My shots Monday: Noah Conopask
After helming a promo for the Commonwealth Games, The Sweet Shop director gets to grips with the shots archives.
Noah Conopask is a director on The Sweet Shop’s roster and recently helmed a trailer to promote the BBC’s coverage of the Commonwealth Games, which kick off in Glasgow this week.
Building on the anticipation of the event, the promo presents a selection of athletes preparing for the physical and mental challenges ahead and saw Conopask shoot the scenes at various locations, scaling a range of sports to be represented at the Games.
To celebrate the work and occasion, below the director lists some of his favourite spots from our archives, adding commentary about why they inspire him.
The work I dream of making is adrenalised and physical yet poetic. All of these have that, and all of them are based on the idea of a journey. Nothing too glossy. Everything honest and true. There are more out there, but these five come to mind…
Director: Jonathan Glazer
Agency: AMV BBDO London
The score is amazing: tripped out, completely unexpected. It’s gutsy. It’s perfect. The way it is cut keeps it surprising, mixing the amazing visuals in a fun, quirky way. That lets Glazer create some incredible ethereal imagery, and direct a poetic, metaphoric artful piece without ever becoming pretentious.
Director: Rupert Sanders
Agency: T.A.G Media Los Angeles
Just. Awesome. It’s epic. Cinematic. Emotive. The lo-fi grime juxtaposed against the high CG action sequences makes both more effective. This cuts through. The cinematography is excellent. It’s frenetic. The story is full of heart, almost romantic. The character's situation feels real, and very dire! This is the Full Metal Jacket of video game commercials. Man it looks like so much fun to make.
Director: Noam Murro
Agency: DDB London
This is probably my favourite car ad ever. It has a timeless sophistication that I love. The score’s incredible; it has such an airy quality. It feels epic yet delicate. And Richard Burton’s rendition of Under Milk Wood is unforgettable and so powerful. It’s perfectly emotive: You feel the night drive and it feels so good. Hats off to DDB for leaving the car out of it. This one isn’t 'exciting' so much as completely intoxicating.
Director: Brett Foraker
Agency: Fallon London
What a weird, mesmerising, exotic idea. It’s almost a performance art piece, and I love the idea of the laser revealing all this to the audience. It’s experimental, rough and yet refined. Chaotic but pristine. Beautifully imperfect.
Director: Jaron Albertin
Agency: Publicis Rome
This is a dream. I want to be there. It's something far deeper than your usual Coke ads; this is about a type of person and it pulls you in. It’s athletic, but never traditional. And that’s hard, when you’re making another ad in this space with this 
style of movement and performance. But this isn’t just about the movement; it’s about the headspace and it holds you and doesn't let go. You want to watch it again
and again.
Watch Noah Conopask's playlist of spots here in his My shots folder. The Commonwealth Games takes place in Glasgow from from 23 July – 3 August and will be covered on the BBC in the UK.
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