Caviar L.A.'s Jonathan Krisel has directed the new interactive campaign for AT&T's 4G Smartphone. The campaign features the attorney Kent Wesley, Esq., played by comic actor Will Arnett, who builds and argues cases for the 4G Smartphone as a holiday gift. The campaign also includes "You've Got a Case," a desktop and mobile Facebook application that syncs with Facebook users' profiles to create a customized case proving to the person of your choice that you deserve an AT&T Smartphone. A series of unexpected "expert witnesses" take the stand in the video that Krisel directed, helping Wesley deliver an argument to a jury of your Facebook friends where every "Like" tips the scales your way.

L.A.-based Alive & Well's integrated creative team FakeLove throws an interactive holiday bash for Bacardi in the customizable new campaign "Unwrap the Night." The campaign is part of a holiday promotion and creates a personalized interactive experience by pulling information from the user's Facebook profile and is meant to simulate the first-person experience of attending a loft holiday party. The site opens with the viewer's POV, as they are invited into the party by a friendly greeter. The viewer's Facebook information is used to personalize the experience, customizing the content with text messages from one of their closest friends on Facebook, tweaking the cocktail titles to include their friends' names and even embellishing the gift of a sweater with the viewer's first name. Viewers can also choose to interact with other guests at the party and end the virtual soiree on the balcony for a fireworks display overlooking a city skyline.

Interrogate Director Vesa Manninen delivers a new spot for Nintendo's Fossil Fighters Champions game via Goodby Silverstein. The promo centers on a speech from a young boy to rally his imposing dinosaur army. Opening on a live-action shot of the boy dressed as a king, the camera pans to reveal the colorful 3D Vivosaurs ready for battle. Interrogate collaborated with MPC for VFX and Editor Rick Lawley at the Whitehouse to help create life-like dinosaurs that channeled the colorful Vivosaur characters from the game.

L.A.-based Green Dot Films Director Brent Thomas delivers Chuck Norris in the new :30 spot titled "Hunter" for the videogame World of Warcraft. The spot features Norris and his own World of Warcraft avatar delivering some of his signature moves and granting his approval for the game. The campaign also features a :30 "Birthday Gift" spot which features "Parks and Recreation" actress Aubrey Plaza telling how her boyfriend's replacement of a birthday gift of diamonds for the World of Warcraft led her to ditch him for her newfound love of the game. The spots have been a tremendous success on YouTube, with Norris' spot raking in over 14 million views and Plaza's spot garnering over 1.5 million views.
 

Superlounge Director Jeannette Godoy brings Zest's catchy commercial jingle back into our showers with a modern twist. Full of singing and smiles, the spot revitalizes the brand's famous slogan by catching people lathering up in the shower while belting out the tune, "You're not fully clean unless you are Zestfully clean!" Other recent projects for Godoy include a poignant PSA, "Find-A-Cure," for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation of Los Angeles, and a spot for Bridgestone Tires titled "A Boy and His Tire," which marked her directorial debut. Recently shortlisted for Shots magazine's New Director of the Year Award (where she was profiled as an up and coming talent), Godoy was also selected to the SHOOT New Director Showcase for 2011 and shortlisted for the Young Director Award at Cannes.

Twist Director/DP Rich Michell joined forces with NetApp to produce two online short films which highlight the innovative technology NetApp has to offer through their network storage solutions, virtualization, and cloud computing. "Be The Match" (seen here) shares the story of how NetApp's technology has revolutionized the donor matching process for bone marrow transplants.  In the short titled "Thomson Reuters," Michell showcases how NetApp transformed the manner in which the legal industry gets their information with a break-through development for Thompson Reuters' Westlaw service.  Both of the shorts are shot in a documentary style and include on-camera interviews with key executives who've used NetApp technology.

For the third straight year, the New York and Maryland-based production company Concert Support Services chose RIOT/Atlanta, to provide multiple post-production services for the 2011 Soul Train Awards show. RIOT produced a promotional package including editing, finishing and sound for the show. Prior to the live taping, Riot's Producer and VP of Creative Services, Chuck Brock, worked closely with Senior Editor Willie Giles to create three tribute pieces honoring legendary artists Earth Wind & Fire, Gladys Knight and Ashford and Simpson. "We wrote, produced, and edited each tribute in their entirety," offered Brock. "Our talent was on site during the live event to assist where needed and to experience the big event first hand."

