On My Radar: Rhea Scott

Rhea Scott has been president at LA production outfit Little Minx since its founding in 1998. The avant-garde company was formerly partnered with RSA Films and, as of 2014, has become a standalone entity.

Scott is currently producing a new film titled Love True, executive produced by Shia Labeouf and directed by past Tribeca Film Festival winner Alma Ha’rel.

Below, she takes us into her world away from the logistics of filming to tell us about some of the things that inspire her as well as offering her thoughts on the industry.

What’s the best ad campaign you’ve seen recently?

Francois (from Hervé and Francois, Oscar winners for Logorama) just sent me a trailer of a new Ubisoft game he has been working on for months. Not just to plug in one of my guys, but it’s amazing!

What website(s) do you use most regularly and why?

MUBI. Each day it has a great new film curated which you most likely have never heard of. That’s my inspiration.

What’s the most recent piece of tech that you’ve bought and why?

I don’t buy tech, I hold on to old phones as long as I can. But, if there is a phone that does not heat up my ear and whose battery lasts for more than one day, let me know. That, I will buy.

Facebook, Instagram or Twitter?

Instagram. I have located great artists I would have never come across otherwise.

What’s your favourite app on your phone and why?

This American Life with Ira Glass. It dawned on me recently that there is actually one good thing about all the driving we do in LA. My twins and I are sucked into the story till the end, silence in the back seat. I am sure that beats any electronics.

What’s your favourite TV show and why?

Downton Abbey. I keep searching for season 6. I wonder if that’s how it felt wanting to watch General Hospital every day. Or Family Guy.

What film do you think everyone should have seen?

Force Majeure.

Where were you when inspiration last struck?

Summit Series, in Eden Valley Utah. Four young fellows’ version of a less corporate TED, combining great talks, out of the box thinkers, young and not, excellent food and music in a glorious setting. I always feel inspired.

                                Scott's daughter Cuba Tornado at Summit Series.

What’s the most significant change you’ve witnessed in the industry since you started working in it?

The desire for all of us to get into branded content: combining what we know and have been exposed to in advertising and applying it to creating films or longer content. The two worlds still feel quite distant, and to persist in the new space is a bit like going through rooms in pitch darkness. It’s frustrating, but exhilarating when it works.

                           Scott with friend and RED rep, Holly Ross.

If there was one thing you could change about the advertising industry, what would it be?

To stop playing it safe and going with the usual suspects.

What or who has most influenced your career and why?

David Fincher. His Madonna video for Bad Girl was the first job I oversaw at Propaganda Films. I was barely out of college and terrified.

The following year, David directed the Rolling Stones during which he challenged Digital Domain to do comps they never thought possible. I was completely wowed by him and he gave me the drive to always reach for excellence.

Tell us one thing about yourself that most people won’t know…

On a daily basis I fluctuate between a desire to work in an orphanage in Africa and a desire to breed Andalusian stallions [below]. That’s quite a contrast.