Austin Formato - The Director's Cut

By Chris Hill
05.01.2008

Austin Formato, the 2008 Coca-Cola Refreshing Filmmaker's Award winner, earned his placement in Hollywood the smart way. We caught up with Austin in L.A. and he gave us the inside look on his journey, his secret to staying ahead and his advice to aspiring directors.

When did you make the switch from advertising to film-making?

I was doing very well in advertising, you know. I was writing for all the top clients like American Express, Jaguar, Miller Lite and Maxwell House. I mean it was a great job, but at some point you kind of have to say, "Is this it?" There were so many people in advertising trying to get a thumb print on creative ideas, and 60 seconds wasn't long enough for me. I was pushing 30 at the time, and I ultimately decided to give up the money and the comfort and the only way to do it is to get out cold turkey and within a short amount of time I bought a car and drove cross country and started my life out in L.A.

Did you have any networks or connections in L.A?

Very few. They were all advertising based. When I worked in advertising, I essentially started on the account management side. I was  the youngest account supervisor at Ogilvy, which was one of the top firms. At the same time I took night classes. I then made a switch over to the creative side, and was hired as a mid level writer.

I figure you need to do all sides of business. If your going to do something, you have to do it properly. This is why I decided to go to film school. I could have gone the commercial directing route, but I completed my MFA in directing at UCLA. Now I am getting ready to finish my MFA in screenwriting. The thing is you really need that. Nobody's going to give you a job to direct without a commercial piece or property that you are attached to. This is true whether you have written it yourself or with a screenwriter buddy of yours that believes in you enough to say, "Hey I'm going to opt over you to direct this, instead of Christopher Nolan". By being self sufficient and completed involved, you are never going to go hungry. Frankly, the more things you can do in the business, the better chances you have of sticking around as well as breaking in.

 

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The 2008 Coca-Cola Refreshing Filmmaker's Award
Silver Lion at Cannes
The 2007 Limelight Award
International Automotive Advertising Award
Motion Picture Association of America Award for Excellence