Goodby Silverstein & Partners (GS&P) has hired Jens Waernes as creative director. He will co-lead Comcast at his new roost.
Prior to joining GS&P, Waernes spent six years at BBDO New York where he created notable work such as FedEx’s “Skyscraper,” Guinness’ “Empty Chair,” Monster’s “Pinocchio” and AT&T’s “Colors So Real, It’s Almost Unreal.” While at BBDO, he also worked on HBO and Snickers and co-led Guinness, Visa and Subway.
Previous to BBDO, Waernes spent time at DDB Oslo, Scholz & Friends Berlin and Jung von Matt Hamburg, where his work was recognized by major awards shows. Most notably, the campaigns he created for Augsburger Allgemeine and Ravensburger rank among some of the most celebrated print, poster and new media work in the world.
Waernes now joins new creative director Jeff Gillette who came to GS&P from Wieden+ Kennedy.
Eleanor Adds Director Candice Vernon To Its Roster For Spots and Branded Content
Director Candice Vernon has joined production house Eleanor for U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content. She has already wrapped several jobs at Eleanor, which waited to announce her until they had a body of work together.
Via Eleanor, Vernon made history as the first Black director on a Febreze commercial. The “Small Spaces” campaign marks a major departure from Febreze’s typical blue-and-white world. The home of the “Revolving Door” commercial is a beautiful array of bold sunset hues, African prints, and African art.
Vernon said, “I asked myself, what feels right to me? What feels new? I wanted to bring an essence of not just Black Americans but the full diaspora. I wanted to make a statement that we’re not a monolith.”
Following the success of the “Small Spaces” campaign, Febreze brought Vernon back for a comedy-infused trifecta exploring the hilarious situations that call for an air freshening hero.
Febreze Brand VP Angelica Matthews said, “About two years ago, we realized the consumers that were the most loyal to Febreze were the African American consumers. And the more we learned, the more we realized the richness that we were really missing. So we said we have to go beyond just Black casting, we need to get Black directors that truly understand the culture that truly understand how to bring authentic performances out on screen. We really looked around the industry and noticed there’s actually a shortage of African American directors who have experience doing commercials. When we all saw Candice’s reel, we could all tell the passion for the craft, passion for really trying to help us from where we are to where we’re trying to go.”
Vernon brings a unique lens to... Read More