Established commercial directors are the subject of this regular feature. Each issue we will profile their careers, accomplishments and the ideas that propel them to new advertising heights.

When Eddy Chu took to the director’s chair at the end of 1997, he caught the industry a little by surprise. Chu had started in 1982 as a casting video operator. From there, he went on to be a producer of television commercials, a role he played for about a decade.

Now, two-and-a-half years into this career, the Radke Films director has established himself as one of Canada’s top working helmers and has had a chance to view the industry from the other side.

Chu explains how he was able to change his role in the business: ‘I looked for opportunities,’ he begins. ‘A psa came up once and I just asked, ‘Who’s doing this?’ They said, ‘Well, it’s a psa, there’s no money and we don’t know who to give it to.’

Chu jumped at the chance. ‘I said, ‘Well I’ll do it, I don’t want to get paid for anything right now, I just want to see if I like it or not.’ And I liked it a lot. I thought it was a lot of fun.’

This first psa venture did not yield any immediate results for the producer-cum-director. Chu did, however, get the chance to direct two music videos for what he describes as ‘a no-name Canadian singer.’ From there, he says, ‘slowly but surely agencies kind of took notice.’

According to Chu, it took the agencies a little while to get used to him in his director incarnation. ‘A lot of agencies remember Eddy Chu the producer,’ he says. ‘And I guess they don’t really appreciate [my directing] until they see my reel and say: ‘Oh, Eddy did this? That’s kind of incredible.’

The director, who says his main focus is ‘telling a good story,’ also feels fortunate to have worked with so many ‘talented directors’ before his own foray into the craft. Even with a strong desire to ’emulate’ these directors, Chu quickly found he could not help but do his own thing.

Above all, Chu cites the late, legendary dop Fritz Spiess as his key influence. ‘What he taught me was discipline. He takes his work very, very seriously,’ says the director.

Chu, who does a lot of work outside Canada, would like to see Canadian agencies do a better job of utilizing the talent in their backyards. The Toronto native echoes the thoughts of many Canadian directors when he vents his frustration with the way agencies in Canada select their directors.

‘Really, nothing I can say or do will change how agencies in Canada pick and choose directors,’ he says. ‘There is a huge palette to choose from.

‘I’m right here and accessible and that may not be an attractive thing. They’ll say, ‘Let’s talk to Eddy, but guess what? We’ve got Joe Schlockenspiel over in l.a. We don’t know what he’s like, but look at him, he’s from l.a. and he’s Joe Schlockenspiel. We could get Eddy, but this guy will travel all the way from Los Angeles.’

With the sly savvy of an industry veteran, Chu is able to turn this trend to his advantage, when working in the States.

‘A lot of people [Americans] assume I live there, which is kind of good, because as you know, a lot of Americans don’t like Canadians because they feel that a lot of their industry is running away to Canada. So there is actually a strong dislike for Canadians. And if you flaunt that you’re Canadian [they’ll say], ‘Yeah, well piss on you.’ ‘

Chu spent ‘almost half’ of last year working in Italy. There, he discovered Canadians aren’t the only ones who overlook their own talent. ‘If there is a problem with using your own talent, they have one,’ Chu says of the Italian commercial industry.

However, he does get some jobs in Canada. Recently completed spots for Listerine and Kool-Aid keep Chu’s fingerprints on Canadian television sets.

Chu describes working at home as ‘a wonderful experience’ and says he has ‘the most fun working in Canada.’ On native soil, Chu is able to be ‘more involved with the post-production,’ as opposed to American directors who often ‘fly out and wash their hands of the job.’

The talented director has a word for the agencies: ‘Instead of quoting three Americans, they should be quoting a couple of Americans and a Canadian [director]. At least have an opportunity to use them.’

Sounds as if there are still a few producer neurons left lingering in this director’s brain.