By MILLIE TAKAKI
SANTA MONICA-Hollywood-based Post Logic Studios continues to staff up its four-month-old Santa Monica studio, adding digital effects artist Kristin Johnson, formerly of POP, Santa Monica.
Johnson joins Post Logic as an Inferno artist and at press time was working on an undisclosed project being directed by Rick Levine of Rick Levine Productions, New York, for Foote, Cone & Belding, Chicago.
With experience in paint/ graphics design and effects, Johnson has worked on award-winning projects for such clients as Pepsi, Levi’s and Nike. The Nike fare includes "The Wall," the lauded spot directed by Joe Pytka of PYTKA, Venice, for Wieden & Kennedy, Portland, Ore. She collaborated with Pytka on that ad while at Editel/LA, Hollywood, her roost prior to POP. During her career, Johnson has garnered recognition ranging from a Gold Lion at Cannes to a Gold Clio, and honors from The AICP Show, as well as International Monitor Awards. She’s worked regularly with Pytka over the years, another notable entry being Pepsi’s "Diner" via BBDO New York. In addition to POP and Editel/ LA, Johnson was on staff at Varitel, San Francisco, and before that, now defunct Editel/New York.
She comes aboard a Post Logic team on the Westside that also includes effects artist Ricardo Torres, colorists Chris Devlin and Mario Barerra. The Santa Monica shop maintains two Discreet Logic Inferno bays (one equipped with the nonlinear online Fire), a telecine suite featuring the Philips Spirit Datacine, and a virtual bay.
The virtual bay is electronically linked with Post Logic, Hollywood; this enables Post Logic clients in Santa Monica to access any of the studio’s Hollywood artists and services. Through two-way conversations via video teleconferencing and by being able to view video over a D-1 data link, Westside clientele can see and hear as if they were in the same room with artisans at Post Logic, Hollywood.
That Hollywood talent roster includes Henry artist Ko Maruyama, Inferno artist Christine Rivard, colorists Beau Leon, Michael Eaves and Artemus Mayor, online/Fire editors Thom Whitehead and Jeff Gold; and audio mixers Fred Howard and Jamie Ledner. Additionally, Post Logic’s high definition transfer facility was opened on the second floor of the Hollywood studio in November ’98 and features colorists Lou Levinson and Sheri Eisenberg. Dick Voss is president of the overall company, which was established back in ’86. Post Logic offers telecine, graphics and effects, online editing and audio service for spots, promos, episodic television, TV movies, feature films, feature trailers and titles, and documentaries.
Google Opens Its Defense In Antitrust Case Alleging Monopoly Over Online Ad Technology
Google opened its defense against allegations that it holds an illegal monopoly on online advertising technology Friday with witness testimony saying the industry is vastly more complex and competitive than portrayed by the federal government.
"The industry has been exceptionally fluid over the last 18 years," said Scott Sheffer, a vice president for global partnerships at Google, the company's first witness at its antitrust trial in federal court in Alexandria.
The Justice Department and a coalition of states contend that Google built and maintained an illegal monopoly over the technology that facilitates the buying and selling of online ads seen by consumers.
Google counters that the government's case improperly focuses on a narrow type of online ads — essentially the rectangular ones that appear on the top and on the right-hand side of a webpage. In its opening statement, Google's lawyers said the Supreme Court has warned judges against taking action when dealing with rapidly emerging technology like what Sheffer described because of the risk of error or unintended consequences.
Google says defining the market so narrowly ignores the competition it faces from social media companies, Amazon, streaming TV providers and others who offer advertisers the means to reach online consumers.
Justice Department lawyers called witnesses to testify for two weeks before resting their case Friday afternoon, detailing the ways that automated ad exchanges conduct auctions in a matter of milliseconds to determine which ads are placed in front of which consumers and how much they cost.
The department contends the auctions are finessed in subtle ways that benefit Google to the exclusion of would-be competitors and in ways that prevent... Read More