BBDO New York recently commissioned Australian director Ben Briand for The Art Of Shaving - an aesthetic throwback to the 1950's and 60's when a straight razor was common place.

The result is three amusingly wry short films that evoke the charm and style of remerging masculinity.

Produced by USA production company The Institute, the films have recently been made available in Australia online and are in the back seat of almost every cab in NYC.

Working with wardrobe designer Amy Westcott (Black Swan, The Wrestler) and cinematographer Eigil Bryld (In Bruges, Barry Levinson's You Don't Know Jack starring Al Pacino) Briand applied his distinctive look to the signatures of black and white cinema.

The Prodigy Films' represented Briand said they had looked at restrained elements of Godard, physical comedy by W.C. Fields and everything in between.

“At the end of the day my crew and I wanted to create something that was also somewhat modern in the way it felt."