Tal Zagreb, the first Israeli to direct Pringles' global commercial (Photo: Nir Selkman)
So although the Israeli national team did not reach the World Cup and it is not clear when it will, but we have impressive Israeli achievements in the international arena, and yes - the last of them, at least temporarily, also concerns the World Cup.
You may not be familiar with the name Tal Zagreb, but the 33-year-old director is already closing an impressive career of almost a decade in the field of directing, mainly overseas, and yes - he is the first Israeli to direct the Pringles company's global commercial, which is broadcast worldwide (in three different versions ) during the upcoming World Cup.
Zagreba and an international team worked for several months on the advertisement, which was filmed in 3 variations: European, Asian and one suitable for the audience in the Arab world.
She was photographed last summer in Bangkok, in collaboration with the Ogilvy advertising agency, and was photographed by the photographer Andrew Strawbridge who worked with the leading fashion houses, Gucci and Vogue, among others.
So far so impressive, but there is no doubt that the achievement of Zagreba, who even started his career as a screenwriter, is even more impressive.
Before we tell the story of Zagreb's Cinderella in the international arena, a little about the auditions for Pringles that managed to bring out the soul even for the director, who a conversation with him gives the impression that he is the calmest person on earth.
From the advertisement for Pringles.
Everyone was sure he would reach 8200, but he only wanted to write (Photo: PR)
against the clock
"The acceptance processes for this story took several months. My agency actually submitted me as a director as soon as the proposal opened, and together with me at least ten different directors submitted proposals. Every week when I went through another step and another step, you wait for an answer, and then you have to write another addition. I think that just before The last step in which I was finally accepted was that I had a production file by hand of at least a hundred pages."
What do you mean they wanted to know every pips?
"Exactly like that. Every page should have exactly what it looks like, what they wear, you don't leave any room for imagination. You send them a storyboard of each frame. And only after they give the green light does the real thing begin. It's also a challenge in itself." .
I suppose that a budget for such an advertisement gives an abnormal creative freedom
"First of all, we had to shoot the commercial in several versions because it is broadcast in several territories, but we were against the clock the whole time. Yes, the advertising budgets are unfathomable and it is definitely a production on the scale of something I have never done before, and every time there are comments from the client and sometimes we start from scratch, And we were also hit by a tropical storm that disrupted our photography days a bit, so there was no lack of challenges.
But in the end what is less important here is the budget, it is important to them that you give yourself creatively, that you come with a vision, and of course it is also important in the end that the client I like the product, but there is a very important emphasis here on the creation."
How stressful was it to get the "yes"?
"I experience pressure as a thrill, for example I am involved in surfing and when I surf I can look for where I want to sit to take a wave that is on a big break or on a smaller break and it is more comfortable for surfing and I am always looking for the big waves, it excites me to even see the challenge and go towards it . So the pressure can be satisfying and creative. And actually last summer, Pringles arrived. Out of nowhere, for me, this is a milestone in my career, it's a great event. The World Cup is something really big."
As mentioned, Zagreba (33) began his career as a screenwriter and a spanner "In the evenings I would write scripts and during the day I worked at a shipyard after I obtained a skipper's license and from that I made a living. I mainly wrote for the Fringe theater for ensemble plays and the Temuna theater, and I pretty much searched for myself in the field."
He finished his military service as a newspaper journalist in the camp, even though he was destined for greatness and everyone thought he would be in 8200, but he knew he just wanted to write but didn't really know what.
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From the Pringles commercial.
He also directed commercials for Samsung, Schweppes, Volvo and McDonald's (Photo: PR)
Between humor and blackness
"At the same time as writing for the theater, I also enrolled in film studies at Tel Aviv University, but I left after a year because the studies were too theoretical for me, and I already wanted to work."
says Zagreba.
So he submitted a script to the New Cinema Fund, as part of a call for films of up to five minutes and forgot about it, one day he received a call that he won a small but very respectable grant of ten thousand shekels.
"The truth is that I've never directed, and I didn't really know what I was going to do with it, but I was told that if I didn't take advantage of the award, it would go to someone else. So I took it."
With the help of friends from school (one of whom is the producer of the film, Atara Frish, who is responsible for the series "The Commander") and zero knowledge of directing, he took the small budget and created "Humor", which was sent to all kinds of festivals abroad from the rest of the budget he received from the foundation and some other savings he had from shipping, And luckily it won, on the first occasion at an independent film festival in France in the short film category, in first place, later the film also won at the New York Film Festival.
You haven't started a career in Israel yet and you're already an international star?
"It's not exactly like that.
On the one hand, it's true, it was from zero to a hundred, and from parties where I find myself next to Ethan Hawke and Richard Gere, I suddenly return home and try to figure out what I do for a living, it was a hard landing back on the ground."
