The Bobbsey Twins From Homicide
When Freddy Mandy was 13 years old, he forgot his PE kit, and had to run laps in his underwear. You know who wasn’t there for him in that moment? His childhood nemesis turned eventual creative collaborator, Tim McNaughton, with whom he would later go on to form The Bobbsey Twins From Homicide, an absurdist directing duo who make big scale commercials that combine an emphasis on craft and a humour born from the strangest ‘80s cartoons. No. Tim just laughed at him.
Press
The Bobbsey Twins From Homicide Talk Creativity With ‘Shots’
The Pair Get Things Done
The Bobbsey Twins From Homicide began their career in that typical way — in a refugee camp for Cuban dissidents, agreeing to take on a job to murder a shady character for an even shadier government agency.
Or at least, that’s what the pair — real names Freddy Mandy and Tim McNaughton — told Shots in a crackling interview that covered their acclaimed career from its bizarre origins to its significant acclaim.
Perhaps best known for their hilarious commercial for MoneySupermarket, one that throws Dirty Dancing and the exploits of He-Man and his nemesis Skeletor into a heady stew, the pair combine a big, ambitious cinematic style with cunning humour.
You can spot a Bobbsey Twins commercial from a mile away — there’s just something about the pair’s antic energy, applying state-of-the-art craft to the strangest of situations.
Beginning as creatives, they jumped to directing as a way of getting “back to the nuts and bolts of making stuff.”
Now, continually uplifted and inspired by British sitcoms, the pair continue to make their mark on the world of commercials, while also not-so-secretly developing some ideas for a couple of movies and TV shows.
“There are only two types of joke: funny ones and the others,” the pair told Shots.
“Some brands say they just want a smile. That’s bullshit. If you are going to tell a joke, tell a good one. Commit to what you are doing. Make people laugh. If you don’t want to make people laugh, why are you telling jokes? Go sit in your room watching reruns of Dawson’s Creek and getting in touch with your feelings like some kind of emo teen.”
Read the interview in full here.