After some major changes a couple of weeks ago–the acquisition of the majority stake in the company by Hong Kong-based Sun Innovation, and mainstay executive Ed Ulbrich stepping down from his position as CEO–Digital Domain has ushered in a new regime which looks much like the old regime, promoting a pair of familiar faces to leadership positions: Rich Flier who becomes president of the advertising & games division, and Terry Clotiaux who assumes the presidency of the feature film production division. Both report to Daniel Seah, a Sun Innovation exec who succeeded Ulbrich late last month as CEO. Seah is CEO of what has been renamed Digital Domain 3.0 (consisting of Digital Domain 3.0, Inc., Digital Domain Productions 3.0 and Mothership Media, Inc.).
Flier oversees all advertising and videogame visual effects and production at Digital Domain 3.0 and sister shop Mothership. A 20-year veteran brand strategist and marketer, Flier joined the company in 2011 as executive producer. He was instrumental in building the division’s client base and expertise in the creative development and production of videogame content for Activision, Electronic Arts, 2K Games, Microsoft and other top publishers, developers and ad agencies. In 2012 he was elevated to VP. Prior to Digital Domain, Flier co-founded boutique games marketing and production agency Secret Identity. He was also the VP of interactive entertainment at 3D imaging company 3DV Systems, which was sold to Microsoft and its technology became part of the Kinect system. He spent several years at DDB Worldwide, was a VP at Creative Domain’s interactive entertainment division (now Trailer Park), and has held marketing and production roles at DreamWorks Interactive.
Clotiaux, a veteran VFX executive credited on more than 35 feature films in a 25-year career, oversees all visual effects feature film production at Digital Domain 3.0’s California and Vancouver studios. He was EP of Digital Domain’s feature film division from 2007 to 2009 and rejoined the company as VP of the division in March 2013. Prior to that he was president of global VFX production at Prime Focus Group. Clotiaux has also served as sr. VFX producer at Sony Pictures Imageworks/Columbia Pictures and as a VFX producer for Warner Bros. Pictures, 20th Century Fox, InterMedia Films and Columbia Pictures/Tristar. His credits include Avatar, Spider-Man 3, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, The Matrix: Reloaded and Revolutions, Independence Day and other top features, commercials and trailers.
Ulbrich stepped down as Digital Domain’s CEO last month but entered into a creative consultant arrangement with the company and continues as producer of its upcoming feature film Enders Game (a Digital Domain co-production) which Lionsgate/Summit is releasing domestically on November 1.
Ulbrich was with Digital Domain since its inception in 1993 and was the chief architect of its advertising production business. He also executive produced the Academy Award-winning visual effects for The Curious Case of Benjamin Button and Titanic, as well as Tron Legacy, Fight Club and Zodiac, among others; music videos for Lady Gaga, Rolling Stones and Michael Jackson; and more than 500 commercials and the computer-generated “hologram” of the late rap star Tupac Shakur for the Coachella Valley Music Festival.
Ulbrich played a key role in Digital Domain’s emergence from bankruptcy (SHOOT, 11/16/12) and purchase by Galloping Horse (which bought a 70 percent stake) and Reliance MediaWorks (which acquired the remaining 30 percent).
Last month, Sun Innovation acquired the parent company of Galloping Horse U.S., thus taking ownership of its 70 percent share of what is now Digital Domain 3.0. Reliance MediaWorks continues to own a minority stake (30 percent) in Digital Domain 3.0 while Galloping Horse also remains in the ownership chain.
Founded in 1992, Sun Innovation is a Hong Kong-based and listed company that recently formed a strategic partnership with Beijing Galloping Horse, a film and TV company in China. With its acquisition of Digital Domain 3.0, Sun Innovation intends to expand its reach in the growing international feature film markets and in the development of new digital media experiences for consumers in entertainment, advertising, cultural and media environments worldwide.
ADCOLOR | The One Club Creative Award Winners: Translation’s Jason Campbell and League Twenty Two’s Ashley Henderson
Jason Campbell, chief creative officer at Translation Enterprises, and Ashley Henderson, founder and CEO at League Twenty Two, are the recipients of this year’s ADCOLOR | THE ONE CLUB Creative Award, presented this past weekend at the 18th annual ADCOLOR Awards ceremony, part of the 2024 ADCOLOR Conference in Los Angeles.
Now in its 15th year, the ADCOLOR | THE One Club Creative Award is given to a professional in a creative field from a historically excluded community who has demonstrated extraordinary talent and achievement within the media, creative, digital, and traditional advertising disciplines.
The honor is presented jointly by The One Club for Creativity and ADCOLOR, the organization dedicated to celebrating and promoting professionals of color and diversity in the creative industries.
The award was co-presented on stage by Adrienne Lucas, head of DEI & strategic partnerships at The One Club, and Courtney Richardson, creative director at Droga5, who won the award in 2021.
“The One Club has for decades provided programming such as ONE School, Creative Boot Camps, and annual Where Are All The Black People conference and career fair that helps solve the industry’s diversity problem,” said Kevin Swanepoel, CEO, The One Club. “We’re proud to work with ADCOLOR and recognize Jason and Ashley for their inspiring accomplishments.”
Campbell’s Caribbean roots color his creativity, his perspectives, and have been instrumental in how he got to where he is today.
He has worked for brands including Nike, the NBA, Verizon, Impossible Foods, Airbnb and Beats by Dre, and held a teaching position at Miami Ad School. Prior to his professional career, he received The One Club’s Patrick Kelly... Read More