Scott Weintrob’s New Commercial Home Is Rakish

In a mutually bold move in pursuit of embracing the ‘art’ of ‘art and commerce,’ director Scott Weintrob has joined boutique Rakish for commercial representation.

Hailing from a background in long-form television, showrunning, and directing, the signing of Weintrob represents a perfect denouement of Rakish’s ‘phase 2.0’ of the company. 

Managing director and co-founder Preston Garrett said, “We’ve been doing our thing at Rakish for over three years now. Art-forward is what this next phase is all about.”

On joining Rakish at this time in the company’s evolution, Weintrob reflects on his own past and future, “I’ve had the pleasure of having a radical and eclectic career so far. Working with celebrities like Rihanna, Emily Ratajkowski, Gigi Hadid, Cindy Crawford; insane cars, fashion and music videos; a gamut of genre work. As I lay the groundwork for the next steps in my commercial career, Preston and Rakish’s vision for the future of advertising and commitment to filmmaking is exactly what I want to be a part of.”

Weintrob’s most recent ad work comes from a collaboration with GTB for a campaign launch of the Ford Expedition. “Cars are definitely a happy place for me, know what I mean?,” says Weintrob. For the latest narrative spot, Weintrob crafted a beautiful and captivating journey with cinematic detail that connects the viewer to the character.

In the world of long-form, recent credits of Weintrob’s includes the Emmy Award-nominated Fenty x Savage for Amazon which he developed and directed in collaboration with Rihanna. “Working with Rihanna was one of the most creative development processes,” Weintrob recalls. “It wasn’t just a situation where she showed up for the shoot, it was hours of hammering out the angle.”

Story-first is how Weintrob approaches everything, especially with the documentary work he’s been collaborating on with Netflix and Apple. Additionally, Weintrob directed episodes for the critically acclaimed and Emmy-nominated Apple TV+ series HOME, which showcases Weintrob’s strong connection to high-end documentary storytelling. 

“Real stories tend to be more fascinating to me than fabricated ones,” elaborates Weintrob. “Truth is stranger than fiction. So when I do dig into narrative, I’m always mining for the story within the story at the core of the characters, the world.”

“Outside of loving Scott’s work and filmmaking sensibilities, I feel it in my gut and bones that his instincts as a series-minded storyteller are absolutely the inevitable future of commercials,” adds Garrett. “I know I’m not throwing a lightning rod at anyone’s head when I say that. But when it comes to how Scott approaches a holistic view of storytelling, the lightning has certainly hit me between the eyes.”

Says Rakish co-founder and feature film director Marc Forster, “It is impossible to deny the direction advertising is going in regards to the collision course of commercials and long-form content. Beyond Scott's raw directorial talent, I consider his participation at Rakish more than directorial. He is a long-term visionary.”

“I’m energized to be a part of Rakish,” said Weintrob. “They are a company that other creatives talk about and admire. And Rakish has a very clear presentation as to what it stands for and what it does: making highly special, A++ work with a very select group.”

In the last few months, Rakish has grown its boutique roster with a handful of additional signings; as Garrett puts it, “To bridge the gap between amazing craft and art for the sake thereof. It’s no secret that every single commercial production company is keen on ‘storytelling’ and finding compelling ways to do so. But dammit, I’m determined to really turn over all the stones to find new ways to tell stories if I have to die on a hill for it. Joining forces with Scott is definitely right in line with this vision.”

Link to SW: https://www.rakish.us/directors/scott-weintrob