Feiler, who is
represented in the U.S. by Accomplice
Media, directs three ads that poke fun at digital toys.

SANTA MONICA, CA—Tom Feiler has directed
three web spots for the
Toronto-based children’s store Kol Kid and Tribal Worldwide Toronto. The spots cleverly
communicate how tech toys can’t always fulfill the joy of traditional toys.
The ads are the centerpiece of a new, multi-faceted campaign for the
store celebrating the value of “simple play.”

Feiler, a father of two children, says that he strongly
identifies with the store’s philosophy towards play. “With electronic toys, whether
it’s a console game or something else, kids are asked to manipulate stories
that were created by someone else. The problems have been set,” he explains.
“Traditional toys are inherently tactile and they require kids to use their
imaginations.”

Like most great advertising, the three spots are based on a
simple premise and play like found moments. Their execution, however, was the
result of patient, and sometimes painstaking, direction. Feiler selected his
three actors through a lengthy casting process and employed a mix of
sympathetic coaching and child psychology to steer them to the performances he
was after.

“As much as the spots feel observational,” says Sanya
Grujicic, Senior Copywriter of Tribal Worldwide Toronto. “They’re actually very
directed by Tom. Yet the kids come across like real kids, not actors, that’s
what makes them feel relatable.”

For the spot with the kid on the staircase, Feiler gave the
young actor specific actions to perform as he was playing with the device, but
allowed him to improvise the critical moment where he decides to drop it. “I
knew that what he came up with would be better than anything I could give him,”
the director explains. “As with any actor, it’s all about knowing what he
needed.”

The spots’ seeming lack of artifice is typical of  Feiler’s approach to comedy, according to
Accomplice Media Executive Producer Mel Gragido. “Its been fun bringing him to
the  US market, as Tom has a very light
touch and yet the performances he elicits are invariably spot on,” Gragido
says. “These particular ads are funny because they capture moments that people
recognize as real.”

Feiler, who is also an award-winning still photographer, complemented
the video ads by shooting a large volume of product imagery for the Kol Kid
website. “I’ve done that for a number of campaigns,” he says. “It gives the
client a cohesive look and package across all media.”

The campaign also includes a “Play
Engine,” developed by Tribal, an interactive web application that parents
can use to come up with ideas for simple play activities such as finding shapes
in the clouds, Simon Says and how to make a homemade printing press.

For Feiler and the entire creative team the campaign was a
labor of love. “It’s something that we all felt very passionate about,” Feiler
observes. “We felt like it was insight on kids and technology that needed to be
shared.”

About Accomplice

Accomplice Media is a unique blend of award winning
directors, visual media artists and creative production teams creating and
telling stories for advertising agencies and brands through various media
platforms.  The diverse roster includes directors John Bonito, Don
Burgess, Sherpas Cinema, Duane Crichton, Tom Feiler, Josh Forbes, Jeff Gorman,
Sten Helvig, Vincent Laforet, Andy Lambert, Anniken Lien, David Jellison, Rick
Knief, Hans Petter Moland, Johan Skog and Guy Sagy.

For more information, visit 
http://www.accomplice-media.com/

Credits

Agency:          Tribal
Worldwide, Toronto. LP Tremblay, Creative Director; Denise Rossetto, Creative Director;
Andrew Bernardi, Art Director; Sanya Grujicic, Copywriter; Tiffany Chung,  Copywriter; Andrew Schulze, Agency Producer.

Production:    Code Film. Tom Feiler, Director; Andrew McCartney, Managing
Director; Alan Lukatela, Director of Photography; Magda Czyz Line Producer.

Edit:                School
Editing. Kyle McNair, Editor.

Post:               Fort
York. Paul Binney, Online Editor.
Notch. Jason Zukowski, Colorist.

Audio:             Pirate.
Stephanie Pigott, Audio House Director; Jared Kuemper, Audio House Engineer.