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Arts & Sciences signs Speck & Gordon
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The Oscar-nominated, Cannes-winning directors behind Blades of Glory, GEICO’s Cavemen and World’s Biggest Asshole join Arts & Sciences London.
Will Speck and Josh Gordon make things people actually remember.
Blades of Glory. The GEICO Cavemen and Gecko. World’s Biggest Asshole. Office Christmas Party. Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile. Hollywood films, television, multiple Cannes Lions, Oscar and Emmy nominations, and several characters who have managed to outlive the campaigns that created them.
Now Speck & Gordon are joining Arts & Sciences for UK representation.
Their partnership started at NYU Film School, where their short Culture, starring Philip Seymour Hoffman, earned them an Academy Award nomination.
Their first feature was Blades of Glory, starring Will Ferrell, Jon Heder, Will Arnett and Amy Poehler. It made more than $100 million at the US box office and received three MTV Movie Award nominations, including Best Picture and Best Kiss. They followed it with The Switch, Office Christmas Party, and Lyle, Lyle, Crocodile, and co-created, wrote, and executive-produced Marvel and Hulu’s Hit-Monkey starring Jason Sudeikis.
Alongside all of that, Speck & Gordon have maintained a prolific career in advertising, directing work for Apple, Meta, Amazon, Hellmann’s, Chevrolet, Levi’s, Wendy’s, Coca-Cola, and Budweiser. They helped launch GEICO’s Cavemen and Gecko campaigns, creating the rare advertising characters that became famous outside advertising.
Their Donate Life film World’s Biggest Asshole won ten Cannes Lions, six D&AD Pencils and the Webby People’s Choice Award. It turned one very simple thought, even an asshole can save a life, into more than 80 million views and an unprecedented uptick in organ donor registration. They also directed Devin & Glenn, part of the campaign to overturn California’s Proposition 8, starring Justin Long and Mike White.
Their history with London advertising includes early work for Levi’s through BBH London, which won four British Arrows, including Gold for Best Campaign. They have continued working with British agencies and creatives ever since. Speck & Gordon have always understood that the ridiculous works best when you play it straight.
Currently, Speck & Gordon are attached to direct the Nicole Holofcener-penned adaptation of The Wedding People for TriStar and The Chaperone, starring Jason Bateman, for Netflix. They are also developing The Oregon Trail for Apple, written by the Lucas Brothers, with original music from Pasek & Paul, and multiple films with Sony Pictures as an extension of their overall first look deal. And yet, spots remain a huge part of their creative life. Last year alone, they shot 10 campaigns globally, including several in London.
“Ever since Josh studied abroad for half a year in London and took on an accent, we’ve been wanting to get back to the UK,” said Speck & Gordon. “Some of our favorite creative experiences have been here. We’re super excited to partner with Arts and Sciences and figure out what their company name actually means.”
“Will and Josh have that thing everyone is looking for and nobody can manufacture,” said James Bland, Managing Director and Partner of Arts & Sciences London. “They make things stick.”
“They’re incredibly funny, obviously. But they’re filmmakers first. They understand story, actors, scale and tone. They know exactly how far to push something and, more importantly, when to leave it alone.”
Bland added: “I’ve known Will and Josh for years and I’ve wanted to do this for a long time. They’ve made things that became part of the culture, which is increasingly hard to do. Getting to work together again is a lovely thing. It helps that they remain extremely good at it.”
Speck & Gordon are represented by Furlined in the US, Steam Films in Canada, and Tony Peterson Films in Germany.