The documentary short film "Meaning of Robots" will make its premiere at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah. Directed by recently signed Supply&Demand Integrated Director Matt Lenski, "Meaning of Robots" profiles Mike Sullivan, who's been attempting to shoot a stop-motion robot sex film in his small apartment for the last 10 years. Obsessed with constructing the miniature robot porn stars, his apartment overflows with thousands of robots, leaving only tiny paths for him to walk, and no place to film. Lenski met Sullivan after hiring him to build a miniature set for a Burger King spot he was directing, and subsequently met up with the modelmaker at his small studio in New York. "I was amazed with what I saw," recalls Lenski. "What I found was a man dedicated, overwhelmed, slightly lost and happy to share it with honesty and a little humor. I also found thousands of robots with wieners." Lenski's recent work includes completion of a BabyGanics project with BFG 9000. He also just wrapped his first fashion film for menswear designer Alexander Olch, and is currently working on a project with Richard Kirshenbaum's new creative agency, Nue Studio Group.

New York-based Park Pictures Features will debut their narrative feature film "Robot & Frank," directed by Jake Schreier, at Sundance. The project, written by Christopher Ford, stars Frank Langella, Susan Sarandon, James Marsden and Liv Tyler. The film's producers are Park Pictures' Galt Niederhoffer, Sam Bisbee, Jackie Kelman Bisbee and Lance Acord. Niederhoffer previously brought nine films and five award-winners to Sundance, earning Best Director, Best Cinematographer, the Audience Award, and Best Screenplay for her respective projects. "Robot & Frank" is set in the near future, in which aging curmudgeon and retired jewel thief Frank (Frank Langella) lives a solitary life until his son (James Marsden) installs a caretaker robot to care for him, against his and his daughter's (Liv Tyler) wishes. The robot upends Frank's lonely life, usually filled with books and a visit to his favorite librarian (Susan Sarandon), with a strict regimen of exercise, diet and gardening. Stubborn at first, Frank soon realizes Robot has the brains to pull off the most calculated of heists.

The Shanghai Job has taken home a bevy of Chinese ad awards for its Johnson & Johnson viral for its feminine care product Gyno titled "A Digital Vagina Diary."  Directed by David Gaddie for the Shanghai-based production company and created by Raynet Ogilvy, the two-plus minute video is a peek inside the digital video dairy of a young Chinese woman.  The video was honored at the China4As awards, which were held in Beijing on Friday, December 9.  It won Bronze in the TV category, Gold in Digital & Interactive media and was the surprise Grand Prix winner for the entire competition, an honor that it shared with an ad from JWT. The presentation of joint Grand Prix winners was a first for the competition, says The Shanghai Job EP Colin Lai, who also notes that the video was the first in the Digital & Interactive category to earn Grand Prix status.

Knickerbockerglory Director and Partner Laurence Thrush will be making the scene in Park City next month, as his independent film, "Pursuit of Loneliness," has been accepted into the Sundance Film Festival.  The story revolves around an elderly patient who dies in a county hospital, leaving no known next of kin. Over the next 24 hours, four central characters try to find a family member to contact regarding the death of this anonymous individual.  The cast includes Joy Hille, Sandra Escalante, Sharon Munfus, Kirsi Toivanen and Natalie Fouron. Thrush's recent commercial work includes spots for such advertisers as Honda, Kraft, Sanofi, Applebee's and others.

Film and commercial production company Three (One) O's Norry Niven has completed principal photography on the feature motion picture "Chasing Shakespeare." Shot on location around Dallas and Waxahachie, Texas, with additional footage captured in New York,"Chasing Shakespeare" follows the life-long romance of a mystical Native American named Venus (Chelsea Ricketts) and the African-American love of her life, William (Mike Wade). The story unfolds as a series of flashbacks detailed by an older, now-widowed William (played by Danny Glover) as he struggles with his own mental health. The film marks Niven's first foray into features. With VFX by Dallas-based Radium/ReelFX, the film is expected to hit the 2012 festival circuit, starting with a trailer debuting at the Sundance Festival in January.

