After an extensive North American search, independent creative shop Zulu Alpha Kilo has hired Erica Shalinsky as executive strategy director of its Vancouver office.
She joins Zulu from BBDO New York where she served as VP, strategy director and helped steer Ford’s future technologies division globally, building new brand platforms and consumer experiences for electric and autonomous vehicles. In addition to her creative agency leadership, Shalinsky brings a background of business transformation as a management consultant with Deloitte supporting strategy across public and private sector clients. Her experience extends to companies including Microsoft, Ford, Shell, T-Mobile, The Gap and Bank of America.
The addition of Shalinsky brings Zulu’s headcount in Vancouver to 10 full-time staff who are backed by 140 Zuligans across Toronto and New York. She joins managing director David Tremblay and executive creative directors Dean Lee and Michael Mayes to form Zulu’s West Coast leadership team. The agency’s western-based clients include a2 Milk, Destination BC, Save-On-Foods, Subaru Canada’s western dealers, ToursByLocals, and The Vancouver Island Ferry Company.
“Finding a talent like Erica with global experience to join our growing Vancouver team is beyond exciting. And the fact that she grew up in Vancouver is even better,” said president and CEO Mike Sutton. “Erica has spent her career turning complex brand, creative and technology problems into transformational business opportunities for global brands and I can’t wait to see the impact she has for our clients.”
Zulu maintains operations in Toronto, Vancouver and New York. The latter, which is the agency’s first international office, opened earlier this year under the aegis of former Droga5 creative leader Tim Gordon.
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