Director Eriq Wities–whose work calls on a range of techniques from stop-motion (with people, puppets and inanimate objects) to trick photography, hand-crafted art direction and in-camera, design-driven practical effects–has joined the roster of The Artists Company. Wities has up to this point done most of his projects through his own shop, Open Content; he previously was with mixed-media house ka-chew!
The New York-based director’s stop-motion and storytelling acumen are showcased in a campaign for the Illinois Institute of Art which takes accomplished professionals back in time before our eye to their beginnings as students at the art institute; Open Content produced the spots for David&Goliath. Among Wities’ other credits are a Save The Bay spot, out of agency Free Range Studios and produced by Open Content, in which plastic bags collectively form a rising tide that engulfs a woman standing at the shoreline; and client-direct gigs for the American Jewish World Service, Rainforest Action Network and U.C. Berkeley. All these jobs reflect a strategy of taking on socially conscious PSAs rather than spec work to not only demonstrate his talent but also gain airplay and online exposure to promote worthwhile causes.
Wities’ reel also includes a Djuice spot for Lowes Ukraine, and a client-direct YouTube job.
Wities was raised in the rolling foothills of Kilimanjaro, in the beautiful Tanzanian town of Moshi. He began experimenting with filmmaking and animation at an elementary school age, and his early works reflect colors and motion deeply influenced by centuries of East African dance and ancient textiles. It was in the Tanzanian street markets where Wities’ early sense of design and body movement was defined. The traditional East African wooden dolls were his original puppets. Fabricating joints and armatures from scrap metal and found soda cans, he assembled puppets out of antique Makonde sculptures and a love for animation and stop-motion was born.
Gene Hackman Died Of Heart Disease; Hantavirus Claimed His Wife’s Life About One Week Prior
Actor Gene Hackman died of heart disease a full week after his wife died from hantavirus in their New Mexico hillside home, likely unaware that she was dead because he was in the advanced stages of Alzheimer's disease, authorities revealed Friday. Both deaths were ruled to be from natural causes, chief medical examiner Dr. Heather Jarrell said alongside state fire and health officials at a news conference. "Mr. Hackman showed evidence of advanced Alzheimer's disease," Jarrell said. "He was in a very poor state of health. He had significant heart disease, and I think ultimately that's what resulted in his death." Authorities didn't suspect foul play after the bodies of Hackman, 95, and Betsy Arakawa, 65, were discovered Feb 26. Immediate tests for carbon monoxide poisoning were negative. Investigators found that the last known communication and activity from Arakawa was Feb. 11 when she visited a pharmacy, pet store and grocery before returning to their gated neighborhood that afternoon, Santa Fe County Sheriff Adan Mendoza said Friday. Hackman's pacemaker last showed signs of activity a week later and that he had an abnormal heart rhythm Feb. 18, the day he likely died, Jarrell said. Although there was no reliable way to determine the date and time when both died, all signs point to their deaths coming a week apart, Jarrell said. "It's quite possible he was not aware she was deceased," Jarrell said. Dr. Michael Baden, a former New York City medical examiner, said he believes Hackman was severely impaired due to Alzheimer's disease and unable to deal with his wife's death in the last week of his life. "You are talking about very severe Alzheimer's disease that normal people would be in a nursing home or have a nurse, but she was taking care... Read More