2014 in Review with... Missy Galanida

DNA executive producer Missy Galanida thinks that 2014 has been a great year for creativity and believes that 2015 will rival it, while clients also shake things up by looking outside traditional agency models for more bang for their buck.

How would you describe 2014 for the industry, creatively speaking?

In 2014 we reached new heights creatively. We hadn’t come close to experiencing anything like this before. The sources of the creativity, and the mediums it’s being produced for, are two components that have both been ramped up significantly this year. This has been coming for quite some time, of course.

However, I feel that 2014 was the year in which the traditional 30- or 60-second spot has finally taken a back seat, at least percentage-wise, with the boards that have been crossing my desk.

We’ve also seen a lot more packaging of campaigns, where we’ll be tasked with shooting the 15s, 30s, and 60s, shooting the digital component, and producing the photo campaign in one shoot.

And what about your own creative performance in the last 12 months?

This has been a fun year at DNA. From DirecTV’s Fantasy Football Fantasy (Director X), to Samsung’s World Cup anthem (Christopher Sims), to projects for Honda and Nissan (Rich Lee), to the US Postal Service’s Amazing Delivery (Marc Webb and Rich Lee), we’re really proud of our directors and the work we’ve produced from the small screen to the big screen.

On the music video side we’ve had a banner year as well, having shot Iggy Azalea's Fancy feat. Charli XCX [above] and Black Widow feat. Rita Ora (Director X), Eminem’s Monster feat. Rihanna and Rap God (Rich Lee), and Pharrell’s Gust of Wind (Edgar Wright) [below], among many others. Those have all found fans in a number of places.

And of course, it’s nice to see the success of our directors, our family really, on other fronts as well, with Francis (Lawrence) taking the Hunger Games franchise to another level and Marc killing it with The Amazing Spider-Man films.

What are you most excited about for 2015, workwise or other?

At both DNA and AND (an affiliated new media collective and production company I also executive produce for), we have a staple of bright young directors who represent the new breed of filmmaker: they do it all, and do it all brilliantly.

With an increase in the amount of content work that will surely be up for grabs in 2015, there’s no doubt that these directors will have a bigger sandbox to play in. Many of our directors have a music video background, and with that comes a way of working that is ideal for these commercial content pieces; they can work nimbly and cost-effectively without sacrificing quality.

So, in 2015, we at DNA and AND are excited to put the talents of these directors on full display.

And what are your predictions for the industry in general in 2015?

Clients will continue to feel out which medium they want to spend their ad dollars on, and test how much they can feasibly get done outside the traditional agency framework. Change is good - actually, change is great - as long as creativity doesn’t suffer for it.

I still think competition will be as stiff as it was in 2014, but I feel that the workload will increase this year and it will be a busy 2015.

Which campaign or piece of work will you remember from this year?

I would have to say working on the USPS, Amazing Delivery [below] spot directed by Marc Webb and Rich Lee. It was nice to work with Marc again since he had been off working on The Amazing Spider-Man 2 movie, and it’s always fun watching Marc and Rich work together. It was also great to be a part of such a massive tie-in for the movie and the United States Postal Service.