Chris Brown has been named president and CEO of DDB New York. He will transition into his new role in September. Brown currently serves as CEO of DDB Group Australia.
Additionally, a new group structure in New York has been created and will encompass: DDB New York, Uproar@DDB, DDB Remedy, Tribal Worldwide New York, Roberts & Langer DDB and Spike DDB. Peter Hempel, current CEO of DDB New York, will assume the new position of chairman and CEO, DDB Group New York, overseeing the entire group to ensure the agencies are collaborating and exploring joint opportunities.
Brown will report jointly to Hempel and Mark O’Brien, president of DDB North America. Hempel will continue to report to O’Brien.
Brown brings to his new position 17 years of experience with DDB Worldwide, both in the UK and Australia. He was promoted to CEO of DDB Group Australia in 2012, after serving as group managing director of DDB Sydney from 2007 to 2012.
Brown created a nationally integrated offering centered around creativity, data and technology, effectively merging DDB Sydney and DDB Melbourne to form DDB Group Australia. The Group went on to win accolades from the IAB, including: Agency of the Year, PR Agency of the Year, Experiential Agency of the Year, Ad of the Year, Campaign of the Year and Best in Show. In 2012 the agency won the prestigious Spikes Agency of the Year honor for Asia Pacific.
Brown has worked with a range of leading brands in his career, including Sony, Telstra, Tourism Australia, Unilever, J&J and Volkswagen. He was promoted to the board of management and managing partner of DDB Sydney at the age of 30, and group managing director of DDB Sydney at the age of 33, with overall responsibility for DDB, RAPP, Mango, DDB Remedy and Tribal Worldwide. Brown has produced award-winning campaigns that have been recognized at the top shows around the world such as the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, One Show, D&AD, IPA and AFA Effectiveness awards. Brown currently sits on the National Communications Council Board in Australia and is one of the participants in the “Male Champions of Change” initiative, committed to promoting gender equality within the industry.
“Overnight Success” Has Been More Than A Decade In The Making For Meghann Fahy and Eve Hewson
Meghann Fahy and Eve Hewson, two of the stars of Netflix's whodunit "The Perfect Couple," have news for you if you want to call them breakouts: They've been working in this business for more than a decade.
Fahy made her TV debut in 2009 in an episode of "Gossip Girl." Hewson's first big film role was in 2011's "This Must Be the Place." They do concede, however, that it's recent TV roles — "The White Lotus" for Fahy and "Bad Sisters" for Hewson — that have led to new frontiers of opportunity.
Susanne Bier, who directed "The Perfect Couple," says both Fahy and Hewson are "going to be big stars."
"They certainly have proper, profound star quality, Both of them in very different ways," Bier says. "Both are incredibly creative, incredibly smart, and also have a impressive insight as to who they are. You can be a great actor or actress and not necessarily really know who you are yourself. And they do."
Hewson, 33, whose dad is U2 front man Bono, may have grown up in a famous family but she's now in demand in her own right. She will next be seen in a second season of "Bad Sisters, " out in November. She's in Noah Baumbach's next film, alongside Adam Sandler, George Clooney and Riley Keough. She's also been cast in Steven Spielberg's next production and is set to star opposite Murray Bartlett in a racing series for Hulu.
Fahy, 34, is in production on a limited series with Julianne Moore and Milly Alcock called "Sirens," written by Molly Smith Metzler ("Maid") for Netflix. She also has two films in the can with Josh O'Connor ("The Crown," "Challengers") and Brandon Sklenar ("It Ends With Us").
The two actors spoke candidly about this phase of their careers. This interview has been condensed for clarity and... Read More