Deluxe Entertainment Services Group (Deluxe) has announced that Chris Holt has been appointed to the new role of EVP, global operations, and Mark Smirnoff has been hired as EVP, sales for the Post-Production unit led by president William Sherak and chief operating officer Mike Gunter.
In making the announcement, Gunter said, “With Chris and Mark we have added two incredible talents to lead Deluxe Post-Production. William and I are thrilled that they are on the team that will lead us in the successes we see ahead.”
Holt most recently served as SVP and general manager for the division and previously held that position at Company 3 in Los Angeles. He has held executive positions at Sony Colorworks and Technicolor, and served as digital intermediate producer on feature films for Disney, Fox, and Universal. He will be responsible for the overall management and strategy for the global EFILM and Encore studios, as well as for the Deluxe Post-Production businesses in New York, London, and Toronto.
Smirnoff meanwhile reports to Holt and will lead the global sales teams at EFILM, Encore, Editpool, Level 3, EC3, Mobilabs, as well as the sales teams at Deluxe’s London, Toronto, and New York offices.
Smirnoff comes to Deluxe from Technicolor where he was VP of episodic services. He previously was president of creative services for Modern VideoFilm, and has served as the post executive in charge of many critically acclaimed feature and television projects.
Both Holt and Smirnoff will be based in Los Angeles.
Rom-Com Mainstay Hugh Grant Shifts To The Dark Side and He’s Never Been Happier
After some difficulties connecting to a Zoom, Hugh Grant eventually opts to just phone instead.
"Sorry about that," he apologizes. "Tech hell." Grant is no lover of technology. Smart phones, for example, he calls the "devil's tinderbox."
"I think they're killing us. I hate them," he says. "I go on long holidays from them, three or four days at at time. Marvelous."
Hell, and our proximity to it, is a not unrelated topic to Grant's new film, "Heretic." In it, two young Mormon missionaries (Chloe East, Sophie Thatcher) come knocking on a door they'll soon regret visiting. They're welcomed in by Mr. Reed (Grant), an initially charming man who tests their faith in theological debate, and then, in much worse things.
After decades in romantic comedies, Grant has spent the last few years playing narcissists, weirdos and murders, often to the greatest acclaim of his career. But in "Heretic," a horror thriller from A24, Grant's turn to the dark side reaches a new extreme. The actor who once charmingly stammered in "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and who danced to the Pointer Sisters in "Love Actually" is now doing heinous things to young people in a basement.
"It was a challenge," Grant says. "I think human beings need challenges. It makes your beer taste better in the evening if you've climbed a mountain. He was just so wonderfully (expletive)-up."
"Heretic," which opens in theaters Friday, is directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, co-writers of "A Quiet Place." In Grant's hands, Mr. Reed is a divinely good baddie — a scholarly creep whose wry monologues pull from a wide range of references, including, fittingly, Radiohead's "Creep."
In an interview, Grant spoke about these and other facets of his character, his journey... Read More