Award-winning directors Mark and Matt Hoffman were born and raised in Ashland, Oregon. An encounter with Close Encounters and Star Wars at a young age had a powerful impact on them both, and when their dad brought home a video camera, when they were around 7, that was it. They were soon making weird films (their words) inspired by the heady combination of Monty Python, Saturday Night Live and sports.
Later, their love of sports and film came together perfectly when an old friend who worked for Nike remembered those ‘weird sports films’ and got them to make some no budget, early internet viral films (before viral films were a thing) for him. They loved it.
Now, they might work together; they might work separately; it all depends on the script. But whoever’s at the helm, they create story-driven commercials that have real dynamism and effortless cool, demonstrated in spades in their work for Gatorade, Canada Dry and Nike.
Fave sports teams – Ducks and Blazers (nope, us neither).
Best bit of advice ever given to them – Don’t be an asshole (from their parents)