Bicoastal production company ArtClass has signed director Shaun Collings for representation. He will focus on commercials, promos, and branded content for linear and digital platforms. Collings will also draw on his experience as a creative director to advise and build on the company’s postproduction capabilities.
A versatile director and creative director known for his design-driven storytelling, Collings has a body of work that encompasses projects for Under Armour, Acura, General Mills, Oculus, Nike, TaylorMade, and ESPN, the latter of which included the award-winning deepfake-style spot for the network’s The Last Dance documentary series, featuring sports broadcaster Kenny Mayne.
Collings freelanced with ArtClass prior to joining the company. In addition to his ESPN work with ArtClass during this time, he also served as director/creative director on the Philo rebrand campaign. His other freelance stops include Elastic, Prologue, and Motion Theory, where he directed and creative directed commercials, title sequences, and VFX work for Nike, Disney, and Apple.
“Shaun and I go way back, so it has been fun watching him grow into the director’s chair after having established himself as a sought-after creative director,” said ArtClass executive producer/partner Geno Imbriale. “His eye for design translates well to framing a live-action scene and finding those little details behind every great story. His deep understanding of the VFX and post process is also a huge asset as we are constantly looking for ways to elevate our pipeline and create more efficiently. He brings great passion in the process. I know because we’ve pulled off some impossible projects together.”
Collings added, “Geno has been a true friend and mentor who has helped shape my career as a director. He and [co-founder] Vincent Peone have built ArtClass into a forward-thinking company when it comes to content creation — one that’s finding new methods, bringing a diversity of voices and representation to the table.”
Collings got his start as a sr. designer/animator at Shilo. From there, he joined Elastic as a design director working on such projects as commercial campaigns for Nike Pro Combat and Verizon Droid, and the Tron: Legacy main titles. Collings then went on to Big Block as a director/creative director, where he built out the company’s design division, and helmed campaigns for the likes of Under Armour, ESPN, and Lexus. His work has garnered industry recognition, including an Emmy Award for Monday Night Football, and multiple Clio and Promax awards for ESPN rebrands, Fox’s Cosmos main titles, and an anthem film for Discovery’s Great American Country.
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