Spot Runner, which got its start producing low cost TV ads for local advertisers and now creates online video ads, too, boosted its ability to shoot the ads by acquiring GlobeShooter/Los Angeles, a network of 1,200 independent filmmakers, videographers, producers and production companies.
Spot Runner announced the acquisition yesterday and said it would help the company shoot advertising around the country. “We have a strong creative in-house team, but the ability to act regionally or locally has been hampered by our limited staff,” said Spot Runner co-founder David Waxman. “The acquisition enables us to get high quality production, so we can create new ads across the nation.”
The company specializes in ads for local businesses that are shot on the premises. Some advertisers provide local footage that is included in the ads, but having the GlobeShooter producers will enable Spot Runner to shoot original footage. “We’ll be able to add local footage and imagery and get the local flavor,” Waxman said.
The acquisition helps Spot Runner shoot local advertising and expand the kind of advertising it offers. “We started selling TV, but now we offer other media and we’re expanding to the Internet and online video,” Waxman said.
Members of the GlobeShooter network will benefit from the acquisition by being able to build their portfolios with Spot Runner clients and work with Spot Runner’s in-house creative team.
GlobeShooter is being renamed the Spot Runner Production Network.
First-Time Feature Directors Make Major Splash At AFI Fest, Generate Oscar Buzz
Two first-time feature directors who are generating Oscar buzz this awards season were front and center this past weekend at AFI Fest in Hollywood. Rachel Morrison, who made history as the first woman nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar---on the strength of Mudbound in 2018--brought her feature directorial debut, The Fire Inside (Amazon MGM Studios), to the festival on Sunday (10/27), and shared insights into the film during a conversation session immediately following the screening. This came a day after William Goldenberg, an Oscar-winning editor for Argo in 2013, had his initial foray into feature directing, Unstoppable (Amazon MGM Studios), showcased at the AFI proceedings. He too spoke after the screening during a panel discussion. The Fire Inside--which made its world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival--tells the story of Claressa “T-Rex” Shields (portrayed by Ryan Destiny), a Black boxer from Flint, Mich., who trained to become the first woman in U.S. history to win an Olympic Gold Medal in the sport. She achieved this feat--with the help of coach Jason Crutchfield (Brian Tyree Henry)--only to find that her victory at the Summer Games came with relatively little fanfare and no endorsement deals. So much for the hope that the historic accomplishment would be a ticket out of socioeconomic purgatory for Shields and her family. It seemed like yet another setback in a cycle of adversity throughout Shields’ life but she persevered, going on to win her second Gold Medal at the next Olympics and becoming a champion for gender equality and equitable pay for women in sports. Shields has served as a source of inspiration for woman athletes worldwide--as well as to the community of... Read More