The Work That Made Me: Sam Ciaramitaro

Sam Ciaramitaro is an award-winning director at content development and production company Rodeo Show, who has worked with the likes of Chevy, Coca-Cola, Delta Airlines, Kellogg’s, McDonald’s, Morgan Stanley, Nationwide, Porsche, and Toyota. During his previous role as an agency producer, Sam produced and directed a Cannes Lion-winning US Army campaign. As part of the project, he interviewed people at all levels of the military. This laid the groundwork for his ability to truly listen, a skill at the heart of his directing philosophy. Today, he continues to capture the strongest and most authentic performances from both actors and non-actors alike, all in the spirit of telling the most genuine story possible.

The ad/music video from my childhood that stays with me… 

The 'Highland Appliance: Lamborghini vs. Clunker' commercial by W.B. Doner. My uncle was a huge appliance guy in Detroit, Michigan and his competitor, Highland Appliance, ran this commercial comparing car stereos. It was a race between a beat-up car and a Lamborghini. It went: “This is the sound of a $65,000 Lamborghini from the outside…” (sounds perfect). “This is the sound of a $350 clunker from the outside…” (sounds terrible). Then they compare the sounds of the cars inside and they sound identical because of Highland Appliance’s best-in-car stereos. Of course, at the end, when the race begins, the Lambo smokes it and the beater barely leaves the line. I was probably three when I saw it and I still remember it. 

The ad/music video/game/web platform that made me want to get into the industry…

When I was in high school, we had a strong film programme and I got my start shooting short videos and films for Ford Motor Company. Garrett Brown's invention of the Steadicam is what made me want to get into the business. As a kid, I was always captivated by the camera and, to me, cinematography was movies at a basic level with its moving pictures. The Steadicam was magical because, all of a sudden, the camera could float through the air and had a different quality from a dolly shot or anything else. 

The creative work (film/album/game/ad/album/book/poem etc) that I keep revisiting… 

I loved Spielberg growing up – E.T., The Color Purple, Jaws, etc. A highlight of my career  was working with and then becoming friends with the cinematographer, Allen Daviau. Beyond his style, he was someone I was aware of earlier than others due to his incredible career and body of work. It was very exciting to be working with Allen who had DPd films that were such a big part of my upbringing. I felt very lucky.

My first professional project… 

I directed a couple of small commercials for McDonald's followed by a massive campaign for the US Army. The Army campaign was unheard of in the commercial world since we were asked to shoot for more than 80 days in a row and were working with a budget that was akin to a small film. I was charged with figuring out how to shoot around the clock, so I had six teams rotating throughout the day during the first couple of weeks of basic training. I planned to shoot one TV commercial per week based on the most interesting events of the week. Then, we had a separate component that focused on the online content where we created about a dozen pieces per week for 11 weeks. In many ways, it was the precursor to the fast filming for Instagram and TikTok that you see happening today.

The piece of work (ad/music video/ platform…) that still makes me jealous… 

Jake Scott did a really nice commercial for Nike called 'Move', where he did jump cuts from scene to scene just by matching the imagery. It's very understated without effects and requires great skill.

The creative project that changed my career… 

The Army campaign was the first project I had been a part of that won a tremendous amount of  awards, including a Cannes Lion. It was a huge undertaking and was one of the first to be fully shot on HD video, instead of film. 

The work that I’m proudest of… 

I left my position as a senior producer to create and show-run my own television series in partnership with Major League Baseball. The six-part docuseries follows six minor league athletes chasing their dreams all the way to the Major Leagues. My work for the US Army is a close second.

The recent project I was involved in that excited me the most… 

The “Corvette Academy” project, which I directed earlier this year, is a four-part digital campaign introducing the all-new 2023 Corvette Z06. It's the closest thing to a street-legal, high-performance race car that Corvette has ever produced. In a way, it was a full-circle project for me. I grew up in Detroit hearing about cars every day and my father often spoke of the 1967 Corvette he used to drive. So, directing a series of films for the Chevrolet Corvette in Detroit was a bit of a homecoming. It was just one of those experiences you look forward to.