The Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) released a sneak peek at the thoughts and insights the AICP Next Awards jury presidents and curators at large will share via a series of films at the premiere of the AICP Next Awards on June 6. Directed by Sarah Rinaldi, the films are an integral part of the awards ceremony. Nick Law, vice chairman/global chief creative officer at R/GA, and the 2017 AICP Next Awards judging chair, will serve as emcee at the premiere. In addition to screening the winning work, and insights from those who selected the winners–including Most Next (Best in Show)–the winners of the Integrated Campaign category will present live case studies. Besides earning Best in Show distinction, the Most Next winner also directs a $5,000 grant from the AICP Foundation to an educational initiative of their choice.
The Integrated Campaign winners are: “Blind Taste Test” for Kraft Macaroni & Cheese out of CP+B; and Boost Mobile’s “Boost Your Voice” from 180LA. Presenting from CP+B are: Adam Chasnow, VP/executive creative director; D’Arcy O’Neill, creative director; and Devin Reiter, VP/managing director. Presenting from 180LA are: William Gelner, chief creative officer; Natasha Wellesley, head of integrated production, and David Emery, executive producer.
Serving as jury presidents and curators at large, comprising its Curatorial Committee under Law for the 2017 AICP Next Awards are:
- Tim Allen, Microsoft (Mobile)
- Jill Applebaum, Facebook (Social)
- Winston Binch, Deutsch North Amercia (Website)
- Susan Credle, FCB (Viral/Web Film)
- Kerstin Emhoff, PRETTYBIRD (Experiential – Live Events/Broadcast)
- Jessica Greenwood, R/GA (Curator At Large)
- Jeff Kling, Fallon Worldwide (Curator At Large)
- Jonathan Mildenhall, Airbnb (Branded Content);
- Chris Milk, Within & Here Be Dragons (Virtual Reality)
- Tor Myhren, Apple (Curator At Large)
- Rob Reilly, McCann Worldgroup (Curator At Large)
- Jaime Robinson, Joan (Integrated Campaign)
- Vivian Rosenthal, Snaps (Innovation)
- Jimmy Smith, Amusement Park Entertainment (Cause Marketing)
- Tereasa Surratt, Ogilvy (Experiential)
Rinaldi is an Emmy-award winning director who has worked on both brand promotions as well as sports programming and features. She was recently selected for the first-ever Commercial Directors Diversity Program (CDDP) Showcase. The CDDP is a joint effort of AICP and the Directors Guild of America (DGA) to increase the number of women and minority directors in the commercial industry.
AICP Week includes the debut of The AICP Next Awards, and the premiere of The AICP Show will premiere on June 7 at The Museum of Modern Art. The AICP Base Camp will be open on June 6 and 7 with a full slate of programming, including panel discussions with industry leaders, the opportunity to experience the Virtual Reality Shortlist for the AICP Next Awards, and fuel up on snacks and coffee. The full schedule of programming for the AICP Base Camp can be found here. Week Passes and tickets to all events are now available here.
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