. There are so many wonderful shows that give you a peek into their world - we wanted to do the same thing with ‘Commercials’.

Eric> As far as the look and feel we really wanted to ground it in reality. The plot’s pulled from reality, the characters are true to life, so visually we felt like the series should reflect the world we all work and live in. 

Pam> Real. Authentic. FUNNY. We wanted to show viewers the things that people who watch TV might not know about the commercials they see, and share the humour and dynamic of our unique world. We wanted it to feel accessible - even if you don’t work in our business, you can relate to the personalities, and the day-to-day ups and downs of what we do. Hopefully while laughing (and peeing your pants a little).

Eric> The characters tend to be an amalgamation of two or three people, but they reflect the various people and personalities we’ve encountered in the business over the years. The main goal was to create a world full of totally insane people, all of whom are being held together by the true lead character, Nate. Nate is the EP who has to manage ego-maniacal directors, clients, difficult agency requests and everything in between. He’s the rock and the true protagonist of the series. 

Pam> Ha - none. Of these. People. Are Based. On Actual People. I think we came up with characters that are a little bit of an amalgam of who we are, and folks we’ve encountered in our business. JEAN is a directing trio - we wanted to explore what that’s like. Nat and I are female directors, in a (up until recently) pretty exclusively male-dominated industry. I’ve been doing this for a while so I have definitely had the new director ‘envy’. I’ve never locked myself in a car, though, and I don’t have a Porsche.

Natalie> We had a lot of episode ideas based on various experiences over the years from when we were agency creatives to now directors. We’d have meetings where we would all sit down and reminisce about funny past experiences which acted as groundwork for the episodes. We’d then push the scenarios and storylines, making them funnier and a little left of centre. Some of the moments are close to the truth, some aren’t. 

Pam> Hahaha. Too many to mention and anyway, can’t share that, but hopefully you can view it in an upcoming episode.

Pam> Yep. But not me, I would NEVER do that.

Eric> For me it’s Ethnically Ambiguous. I love it because it speaks to a broader cultural conversation about PC woke-ness and race, but in the most stupid and idiotic way, which is basically the only way we can talk about serious issues. 

Eric> We love the way the episodes function as short-form content. They really allow us to craft a whole story around one, singular ludicrous situation. That said, we think it also has potential as a longer-format show. Yes it’s niche, but so was ‘Extras’ or ‘Episodes’ or ‘30 Rock’ for that matter. You didn’t need to work in the business to enjoy any of those shows. Whether you make commercials or work at a bank we think that everyone deals with ridiculous situations at work and in life and if this show ends up living in a longer format it would explore those very situations… just through a new lens. 

Pam> Yes. 100%. I also think that as more brands and advertising move into content, ‘Commercials’ is the perfect opportunity for brands to engage and be part of the content in a truly premium way. It’s beyond branded entertainment… and we can end each episode with the commercial we were referencing in that given episode. Could be super fun and memorable - how great is that?