Director Na has joined Toronto-based production company Alfredo Films for Canadian representation. The transgender director has dedicated their career to projects that give back to underserved and underrepresented communities like LGBTQ+ and BIPOC. Now based in Detroit, they were born and raised in Seoul—where they started making films at the age of 15, using a camcorder received as a birthday present. Filmmaking became a form of language, a gift expressing their care and gratitude to loved ones. Na’s first work with Alfredo is a powerful new spot for MasterCard via McCann Canada called “True Name.” True Name by Mastercard is the first card in Canada that lets transgender and nonbinary communities display their chosen name. Mastercard worked with McCann Canada to create a video series and invited influencers from the 2SLGBTQ+ community to share their stories and speak to what the True Name feature means to them. The series showcases the challenges of misrepresentation that individuals from the transgender and nonbinary communities face when the name on their bank cards does not reflect their identity. It was important to Mastercard to partner with Na to ensure representation at all levels of production. Na has directed national broadcast commercials, as well as branded content, and documentary style work for a wide range of clients including Microsoft, General Motors, Ford, Chevy and Bumble, all with a commitment to ensuring visibility of everyone from local artists to trans and gender non-conforming individuals, poets, and urban farmers. Alfredo Films is a Black, Indian, Asian and female-owned production company. Na has representation in the U.S. via Tool of North America and Detroit-based Local Boy….
A Closer Look At Proposed Measures Designed To Curb Google’s Search Monopoly
U.S. regulators are proposing aggressive measures to restore competition to the online search market after a federal judge ruled Google maintained an illegal monopoly for the last decade.
The sweeping set of recommendations filed late Wednesday by the U.S. Department of Justice could radically alter Google's business, including possibly spinning off the Chrome web browser and syndicating its search data to competitors. Even if the courts adopt the blueprint, Google isn't likely to make any significant changes until 2026 at the earliest, because of the legal system's slow-moving wheels.
Here's what it all means:
What is the Justice Department's goal?
Federal prosecutors are cracking down on Google in a case originally filed during near the end of then-President Donald Trump's first term. Officials say the main goal of these proposals is to get Google to stop leveraging its dominant search engine to illegally squelch competition and stifle innovation.
"The playing field is not level because of Google's conduct, and Google's quality reflects the ill-gotten gains of an advantage illegally acquired," the Justice Department asserted in its recommendations. "The remedy must close this gap and deprive Google of these advantages."
Not surprisingly, Google sees things much differently. The Justice Department's "wildly overbroad proposal goes miles beyond the Court's decision," Kent Walker, Google's chief legal officer, asserted in a blog post. "It would break a range of Google products — even beyond search — that people love and find helpful in their everyday lives."
It's still possible that the Justice Department could ease off on its attempts to break up Google, especially if President-elect Donald Trump... Read More