Executive producer Deanne Mehling has joined Arcade Edit, Los Angeles, as an executive producer. Damian Stevens, managing partner of Arcade, said that he and Mehling will work closely together to expand the shop’s Los Angeles roster and to open a New York office.
Mehling will also be involved in the daily operations and expansion of Arcade’s sister company, Airship Post, which provides post services including visual effects, graphic design and file conversion.
For more than 20 years, Mehling has worked in the commercial production and post industry. In 2001, Mehling formed a partnership with editors Lance Pereira and Hal Hongisberg to launch Chrome in Santa Monica, where she was executive producer/partner. Prior to co-founding Chrome, Mehling held senior management positions at Satellite Films, Fahrenheit Films, A52 and Jigsaw Editorial.
Her credits over the years span spots for such brands as Nike, Sony PlayStation, Apple, HP and Visa, Additionally she is credited with co-producing a short documentary by Lauren Greenfield, called kids+money. It traveled to over 50 festivals including Sundance where it was picked up by HBO and aired on its documentary series shorts in ’08.
Stevens and editors Kim Bica, Geoff Hounsell and Paul Martinez are partnered in Arcade. The shop’s roster also includes editors Patrick Griffin and Christjan Jordan. Airship Post’s lead VFX artist is Chris Homel, with Keala Asato serving as assistant VFX artist.
R/GA Goes Independent In Management and Private Equity Partnership
Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG) has sold R/GA, the creative innovation company, to Truelink Capital, a private equity firm with a track record of investing in tech-enabled services. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The move thus marks R/GA’s return to independence as a privately owned company after 23 years as part of IPG. R/GA’s global management team and Truelink Capital have formed an indie partnership. R/GA’s global CEO Robin Forbes and chair & global chief creative officer Tiffany Rolfe are two of the global leaders, together with others, who are investing in the company as part of the deal. R/GA’s next chapter will be fueled out of the gate by a $50M Innovation Fund, enabling the company to invest in new skillsets and talent, and acquire new capabilities, emerging tools and platforms. Additionally, R/GA has established a Strategic Advisory Council of senior marketing and technology executives to support emerging AI client transformation opportunities across multiple sectors.
As an independent company, R/GA is activating an AI-enabled model to better serve clients, unburdened by the restrictions and overheads of traditional corporate structures. New remuneration models based on outcomes, agile new team structures, and scaling up its flexible talent model “R/GA Associates,” are among the initial changes being implemented.
“Today is a landmark moment for R/GA, as we enter an exciting new chapter as a private company supported by our new partners at Truelink Capital. This announcement also signals a stark contrast to a wider trend towards consolidation in the agency business. Most agencies will struggle to make the pivot in this new age, especially at a time when they’re operating within complex agency... Read More