V3, the Culver City-based division of bicoastal Anonymous Content, has added director Judy Starkman, who was formerly partnered in Two Trick Pony, Hollywood. Under the aegis of executive producer Sylvia Kahn, V3 represents a diverse mix of up-and-coming helmers and specializes in alternative advertising and marketing forms.
At press time, Starkman was about to embark on a V3-produced video-on-demand (VOD) project for an undisclosed client. Her work first caught the eye of Kahn last fall, but the director subsequently opted to get in on the ground floor of Two Trick Pony. Recently deciding to exit Two Trick Pony which was going in a different direction than she had envisioned (see story, p. 7), Starkman reconnected with Kahn, laying the groundwork for coming aboard V3.
Starkman generated initial interest from Kahn based on a reel that included a short, Klown’en, which won a heavily contested Converse competition, earning a cash prize along with airtime on the MTV Networks. Converse originally put out a call for 24-second films–not commercials–that embody the Converse spirit. Starkman’s documentary filmmaking background pointed her in the direction of Tommy The Clown, an L.A. performer who has attained prominence in crumping and clowning, a form of hip-hop expression that combines aggressive tribal dancing with clown antics.
Tommy has organized performing ensembles, including inner-city kids, who have achieved a measure of success and self-esteem on the performing circuit. Starkman read about Tommy, sought him out and placed him and his young colleagues in a stark performance environment for the Converse short. She also created and helmed another Converse spec film, a lifestyle portrait of a ceramics maker. Both Converse shorts generated an industry buzz.
Kahn was also favorably impressed by a spec spot Starkman recently wrapped, “Tres Hefes” (“Three Bosses”) for Podcast.net. The piece profiles three working class guys from the Southern California blue-collar community of Southgate, California, who have launched a successful podcast show that has drawn quite a following. Starkman researched podcasting and sought out real people subjects, locating the Southgate trio. With career roots in documentary making, she directed the spec project to further showcase her prowess in real people dialogue.
Starkman’s first high-profile professional gig was serving as a London-based foreign news producer. She later directed a U.K. series, Hollywood Men, comprised of four hour-long, documentary-style episodes (profiling such notables as former Paramount Pictures exec Robert Evans). Moving back to the U.S., Starkman worked as a Los Angeles correspondent on a Canadian TV series, which entailed her helming profiles of underground artists in Southern California. Then she served on staff for three-and-a-half years at Channel One, the teen/youth network wired to classrooms across the country. She directed assorted teen-related and educational programs, telling relevant stories to teenagers in a positive, encouraging manner. Soon she dovetailed into directing promos for the network.
Also during her Channel One tenure, Starkman directed Power of One, a storytelling project, which had her working with Leo Burnett USA, Chicago, on behalf of client and program sponsor the U.S. Army. Furthermore, while at the teen network, she directed four PSAs promoting the Hope for Youth Foundation, which were run through bicoastal/international production house Hungry Man.
Starkman comes aboard a V3 directorial roster that includes Sorrel Ahfeld, Eric Fitzpatrick, Tom Gatsoulis, Ramesh Iyer, Jesse Jacobs, Christian Johnston, Shyam Madiraju, Mark Taylor and Keith Wisniewski.
