Amanda Curtis and the Comical Coffee Crisp Confessional

Advertisements can reach consumers in a number of ways. They can humble us with physical marvels of human aesthetics in unachievable aspirations of what we might become. They can frighten us with soothing images while a voice over warns of side effect that prompt us to seek a doctor immediately “if…” When commercials are most welcome is when they truly entertain while promoting. The latest Coffee Crisp “Confessional” commercials from Nestle Canada do this exceptionally well. The professionals behind creating these are some of the same professionals who are also behind many of the most beloved productions, including producer Amanda Curtis. Spots so amusing and yet slightly irreverent take a great deal of planning and preparation to appear so relaxed and at ease.

The message of these advertisements is one of enjoying a Coffee Crisp even at very inappropriate instances. Whether it’s an expectant mother in the middle of a relationship issue or a priest in a confessional, the benefits of “snacking on the sneak” are precarious. Karen Tameanko (Partner and Executive Producer of Circle Productions) placed Amanda Curtis in the Producer’s chair due to her long history of delivering beautiful looking spots that are under budget while keeping the client happy. Curtis worked closely with acclaimed director Mike Bernstein. Known for his proclivity with comedy; Bernstein’s directing work with NBC’s Saturday Night Live (winner of sixty-six Primetime Emmys), James Corden’s TBS series Drop the Mic, and the like ensured that the tone would be both sharp and funny. His work directing ads for companies like MTV, Samsung, Walgreens, and Procter & Gamble, also ensured that he was familiar with the brevity of the medium. A great producer knows how to establish the proper environment and relationship for a director to explore; Amanda continually exceeds these requirements. Explaining her assessment, she relates, “I’ve worked with many comedy directors. I find that the key is to keep it light and happy when organizing the very tight and often very stressful timelines. My job is to keep the director in a humorous and stress free environment so they feel relaxed and comfortable to focus solely on the comedy aspect. It’s best to keep a soft urgency of ‘hurry up and be creative’ with these directors. Most of the time commercials are done at an extremely fast pace and I never want them to feel the comedy is being rushed.” Her humble explanation belies the difficulty of the situation as comedy rarely happens on a schedule. It was Amanda’s ability to be pragmatic and push things forward in a benevolent manner, always keeping one eye on the clock and the other on the finances, that saw an exceptional product delivered in the predetermined parameters. The results speak for themselves.

Commercials don’t often receive a lot of attention for awards, the producers of them receive even less. While Amanda Curtis has been behind a number of award-winning campaigns for companies like Budweiser (“Red Lights” was awarded the Silver Lion Award at the Cannes Lion Festival of Creativity) and KY (“Warm Up to Love” received multiple awards at 2014’s Marketing Awards), her public notoriety is often restricted to the peers and professionals she works with. It’s their accolades and her full work schedule which give credence to her exceptional work. Her career and work like the Coffee Crisp commercials are what satisfies her. Amanda confirms, “This was one of those magical jobs where everything goes so smoothly with almost no problems to speak of. I think that’s the sign of a great team working very well together. I picked the best people for the job and it turned out to be a wonderful working experience. I’m very happy to be among people like these and getting to be a part of creating something every day.”