The Sweet Shop has added animation directorial collective The Frank Barton Company to its talent roster for U.S. representation. A full service boutique, The Frank Barton Company is comprised of creatives from several different facets of the film, CG, VFX, and video game industries.
Founded in 2008, the original team was comprised of seven artists who aspired to craft dynamic, creatively fulfilling content that would allow them to develop their personal passions as part of a larger, unified whole. The result is a body of work that received honors from Cannes, El Sol, and FIAP.
Based in Madrid, The Frank Barton Company has since grown to include 20 artists from a diverse range of visual departments. Sergio Garcia and Ursula Garcia are chief creative officer and executive creative director, respectively of The Frank Barton Company. The team’s combined credits include work on such projects as “The Matrix: Reloaded,” “Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within,” “Che” and Ridley Scott’s upcoming feature “Exodus: Gods and Kings.” Together, these varied backgrounds have allowed them to create fully realized worlds and characters for brands including ING, Sony, Fiat, Vodafone, and the now classic Vinamilk cows which have remained the face of the brand for the past four years and counting.
Paul Prince is CEO and founding partner of The Sweet Shop. Laura Thoel is managing director of The Sweet Shop USA.
Eleanor Adds Director Candice Vernon To Its Roster For Spots and Branded Content
Director Candice Vernon has joined production house Eleanor for U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content. She has already wrapped several jobs at Eleanor, which waited to announce her until they had a body of work together.
Via Eleanor, Vernon made history as the first Black director on a Febreze commercial. The “Small Spaces” campaign marks a major departure from Febreze’s typical blue-and-white world. The home of the “Revolving Door” commercial is a beautiful array of bold sunset hues, African prints, and African art.
Vernon said, “I asked myself, what feels right to me? What feels new? I wanted to bring an essence of not just Black Americans but the full diaspora. I wanted to make a statement that we’re not a monolith.”
Following the success of the “Small Spaces” campaign, Febreze brought Vernon back for a comedy-infused trifecta exploring the hilarious situations that call for an air freshening hero.
Febreze Brand VP Angelica Matthews said, “About two years ago, we realized the consumers that were the most loyal to Febreze were the African American consumers. And the more we learned, the more we realized the richness that we were really missing. So we said we have to go beyond just Black casting, we need to get Black directors that truly understand the culture that truly understand how to bring authentic performances out on screen. We really looked around the industry and noticed there’s actually a shortage of African American directors who have experience doing commercials. When we all saw Candice’s reel, we could all tell the passion for the craft, passion for really trying to help us from where we are to where we’re trying to go.”
Vernon brings a unique lens to... Read More