Nexus Studios has appointed Alex Jenkins and Deborah Casswell as executive creative directors of its immersive department.
Jenkins and Casswell will have oversight of creative across the company’s immersive output in London and Los Angeles. The studio, alongside its film, TV and branded content fare, is known for innovative work creating award-winning experiences for the likes of Google, Marvel, Niantic and creative collaborations including Childish Gambino, CERN and artist JR.
During her time as creative director at Nexus Studios, Casswell has collaborated with leading brands. Projects include a storytelling installation at the World Economic Forum celebrating the positive ways Google Cloud AI is being used to serve communities, a poignant game for UNICEF designed to teach children about their human rights, and a meaningful Metaverse for VR that is still in the works. She will continue to lead R&D projects in eyewear and the Metaverse that explore ways to bring true value to people’s lives. Prior to joining Nexus Studios, Casswell was creative director at Media Arts Lab. She is also a founding partner of the ADCAN awards, and an experienced speaker in the creative circle championing immersive technology for purpose-driven content.
Jenkins’ passion for interactive storytelling ensures he places the protagonist and their motivations at the center of every experience, whether that be character or user. Bringing an exceptional level of craft and detail to every brief he meets, he takes a holistic approach to projects ensuring every experience has meaning and contextual value. His work is always carefully considered and informed by his multidisciplinary background in graphic design, illustration and character animation. During his time at Nexus he has led some of our most pioneering interactive pieces, including the BAFTA-nominated collaboration with Google Arts & Culture telling the story of the birth and evolution of the universe, delivered Marvel’s first AR experience for The Eternals, creating a regenerating coral reef to highlight the plight of the world’s oceans and turning a UNESCO world-heritage site into a virtual playground where visitors interact with members of the Joseon Dynasty. Jenkins has also received industry recognition from Cannes Lions, The One Show, The Webby’s and The Art Directors Club, amongst others.
Chris O’Reilly, co-founder and chief creative officer of Nexus Studios, said, “In Alex and Deborah we’ve found two creative minds who combine a passion for great conceptual thinking and thoughtful, quality design. They are incredibly knowledgeable in interaction and immersive tech but they want to make the work that moves beyond novelty and emotionally changes people. That’s very much in keeping with Nexus’ ethos and the previous work we are most proud of. We’re excited to have their incredible combined energy and brilliance to guide the immersive team.”
Carrie Coon Relishes Being Part Of An Ensemble–From “The Gilded Age” To “His Three Daughters”
It can be hard to catch Carrie Coon on her own.
She is far more likely to be found in the thick of an ensemble. That could be on TV, in "The Gilded Age," for which she was just Emmy nominated, or in the upcoming season of "The White Lotus," which she recently shot in Thailand. Or it could be in films, most relevantly, Azazel Jacobs' new drama, "His Three Daughters," in which Coon stars alongside Natasha Lyonne and Elizabeth Olsen as sisters caring for their dying father.
But on a recent, bright late-summer morning, Coon is sitting on a bench in the bucolic northeast Westchester town of Pound Ridge. A few years back, she and her husband, the playwright Tracy Letts, moved near here with their two young children, drawn by the long rows of stone walls and a particularly good BLT from a nearby cafe that Letts, after biting into, declared must be within 15 miles of where they lived.
In a few days, they would both fly to Los Angeles for the Emmys (Letts was nominated for his performance in "Winning Time" ). But Coon, 43, was then largely enmeshed in the day-to-day life of raising a family, along with their nightly movie viewings, which Letts pulls from his extensive DVD collection. The previous night's choice: "Once Around," with Holly Hunter and Richard Dreyfus.
Coon met Letts during her breakthrough performance in "Who's Afraid of Virginia Wolfe?" on Broadway in 2012. She played the heavy-drinking housewife Honey. It was the first role that Coon read and knew, viscerally, she had to play. Immediately after saying this, Coon sighs.
"It sounds like something some diva would say in a movie from the '50s," Coon says. "I just walked around in my apartment in my slip and I had pearls and a little brandy. I made a grocery list and I just did... Read More