Director Floria Sigismondi has joined Black Dog Films, the music video division of RSA Films for music video representation in both the US and UK. Sigismondi has been the creative mind behind music videos for artists such as The White Stripes, David Bowie, The Cure, Sigur Ros, Marilyn Manson and Bjork, among others. She also directed the 2010 biographical rock film "The Runaways," starring Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning. In addition to film, Sigismondi is a photographer and multi-media artist. She has published two photography books titled "Redemption" and "Immune." Sigismondi's photographs have been included in group exhibitions with Cindy Sherman, Rebecca Horn, Vanessa Beecroft, Donald Lipski, and Francesco Clemente. She continues to be represented for commercials in the US and UK by Believe Media.

New York hybrid production and post house Humble has signed  Director/DP Noah David Smith

. Having just come off of shooting work for UBS via Publicis/New York through the company, Smith decided to make the relationship official. Both a filmmaker and photographer, his work includes projects for clients such as Subaru, GE, VH1, Absolut, Persol, Puma, Nickelodeon and Kate Spade. Some of Smith's short films have appeared at Sundance, the Tribeca Film Festival, Raindance, the Bonn Biennial and the Nueva Film Festival in Tokyo. His photography can be seen in the editorial pages of magazines such as Intramuros, Dwell, Nylon, Metropolis, ReadyMade and Planet. Smith received his MFA in Photography
 from RISD.

Wilfrid Park, the Toronto-based production company, has added two new directors to its roster of talents it represents in the Canadian market. Joining are Directors Ramaa Mosley and John Scott.  Moseley has been winning awards for her films since her first documentary, produced when she was 16.  She eventually began directing music videos, and shot for such bands as B-52s, Brendan Benson, Creed and Five for Fighting. In the advertising realm, she's directed award-winning campaigns clients such as Adidas, Powerade, PGA, Pedigree, Walmart and ESPN.  She's represented in the US by Trio Films.  Scott got his directing debut on the FX TV series "Nip/Tuck" while working as a camera operator.  His dramatic and comedy credits in episodic television work include such series as "The Office," "Glee," "Ugly Betty," "Chuck," "Man-Up," "Suits" and many others.  His most recent project for Wilfrid Park was a Canadian Staples "Back to School" campaign.

Foundation Content has named Steve Morrison as General Manager of its studio in Chicago.  Morrison was one of Foundation's original employees and helped shape the company's editorial department from 2004 to 2006.  He left his post as Sr. VP, Director of Creative Editorial at Draft FCB in Chicago to return to Foundation.  In his new role as GM, he'll act as lead/senior editor and oversee the creative and quality control of all editorial output of the company.  The appointment of Morrison comes as growth of Foundation's L.A. office is taking off.  Joining Foundation also provides Morrison the opportunity to continue to develop creative alliances with notable directors to enhance Foundation's ongoing vision of bundling production and post together, to not only create more cohesive campaigns but also to help manage budgetary concerns of agency partners.

Jonathan Gribetz has joined Chelsea as an Executive Producer, working out of its office in Los Angeles.  A Bronx, New York native, he's been an L.A. since 1988, and has worn many hats over the course of his career, from a sales rep, bidder, head of production, First AD, line producer and EP. He joins Chelsea as the West Coast counterpart to Pat McGoldrick, its EP in New York. Gribetz most recently served as Line Producer for the Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 spot, "The Vet and the n00b," starring Sam Worthington, Jonah Hill and directed by Peter Berg at Pony Show.

Director Paul Iannacchino has signed with Washington Square Films (WSF) for commercial representation in the US. Iannacchino recently directed his first series of spots with WSF as part of a Febreze campaign via Grey, New York. The spots feature real people, shot with hidden cameras, reacting to Febreze products in an unexpected environment. Earlier in the year Iannacchino completed The Fanta "Lift & Laugh" campaign for Ogilvy (see the behind the scenes here), where he inserted hidden cameras into a college dorm elevator and created a surprise interactive environment that included a hidden Fanta refrigerator and a drum-machine wall. Iannacchino also won wide acclaim for Coca-Cola's "Happiness Machine" (frame on the right).  The video was the inception of the "where will happiness strike next?" campaign, on which he served as both Director and Creative Director. The campaign earned a 2010 Gold Clio, Ad Age's Campaign of the Year at the Small Agency awards, Best Online Commercial and People's Choice Webby awards, and continues to be viewed by millions worldwide.  In 2009, Iannacchino was featured in SHOOT's New Directors issue thanks to his video for Head featuring Novak Djokovic.
 

