Ditch Owner/Editor Brody Howard has expanded the company’s talent roster by welcoming Creative Editor Aaron Nelson and promoting long-time Assistant Editor Ben Thompson to a full Creative Editor position. This expansion comes just on the heels of Howard entering into a new partnership to launch the new interactive studio Ditch Creative.
“We’re thrilled to have Aaron join us here at Ditch,” says Howard. “Having spent time in-house at an ad agency as an editor, Aaron really understands the demands put on our clients. He is a great young talent, and he really expands our roster perfectly. Ben has been with Ditch for several years as an Assistant Editor and has grown to develop his own voice in the room. These two editors represent the next generation of creative edito-rial talent; it’s been exciting to see their new thinking in the suite.”
Aaron Nelson is a homegrown creative editor who embraces any editorial challenge, having faced plenty during his agency years. He excels at efficiently crafting stories that connect with audiences, and as a music nerd, film nerd, and competitive leisure sports hero, his influences run the gamut. He loves an adrenaline-fueled or comedic edit. Aaron is a graduate of the Minneapolis College of Art and Design with a degree in Filmmaking. He spent six years as an in-house editor at Minneapolis-based ad agency Olson, where he cut broadcast spots for Sears, Bauer, and Minnesota State Lottery among others. Also a guitarist/songwriter, Aaron has toured the U.S., Canada, and Europe, having pro-duced two studio albums with his bands Nehemiah and Dead to Fall.
“Joining Ditch is helping me take the next step in my career,” explains Nelson. “Being able to focus on one project at a time, and collaborating with a variety of clients directly on a diversity of projects has been a great opportunity to develop my storytelling skills. I have a background in music, which also really influences my editing.”
Newly promoted Ditch editor Ben Thompson hails from Iowa where as a kid, he honed his skills making kung fu films with buddies and later dominated local film festivals, be-fore deciding to move north to Minneapolis to pursue his dreams professionally. Like Aa-ron, he graduated from the Minneapolis College of Art and Design with a degree in Film. In the past year at Ditch, he’s deftly cut campaigns for national brands American Family Insurance and Purina, among others. If he's not at work, Ben is most likely at home cooking up something delicious.
“This promotion to Creative Editor has enabled me to work more closely with clients that I’ve known for years,” adds Thompson. “I’m able to put my creative stamp on projects a bit more and work to create my own style as an editor. I love to cook, and editing is a lot like that – putting together a series of ingredients in just the right way and in the right or-der, you create something unique.”
Long-time Ditch producer Leah Rogers notes how exciting the company’s recent expan-sion has been since the fall. “It’s an incredible time of growth here at Ditch with the addi-tion of digital services and now with Aaron’s joining the company and Ben being pro-moted. It’s been very rewarding to see these two young talents get the opportunity to spread their creative wings, make insightful contributions in the suite with clients, and build a loyal following. They both are very hardworking, energetic, and offer fresh younger perspectives, and our clients appreciate that.”
Ditch is currently working on a series of new projects that are scheduled to launch in Winter and Spring 2016. Editor Aaron Nelson is cutting a new campaign for the Belize Tourist Board and Editor Ben Thompson is completing a new project for Nestlé Toll-house. Other Ditch Editors are working on campaigns for Baylor College of Medicine, Cox Communications and Boston Scientific.
About Ditch
Ditch is a post-production studio based in downtown Minneapolis, established in 2008. Featuring the talents of creative editors Brody Howard, Aaron Nelson, Ben Thompson, and Tim Taylor, Ditch offers post-production for any medium, including creative editing, motion graphics, color correction, VFX, compositing, and online. Beyond the walls of their state-of-the-art facility, Ditch works with agencies and creative businesses remotely or on-site across the country. www.ditchedit.com