Because they weren't waiting for you here?
"Not really. I was lucky as a beginner, because suddenly you arrive. You find yourself in front of everyone. It's okay, there's a movie. The descent from Hollywood to here is shocking, but it also has some kind of opportunity. And I said that I need to figure out now how I manage to return to the sets As soon as possible, and the way was music videos. I said I would direct a music video for the artist, he has an interest in the work being good and high-quality and coming out quickly, not now for years."
The bet with the music videos worked, and soon he began working with artists such as Hadeg Nahsh, Infected Mashrom and Assaf Burgor.
Later he also worked overseas with French artists until, in 2016, he was signed by the international agency Great Gun, which represents, among others, the directors of "Black Mirror" and "Game of Thrones", and under its umbrella he already won the prestigious Young Director Award at the Cannes Film Festival and subsequently other international awards , including a silver and bronze medal in the New York Awards advertising competition.
Among other things, Zagreb directed commercials throughout his career, some of which became particularly viral: the commercial for Samsung, Schweppes, Volvo, and McDonald's.
When I try to understand what is the secret of his success, he answers that he never worked on two projects at the same time, even when he did not have a stable income.
"Everything I take, I live it 24/7 and that's probably for better or for worse."
How do you deal with success that seems meteoric, it's a bit of beginner's luck like you said, from zero to a hundred - isn't that scary?
"It didn't happen immediately, but in a process of 3-4 years actually. I directed "Humor" at the age of 25 and signed with the agency a little before the age of 29, so it is true that it happened at a very young age, but at the time every day felt like a year to me. Because I Killing oneself on a project and then it also takes time until it is published. I think that period was very forging for me, in which I learned what patience is."
At least we have a representative at the World Cup in Qatar, if not on the grass, at least during commercial breaks (Photo: PR)
Finishing the month
When I tell him that it's a Cinderella story, he doesn't really think so, but admits that since signing the contract with the international agency, he has more peace of mind, and the voices that at the time wondered how he was going to finish the month from working as a screenwriter or music video director, change to something calm.
"This is the first time I actually realized that I have a home to create in. Because until then, you create out of inspiration and love, of course, but you never know if it's good, how it will be received, whether it has a place outside, how it will resonate and how worthy it is at all You create out of reflex, and here I suddenly realized that for the first time I have an international house that really believes in my work."
do you live here or there
"I've had periods overseas but I basically live in Israel. Right now I'm in Jaffa. In ten days I'm flying to do a secret project in London. But by and large I'm here, my girlfriend is here, my apartment is here. But I love the spaces that this job allows."
Do you still get to work in Israel or is it too small for you?
"What's so small about me? I really like working in Israel and still sometimes do projects here. In terms of creativity, ideas and courage, Israel is on the international map. The only difference is the size of the budgets. In recent years, Israel has become very connected to the world. The world is a global village, and you see works of great directors and crazy works of Israeli directors and you say we give our heads."
Have you had any failures?
"I don't experience this path in a dichotomous way of success and failure, because in the end in every project I can break down into moments where I said wow how do we solve this and in the end we solved it. In difficult moments I know that I mustn't stop or go into a phase where I say 'I don't have How to solve it' or I'm helpless. I have to act. When these tectonic plates are moving you always have some sort of breach. Even here at Pringles, we're against the clock and suddenly a crazy storm starts and we had to do something or I lose the advertising, the advertising, the The precious hours. I cannot afford to work in a situation where I have no solutions because all eyes are on me, this entire budget is on me, so it's a very difficult moment, when you say how we will get out of this, and you leave."
Someone once told me that success in his eyes was when he could say "no" to projects, do you feel the same way?
"When I enter a project, creative freedom is important to me. I received your script and if you want me in this project, I need creative freedom. I need to be allowed to do it, but I've always been like that. Because I think that whoever is imbued with the feeling that he wants to do his part, but on the other hand Paralyzed by the need to please a client or people, he's screwed. I don't mind giving up on a project if I feel there's no chemistry between me and the client."
What ambitions should be fulfilled before the age of 40?
"The truth is that I don't make plans and mainly let life surprise me. After a global epidemic hits you, you realize that you have to flow and let things happen. When I was working as a music video director and I wasn't really able to make a living as I wanted, I realized that I was approaching 30 years old, committing suicide on productions but not being able to generate financial well-being, And I was really thinking of retraining, and then a film came that was accepted to Berlin and won another award out of nowhere, and just like the new fund came out of nowhere and took me out of the shipyard, life always has a way of sending you a lifeline, so I always prefer to flow and see where they take me, I Mostly curious to see what Yom will bring forth."
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FIFA World Cup
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