Independent full-service advertising agency INNOCEAN USA has appointed Gui Borchert as its executive creative director. He will oversee the Hyundai North America account.
Borchert, most recently senior director of creative at Squarespace, brings over 20 years of experience in delivering iconic creative work for brands such as Nike, Google, Puma World Cup and Adidas Football. His work has been recognized by Cannes Lions, D&AD, Effies, Clios and Andy Awards.
Jason Sperling, chief creative officer at INNOCEAN USA, said, “With his unique mix of experience as designer-writer-director and contagious creativity, Gui fully embodies INNOCEAN’s new philosophy of being an explorer. I’m excited to see how he continues to push the creative limits for Hyundai and the industry, and beyond excited about what we’ll accomplish together.”
As a designer turned writer, Borchert comes to INNOCEAN USA with a diverse background. After discovering a passion for concepting ideas and the process of communicating them to others, he launched his career in Brazil as a graphic designer. A couple years later, Borchert sold his car and boarded a plane to New York City where he planned to pursue a Masters in Communications and Design. But when the dream of the Big Apple was hit with the reality of tuition costs, he began to shop his portfolio around, landing him in the advertising industry as an art director for R/GA’s Nike account. Eventually he transitioned to traditional advertising where he spent 13 years as a creative director at various agencies such as Mother, Fallon and 72andSunny, before moving brand side with Squarespace.
Borchert’s fluid journey has encouraged him to push his limits, both personally and professionally, which has led to new outlets of creativity including writing and directing. By integrating these avenues alongside his design expertise, he has cultivated a strong cross-channel approach in his creative process, enabling him to effectively lead across various disciplines.
“It’s exciting to join INNOCEAN during such a pivotal time for the agency, especially with its recently established philosophy and new visual identity,” said Borchert. “Interestingly, INNOCEAN and Hyundai are very similar. Everyone who drives a Hyundai, loves it, and everyone who works at INNOCEAN, loves it––and this creates a powerful synergy between teams. But outside, not everyone knows this. It’s a huge opportunity to take the brand and agency to the next level together, from valued to beloved.”
Borchert will be responsible for continuing to build a world-class team of talent for the account and help further expand the agency’s business and roster of clients.
SCHROM x Yacht Club and Be Electric Studios Launch Electric XR for Virtual Production
SCHROM x Yacht Club, a full-service live-action, tabletop, and postproduction company, has teamed with Be Electric Studios, a soundstage, equipment rental, and virtual production company, to launch Electric XR, a virtual production collective.
Industry veteran Thomas Rossano will lead the new venture, which provides advanced virtual production solutions across multiple facilities. He brings over 25 years of experience in live-action, tabletop, postproduction and talent curation to enhance Electric XR’s offerings as a resource for brands and agencies, as well as other production companies in need of virtual production solutions. Additionally Rossano continues to serve as EP at XR New York (XR-NY), a role he’s held since December 2022. SCHROM x Yacht Club originally established XR-NY to help provide XR services for third-party rentals. While XR-NY will continue to function independently for SCHROM X Yacht Club, it now operates under the Electric XR umbrella.
Rossano’s expertise spans producing live-action commercials, branded content, interactive and experiential content. In addition to leading Electric XR, he holds responsibilities at SCHROM x Yacht Club which include driving business development, collaborating with sales reps and expanding the company’s creative talent network. Rossano’s career includes serving as an exec producer at Hungry Man for about 11 years, right from that company’s inception. He then went on to become a partner at Station Film where he also had a lengthy tenure. Later he was a partner at PRISM. Then after the pandemic hit, he became a freelance EP for nearly two years, looking into opportunities in virtual production, which led him to XR NY and now Electric XR. Over the years, he has produced high-profile... Read More