Editor Jayson Limmer (that's him in the shades) has joined 3008. Limmer's recent work includes spots for TGI Fridays, Red Lobster, HEB, Gander Mountain, Charter, Zales and Atlanta Falcons.  Limmer is 3008's sixth hire this year; he joins Editors Eric Galoob and Dave Louria, Graphic Artist Tim Howe, Audio Engineer Greg Carlson and Executive Producer Lynn Louria as recent additions. 3008 recently completed work for internet security provider AVG, which features a documentary team traversing the jungles of Thailand to pose a question: "How many toothpicks does it take to stop a tiger?" 3008's Marc Stone edited 40 hours of footage in the creation of a three-minute web video and :30 and :15 trailers. The results illustrate how – just like a cage fashioned from 3.5 million toothpicks can stop a tiger – AVG's network of Internet users stops digital threats. 

L.A.-based post house Therapy has added Editor Scott Hanson to their roster. Hanson comes to Therapy from Dallas-based N2O Editorial (now Lucky Post). His work includes projects for The Salvation Army, Home Depot, ExxonMobil, Mayo Clinic, Casio, BMW, Blue Cross, American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, MidFirst Bank, Pier 1 and a Bob Giraldi-helmed piece for GreatCall. A Houston native, Hanson completed a Master's in Film at Boston University. Following graduation, he set his sights on the South and began his career working as an editor at Dallas-based charlieuniformtango for seven years. From there he went on to serve as an editor at N2O Editorial. During this time he also began donning multiple hats in filmmaking: co-writing, directing and editing the short narrative drama "Parts" through Arch Elms Films. The film screened at over 25 festivals in North America and Europe and won numerous awards.

Synthetic Pictures has added a trio of sales reps to pitch its eight roster directors in key markets in the US Yvette Lubinsky of YvetteRepresents takes over the West Coast, Summer Whitley of Summer Reps (that's her on the left) now covers Texas, and Perry Tongate of Perry Represents (seen at right) is handling the South East, as well as sharing Texas with Whitley. Lubinsky has been representing creative artists for over 20 years.  Whitley also has a long career in the business, spending 10 years in-house and starting her own company five years ago.  Tongate is newer to the independent repping world, coming from an in-house job at charlieuniformtango for the past 11 years.

Energy BBDO/Chicago just completed The Gift Better campaign for the social service organization Oxfam. Directed by Gesine Kratzner of Laika with illustrations by Jessica Hische, the spot is driven by cheeky headlines that are brought to life in a warm and whimsical way, poking fun at trendy gifts. Scarlett Johansson lends her voice to the animated spot titled "Gift Better" that demonstrates that gifts from OxfamGifts.com keep on giving. In addition to broadcast, the campaign also includes out of home, print and digital components. The Energy BBDO/Chicago team on the work includes Dan Fietsam, Rowley Samuel, Francis Almeda, Chris Yocum, Kevin Lynch, Diana Morison and Meagan Moore.

Creative agency Moroch Partners just launched a new holiday campaign for Western Union. Focused on a concept of personal ties and the gift of cash, the broadcast ads will air on radio and TV. Three main TV ads for the US provide a customizable messaging base that will run internationally with local voiceovers in a wide range of languages. In each of the spots, a gift giver sends money to someone special - a son, a niece, and a brother - who use the gifts to reconnect with family by buying a bus ticket, sharing their perspective through a new digital camera, and feeling more confident for what life presents with a new shirt and tie. The advertising theme, "Better Today, Better Tomorrow," emphasizes creating positive moments throughout the holiday season by giving the gift of possibility.

Our 2010 Special Feature on creative editorial,  "The Art of Editing," was a big hit, but it only scratched the surface of what's going on in the area of post production.  We'll be taking a more in-depth peek at all aspects of post, from editing to color grading, finishing and audio post, in our upcoming special titled "A New Look at Post." As digital capture, new media channels and longer ad formats revolutionize advertising production, the industry's post and finishing houses have found themselves at the center of the action. This Special Feature, publishing on February 6, 2012, will profile some of the top companies leading the way in this challenging new environment and will highlight some of the key issues they confront as they partner with agencies, production companies and brands. Contact Halyce Naparstek at hnaparstek@sourceecreative.com or at +1-561-206-0728 for more information on sponsorship availability.