New media creative studio Flight School has promoted Jen Cadic to head of production. Cadic has a decade of experience in postproduction, producing a wide range of commercial, web content, film, TV and music video projects for industry companies including Charlex, Nice Shoes, Psyop and Reel FX. She joined the Dallas-based Flight School as a producer upon its launch in January 2017 and steps up as the studio’s first head of production to address the rapid growth of original IP and client projects, including the recent launch of its debut original VR experience, Manifest 99, which recently earned accolades at the Future of Storytelling and Raindance Film Festival.
Recent projects out of Flight School include an augmented reality (AR) experience for the launch of Michael Jackson’s new “Scream” album and a dynamic air tennis experience for American Express at the 2017 U.S. Open. The Air Tennis experience used a combination of custom-built and responsive technologies, including air haptics and an ultra-sensitive motion capture system, to create an interactive live gaming experience.
Notes Flight School Executive Producer Taylor Williams, “Jen has been instrumental in laying the foundations for Flight School since day one. Her history of exploring new mediums and tackling never-been-done-before projects for a broad range of clients including film studios, agencies and tech partners, not to mention our own IP, has given her a uniquely multifaceted perspective on what it takes to get jobs done in this constantly evolving landscape.”
New Jersey-native Cadic studied film and television before making her way to NYC, landing her first professional gig at Charlex, where she quickly learned the commercial production space with a hands-on approach. She moved on to Nice Shoes, where she produced a wide range of top-tier projects with major celebrity talent including projects with Lady Gaga and Beyonce as well as Kanye West’s short film “Cruel Summer” that launched during the Cannes Film Festival. After two years, she joined Psyop as a producer, leading design and CG-driven work for longtime client British Gas as well as a rebrand campaign for Mucinex featuring the newly designed Mr. Mucus character. To expand her expertise beyond commercials and get into the studio, entertainment and new media space, she made the move to Dallas to join Reel FX. There, she worked on a wide range of projects, including major VR experiences for studios such as Lionsgate and Paramount. Upon Flight School’s inception, Cadic then made the transition to working with the talent that joined Reel FX to form Flight School.
Jennifer Kent On Why Her Feature Directing Debut, “The Babadook,” Continues To Haunt Us
"The Babadook," when it was released 10 years ago, didn't seem to portend a cultural sensation.
It was the first film by a little-known Australian filmmaker, Jennifer Kent. It had that strange name. On opening weekend, it played in two theaters.
But with time, the long shadows of "The Babadook" continued to envelop moviegoers. Its rerelease this weekend in theaters, a decade later, is less of a reminder of a sleeper 2014 indie hit than it is a chance to revisit a horror milestone that continues to cast a dark spell.
Not many small-budget, first-feature films can be fairly said to have shifted cinema but Kent's directorial debut may be one of them. It was at the nexus of that much-debated term "elevated horror." But regardless of that label, it helped kicked off a wave of challenging, filmmaker-driven genre movies like "It Follows," "Get Out" and "Hereditary."
Kent, 55, has watched all of this — and those many "Babadook" memes — unfold over the years with a mix of elation and confusion. Her film was inspired in part by the death of her father, and its horror elements likewise arise out of the suppression of emotions. A single mother (Essie Davis) is struggling with raising her young son (Noah Wiseman) years after the tragic death of her husband. A figure from a pop-up children's book begins to appear. As things grow more intense, his name is drawn out in three chilling syllables — "Bah-Bah-Doooook" — an incantation of unprocessed grief.
Kent recently spoke from her native Australia to reflect on the origins and continuing life of "The Babadook."
Q: Given that you didn't set out to in any way "change" horror, how have you regarded the unique afterlife of "The... Read More