TBWAWorldwide, part of Omnicom Group (NYSE:OMC), has acquired Dark Horses, the U.K. sports creative agency led by CEO Melissa Robertson, executive creative director Steve Howell and chief strategy officer Matt Readman. The deal adds to TBWA's expertise across the total brand experience.
Dark Horses’ work in the field of sports marketing includes supporting major sponsorship deals for global brand Nissan, helping TikTok reach new audiences through their relationship with UEFA EURO 2020, creating Shelter’s #NoHomeKit which encourages football clubs to give up their home kit in aid of all those without a place to call home, and launching Peloton in the U.K. market.
Dark Horses has a strong presence in the industry, not only connecting sports, fitness, health and wellness brands to culture but also often leading conversations on issues affecting sport and communications. In 2022, the team created “The Seven Deadly Sins of Marketing Women’s Sport”–a practical guide on how to properly promote women’s sport as it strives for parity on and off the field.
CEO Robertson believes now is the right time to join the TBWA family. “This is an exciting deal that supports our boutique culture as independent, curious creatives, at the same time as providing the scale that can turn us into a truly global business. We work with some of the most influential sports organizations in the world, so it’s thrilling to imagine what we can do with the reach of TBWA’s 11,000 strong collective.”
From brand creation and brand platforms, through to on-the-ground activation, strategy and social content, as well as PR, sponsorship and influencer marketing, Dark Horses works far beyond the confines of traditional sports marketing, making it the perfect fit for TBWA. Troy Ruhanen, TBWA global CEO said, “We’ve been watching Dark Horses for some time. As a collection of best-in-class agencies at the top of their game, we’re always looking for those deep specialists that complement us and add significant expertise to the total brand experience of our clients. I’m excited to see what growth they can unlock across the board.”
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