In this Tongaler of the Month interview, you’ll meet the one and only Derek Underwood. He may have only won once (so far…) but it was a big one -- his Wildcard submission for IAMS Love Tails placed FIRST and earned him a cool $20,000. Below he tells us how spending time in his father’s video store as a kid in Panama helped him realize he wanted to work in the film industry. Read on to learn how his altruistic motives and his adorable dog Brooks helped him break into the Tongal Leaderboards. Plus, he offers some advice to his fellow Tongalers…
Ingrid V.: How did you first get involved with Tongal?
Derek Underwood: I first got involved with Tongal by chance to be honest. A friend of mine, Frank Ponce, was directing a Wildcard Video for one of the Crest 3D Whitestrips campaigns and I was set to Assistant Direct the project. Due to circumstances, Frank had to drop out of the project so he vouched for me and recommended that I direct it instead. We made the submission, but unfortunately we were not selected as the Wildcard winners. Frank actually went on to direct a separate submission for another concept he had for the same project and placed first on that campaign.
The whole experience familiarized me with the Tongal process. After that I started making Idea, Pitch and Wildcard submissions. I noticed the top Tongal creatives were consistently placing and I've made it a goal to keep striving for that level of success on Tongal.
IV: What's your filmmaking background? Where did you get your training?
DU: I have a B.F.A. in Creative Writing and an M.A. in Film and Television. I focused on producing, directing, editing and screenwriting at film school. My father ran a video store from underneath our house in the Republic of Panama when I was young. I guess that was where my film theory training started from having access to over three thousand films as a kid. I've been experimenting with video and photography since I was about ten years old. I've always been fascinated by images whether still or moving. I started editing VCR to VCR as a child and shooting title cards on PowerPoint. And, as technology advanced and editing software became available to guys who would normally not have any access to said equipment, I started creating more video content. I've always known there is nothing else I want to do with my life.
IV: What do you do aside from submitting to Tongal projects?
DU: I'm an actor as well, so I go out on auditions in my free time. I work on scripts. I do freelance editing when I can. I've worked for development/production companies. Basically, any work I can get in the film industry I take. I'm always looking to learn as much as I can about the business. I feel that as soon as you stop learning you're going to sink as sharks do when they stop swimming. I'm surrounded by some very talented filmmakers, so whenever I can I help them with their projects and take the opportunity to learn from them.
IV: You submitted a beautiful and emotional Wildcard for the IAMS Love Tails Project. What spoke to you about this project?
DU: We had a very quick turn around for this project because I didn't find out about it until late in the game. I contacted a friend of mine, Hodges Usry, and told him a little bit about the project and about my relationship with my dog Brooks. I asked him if he would be interested in co-directing the spot with me and he was on board.
The project spoke to both of us because we read that IAMS was looking for something heartwarming. A special Love Tail. We really wanted to tell this particular story because we felt it was a very selfless Love Tail. You know, it wasn't so much "me and my dog," but "me and my dog helping people." My hope with the video was that people would watch the video and say, "I want to get my dog certified for pet therapy." To promote volunteer work. It's very rewarding to see how happy pet therapy makes people. It makes me want to tear up now thinking about it -- when you walk into some of these places, whether it be a nursing home, an assisted living home, a VA hospital, etc., the way people's eyes literally light up knowing that someone cares and is taking time out of their day to be there with them. It makes them feel so special. Even the people that don't "like" dogs come around and want to start playing with Brooks.
She's a great dog and that is due, largely, to my brother who did a great job training her. We wanted the video to feel very honest so we took Brooks to meet people who'd never met her before and we let the camera roll as we did our thing. So all of the interactions in the video are genuine first time meetings between Brooks and the residents. I think that is why it is so powerful. Nothing is staged.
IV: Were you surprised with your first place win for the IAMS Love Tails Project?
DU: I still can't believe we won. It was a very special project to me because of how personal it was. I watched the announcement video on the IAMS Facebook page and when they announced Brooks' name I just started crying. It was a great sense of validation after having made so many submissions and never being selected. I was so happy.
IV: Did you buy Brooks anything special with your $20,000 prize money?
DU: Yes, all kinds of treats!
IV: How has the reaction been to the IAMS spot? How does it feel to be the face of a national ad campaign?
DU: It's an honor and very exciting. I believe IAMS is still formulating a marketing strategy for the video so we are looking forward to hearing about the next steps of the process.
IV: Do you have any advice for other Tongalers?
DU: Never give up. Keep trying. Fall down. Get up again. Keep going. Don't be afraid of failing. IAMS was my third Wildcard submission and my first win on Tongal. I made a submission for the Gain Laundry Rules project immediately after winning the IAMS spot, and we thought we had a fantastic submission, but unfortunately it wasn't selected. Each submission is a step closer to winning the next one. It's easy to get disheartened when your work isn't selected, but you have to chalk it up to learning and get busy with the next one. You can't take it personally. That's why I'm shooting three more projects this month. It does become difficult to keep doing Wildcard submissions because the expenses all come out of pocket and it's a gamble, but I like the challenge.
IV: What's next for you, on Tongal or otherwise?
DU: I've made a couple of pitches, but unfortunately have yet to be selected. I intend to continue working on mastering the pitch phase. We have our eye on a couple of projects that we are hoping to make submissions for.
Simultaneously, I have two projects in development -- a feature screenplay I've spent four years working on and another project that was just accepted into LMU's Lab Incubator program. The latter is going to be my directorial debut on a feature film written by my good friend Clay Tolbert. The program is partnered with the Los Angeles Film Festival and Film Independent and they're going to give us all the resources we need to make the project a reality. Clay and I are truly blessed to have this opportunity and we'll spend the next twelve months getting this film into production and out of post as quickly as possible.
