Beth Rilee-Kelley, chief operating officer, has been named president of The Martin Agency while retaining her COO duties and title. Rilee-Kelley is a 33-year veteran of the company. As president, she will report to CEO Matt Williams and take on an expanded role partnering with clients and participating in the agency’s business development initiatives. The Martin Agency was named SHOOT’s Agency of the Year in 2015.
“If I had to pick one person who personifies The Martin Agency when we are at our best, it would be Beth,” said Williams. “She has been a strong leader and a tireless mentor both in our company, with our clients, and in our industry. She is smart, witty, decisive and kind. I know she will excel as our new president.”
Beth is one of three managing partners that lead the company’s governing body, the executive committee, along with Williams and Joe Alexander, the company’s chief creative officer. Combined, the three have 83 years of tenure at The Martin Agency.
“The last president of the agency was the late Mike Hughes. It’s fitting that Beth is his successor,” said Alexander. “Like Mike, Beth is an intuitive leader, an incredible listener, and a great partner to our clients and our employees.”
Rilee-Kelley joined the agency in 1983 as an account executive on the Barnett Bank of Florida account and was responsible for opening and managing the agency’s first satellite office in Jacksonville, Florida. She moved to Martin’s Richmond headquarters in 1986 and managed the Kings Dominion and Virginia Tourism accounts. During her time in account management, she also worked on Healthtex, Kindercare, Men’s Health Magazine and Remy Martin. In 1997, she took on the role of director of creative services and was responsible for the management of the creative department.
She was named partner in 2005 and went on to become COO in 2011.
“I’m so honored to be named the president of The Martin Agency,” said Rilee-Kelley. “The feeling I have right now is pretty similar to how I felt 33 years ago. I had finally landed a junior account executive position here. I was the 60th employee on the payroll and was thrilled. And now, to be president of a company you love, working with people you love, does it get any better than this?”
Rilee-Kelley has been a panelist at the 3% Conference and a speaker for the American Advertising Federation and the Advertising Educational Foundation. She also serves on the 4A’s Finance Committee, Virginia Film Festival Advisory Board and, in January, was named chairperson of the advisory board for Virginia Commonwealth University’s Robertson School of Media and Culture.
First-Time Feature Directors Make Major Splash At AFI Fest, Generate Oscar Buzz
Two first-time feature directors who are generating Oscar buzz this awards season were front and center this past weekend at AFI Fest in Hollywood. Rachel Morrison, who made history as the first woman nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar---on the strength of Mudbound in 2018--brought her feature directorial debut, The Fire Inside (Amazon MGM Studios), to the festival on Sunday (10/27), and shared insights into the film during a conversation session immediately following the screening. This came a day after William Goldenberg, an Oscar-winning editor for Argo in 2013, had his initial foray into feature directing, Unstoppable (Amazon MGM Studios), showcased at the AFI proceedings. He too spoke after the screening during a panel discussion. The Fire Inside--which made its world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival--tells the story of Claressa “T-Rex” Shields (portrayed by Ryan Destiny), a Black boxer from Flint, Mich., who trained to become the first woman in U.S. history to win an Olympic Gold Medal in the sport. She achieved this feat--with the help of coach Jason Crutchfield (Brian Tyree Henry)--only to find that her victory at the Summer Games came with relatively little fanfare and no endorsement deals. So much for the hope that the historic accomplishment would be a ticket out of socioeconomic purgatory for Shields and her family. It seemed like yet another setback in a cycle of adversity throughout Shields’ life but she persevered, going on to win her second Gold Medal at the next Olympics and becoming a champion for gender equality and equitable pay for women in sports. Shields has served as a source of inspiration for woman athletes worldwide--as well as to the community of... Read More