NewsReel 28/08/09

Saussey becomes Transparent

Award winning Kiwi comedy director Steve Saussey joins Transparent in London for UK and European representation. Steve began his career as an Agency creative, however decided to direct himself after all of his ideas were ruined! Steve has won awards for New Zealand's 'Axis Awards' and shot commercials for Heinz and McDonalds.

If you cant get enough of the Kiwi wonder - look here:

http://www.transparentuk.com/downloads/saussey_showreel.mov

Johnathan Dennis Joins Feel

Director JONATHAN DENNIS, a newcomer to commercials, has announced his decision to join FEEL FILMS for UK commercials representation.

Jonathan has had a hugely successful career as one of the UK’s most in-demand and awarded TV promo directors. In 1998 Jonathan joined Sky Television, where he directed award-winning campaigns for Sky Sports. He subsequently worked for the BBC, Red Bee Media and Channel4, winning a string of the most coveted industry gongs for his success in commercials, trailers and idents.

Jonathan joins Feel Films from Serious Pictures, with the intention of a long-standing collaboration on film and commercials projects with Feel that both have a strong passion for. The move made sense long-term for Jonathan.

Dennis gave us the real reason for Joining Feel: “ I joined Feel because it’s closer to Oxford Circus Tube station than most other companies - I could have gone to Partisan but it was a bugger to find”.

Phillip Paget becomes Ad Forum CEO

AdForum.com, a leading global services provider for the advertising industry, recently announced the appointment of Philippe Paget as big kahuna and CEO Worldwide.

Philippe Paget succeeds Christopher Wynne, who has resigned after six years within AdForum.com. Philippe Paget has twenty years of experience in the advertising, media, and internet industries. Which is a lot. In fact he has more experience than we have had hot dinners. And that’s also a lot.

Carlos Ulloa gets Tooled up

Tool of North America is pleased to announce the recent signing of industry-leading Flash and 3D developer Carlos Ulloa to their digital practice. The London-based Ulloa's signature works include the creation of the revolutionary open source application Papervision3D, the leading real-time Flash 3D engine.

Since the library's debut, Papervision3D has vaulted into the mainstream, its universal penetration allowing it to become central to prominent campaigns for Sony BRAVIA, Renault, Absolut, Red Bull, and Nike. Using Papervision3D and Unity, Ulloa builds interactive 3D experiences for the Web and iPhone applications.

"Signing with Tool will allow me to focus on creativity," noted Ulloa. "I like the way Tool portrays their people and the directors. The approach is really nice, they take care of their people."

Art that is cool AND square…

Square Art – Golden square posts’ long running art comp returns for the fifteenth time on the 26th of November 2009 with art world endorsements from White Cube artist, Harland Miller, and the legendary Slade School of Fine Art–UCL.

Square Art is the extra-curricular showcase for talented and artistic commercial industry insiders. To coincide with Golden Square’s 10th anniversary, this year’s theme is ‘Ten’. Submissions are encouraged across all media – paintings, videos and sculptures; and the show is open to anyone employed in advertising. Previous entrants include advertising heavyweights like CHI founder, Charles Inge; and last year’s judging was by WCRS president Robin Wight and Sunday Times art critic Waldemar Januszczak.

This year’s Square Art sees the show’s advertising roots stretch even further into the art world. Celebrated artist and writer, Harland Miller, and head of undergraduate painting at Slade School of Fine Art–UCL, Andrew Stahl, will act as the show’s curators. They will be joined by an advertising luminary whose name will be announced soon. Finally, the 2009 show will hang adland’s artistry side-by-side with Slade’s finest in a move to expose the fine art school’s fresh talent to the commercials industry whilst providing young inspiration to advertising artists.

Ewan MacLeod, Golden Square’s executive producer, said: “Each year the show gets stronger and stronger. But this is the first time that we’ve had such tangible connections with the art establishment. It’s exciting to see Square Art grow into a fully paid-up member of the art world and give the commercials industry the artistic recognition it deserves.”

Submissions are free and open to anyone who works in the commercials industry. Deadline for entries is 1st November 2009. For more submissions information email Karen Scott on karens@goldensq.com or go to http://www.goldensq.com/squareArt

AND FINAALYYY…

For those of you that think you’re good? This kid is better… No… Really… he is.

Neurosonics Audiomedical Labs Inc.

Every so often something drops into The Reel’s heaving mailbox that blows our collective tiny minds and makes us feel all funny inside like a sneeze but eight times better. And it happened this week. And it was marvellous.



Fresh from Partizan’s charmed creativity lab Darkroom come Chris Cairns' (he of the magnificent Cadbury’s Crème Eggs spots) latest, a short film made in collaboration with world champion turntablists Scratch Perverts, Foreign Beggars and Shlomo with sound design by Will Cohen.

We managed to grab Mr Cairns for a few questions about the production – but be warned, it seems that excessive exposure to beatjuggling has warped his mind somewhat.

How did the collaboration with the Scratch Perverts and Foreign Beggars come about?

Blackmail and bribery respectively.

Who came up with the concept? Was it something you’d considered before?

My mum. Once before.

Any thoughts of turning the short into a promo?

I like the idea of a gnarled A&R man, rendered destitute by music theft, exhuming the corpses of his favourite historical musicians and making biomechanical attachments from their heads. In his dilapidated basement Buddy Rich's head comes to life on a pristine robot body and proceeds to chew out the man's young assistant. We recognise the assistant as QBert who, after cracking his neck, nods in time with Mister Rich's beat and starts cutting up Biggie and Bob Marley on the turntables.


You have pretty much visually explained the art of turntablism and beatboxing in one fell swoop – which is no mean feat! How does that make you feel?

Like Rocky after the Russian training montage. He's knocked out an on-the-payroll journeyman, I've felled a big tree.

‘Neurosonics Audiomedical Labs Inc.is getting loads of attention, and has already been screamed about in The Metro and Hype Beast, which means the great unwashed love it now. Did you make the name of the short deliberately difficult to say?

It was a toss-up between that and Cool Internet Scratching and Beatboxing Video.

Who was the best at scratching? (come on you must have a favourite)

Anthony Dickenson, the first AD and my erstwhile lover, had a rash on his face and wins hands down.


Scratch Perverts vs Foreign Beggars? Who wins?

Irresistible Force versus Immovable object. Experience versus enthusiasm. Stig's a big lad but I reckon Tony Vegas could give a good account of himself in a fight.

You vs Tom Vek? Who wins?

Tom has better hair than me. I'm better at cricket than Tom.

And finally, have you got anything exciting in the pipeline you can tell us about?

A haircut.

Lovely.

Many thanks to Chris and the team at Partizan for the interview. Check out the short in-situ on the microsite here - www.neurosonicsaudiomedical.com