Integrated production company 1stAveMachine has added director Ben Steiger Levine to its roster. Levine comes over to the New York-based house from bicoastal aWHITELABELproduct; he continues to be handled in Canada by Spy Films, Toronto.
Getting his start in Canada, where he received multiple grants to produce his short films, Levine has since successfully diversified into directing music videos and commercials.
Levine’s films often border on bizarre and beautiful, hinting at themes of humanity and existence through clever re-imagination of the human form. His filmography includes Heavens to Purgatory where deconstructed bodies act as living decoration, and “You Are Never Alone” for the band Socalled where the lead artist’s face is re-appropriated as a film projector.
“Mr. Hurricane,” Levine’s Grammy Award-nominated music video for Beast, helped gain him inclusion into Saatchi & Saatchi New Directors Showcase in 2009. In the clip, a swarm of bees discovers its own fleeting human soul. That ’09 Saatchi Showcase, incidentally, also featured work from 1stAveMachine directors Aaron Duffy and Antonio Balseiro.
“I love to experiment in my work. 1stAveMachine is a great place for me, because they’re always pushing the envelope and doing the most interesting stuff,” said Levine.
Serge Patzak, 1stAveMachine’s co-founder, noted that Levine’s work “translates well across many platforms” spanning traditional and non-traditional media.
AD&Co. Launches Studio A; Davida Hall To Head New Venture As Sr. Director of Creative Content
Female-founded and led creative marketing agency AD&Co. has opened Studio A. The new venture will serve as AD&Co.’s in-house social brand content division, focused on developing and producing digital programming for advertising, social media, and influencer marketing campaigns designed to reach today’s audiences on the most popular and pivotal platforms. Davida Hall has been named to head Studio A as sr. director of creative content. She shifts over from AD&Co. where she held the same title since December 2023. Hall’s affiliations prior to AD&Co. include PopSugar and Studio71.
Amy Demas, founder and chief creative officer of AD&Co., said, “We understand content is king-—or queen—and that our clients need to engage their customer communities where they live. That inspired the logical expansion of AD&Co with Studio A, which is committed to producing only the most engaging and authentic brand stories.”
Studio A will harness both AD&Co’s and Hall’s deep expertise in the lifestyle sector, as content creators and avid consumers. Specializing in reaching audiences where they spend their time, the studio is immersed in social media, pop culture, and current trends, expertly crafting visuals, language, and storytelling to reinforce client brand identities and cut through the noise.
Studio A debuts with the “This Is Me” campaign for Love + Craft + Beauty, a brand dedicated to embracing and promoting diversity within the beauty space. “This Is Me” highlights Gen Z’s affinity for radical self-expression that allows individuals to tell their own stories, free from labels, using beauty and fashion as tools of authenticity. The campaign showcases models celebrating their unique qualities to present... Read More