Porsche Awards 2015 Winners: Damien Krisl

The 2015 Porsche International Student Advertising Film Awards have once again highlighted fresh new commercial directing talent, garlanding spots as varied as the personalities behind them: from hardhitting charity films to sexy car shoots via comedic choreographed capers. Take a trip with us into the creative minds of these stars of spots to come

Tell us about your route into directing.

Ever since childhood I have been inspired by all kinds of visual imagery: films, clips, paintings, ads and photography. It was interesting how different images evoked different emotions in me. I saved the strongest images in my head and started to combine and collect them in my mind. After creating whole clips in my head I was upset because I couldn’t show them to anyone. I started to teach myself and learn from people I met about different techniques and skills for bringing my visions to life. I started filming and editing by myself. I realised many personal projects and started my own production company in Switzerland to create and finance my ideas. I have been focussing solely on directing for three years.

Tell us about the idea for your film, Emotion Starts On Red.

The concept of the agency, Armando Testa, was to show poetic symbols for what the car stands for: the performance of the car, its character and beauty. Those parts should express emotions like seduction, desire, passion, energy, adrenaline etc. Every element had to fit into the colour code of red. The idea was to show elements that give an unexpected touch and a unique artistic direction.

How did you approach the production and the process of applying your own original images to the existing driving footage, considering the commercial incorporates both?

The production was challenging because of the timing. We had a couple of days of preparation and included many more elements than were asked for. It happens more and more that clients ask to integrate existing product shots into a film like this. It always restricts the artistic direction and vision as they are never as you would need them to be to perfectly fit with your concept. To work around that requires a very precise pre-selection, editing and balancing.

Have you got a favourite shot and why?

I do have many favourite shots, mostly with our talented actress Amalie Lund and water. I love to work with water as it’s like a liquid mirror and you can create such abstraction with it. Also, a beautiful woman evokes more emotion for me than a car, to be truly honest.

What about the music? Why was the track such a good fit for you? 

The music gives the mood and feel of the film. It’s always a long research job to find the right track. Nancy Sinatra’s Bang Bang was perfect as it’s very unexpected and the melancholy vocals fitted perfectly with the surrealistic shots.