Winners and the Best in Show for the 2014 AICE Awards were announced and honored at a gala event in New York tonight, where Editor Brian Lagerhausen of Beast in San Francisco took home the inaugural Best in Show trophy for his work on Google.  The winning entry, a spot titled “Fearless,” was created by the ad agency Autofuss and directed by Drake Doremus of B-Reel. “Fearless” introduces us to glassophobia–anxiety over or fear of public speaking–and the somewhat nerdish lad who has it yet still has to make a speech in front of his class. Deploying his Google Nexus 7 tablet, the boy accesses great historic speeches, Colin Firth’s performance in The King’s Speech, and assorted other resources that help him feel more comfortable talking before an audience.

The other top AICE Award winners were four post companies that tied for the most honors with three apiece: Cut+Run, which won for work from its London and L.A. offices; Cutters Studios, which earned recognition for work from its Cutters editorial company and Flavor, its visual effects and design studio; Rock Paper Scissors; and Umlaut.

Awards were presented in a total of 30 categories at the gala – 21 technique, media and product categories and nine awards presented to the best work from each of the association’s regional chapters.  

This year marked the introduction of the Best in Show award, which was presented to one winning entry selected by the AICE Curatorial Committee from among the 21 main competition category winners. The Committee is a group of 13 artists at AICE member companies who represent a cross-section of disciplines, crafts and regions.

This was also the introductory year for two new categories: Alternative Media (over :90) and Online Campaign. The latter was designed to recognize work created specifically for online distribution.

Also taking place at the gala tonight was AICE Hall of Fame induction of John Palestrini, the late co-founder of the Lively Group of postproduction companies and a highly respected and admired editor, businessman, industry leader and mentor.  Palestrini’s accomplishments were marked in a moving video presentation and by remarks delivered by his former partner, Ethel Rubinstein, CEO of Lively Group, and his son, Kris Palestrini, owner of Krispy Pictures.

Multiple winners
Cut+Run won in the categories of Alternative Media (:90 and under) for Nike “Fuelband” from AKQA, edited by Sam Ostrove of Cut+Run London; in National Campaign for Moto X/Motorola’s “Music,” “Drive” and “Meeting” from Droga 5, edited by Graham Turner and Frank Effron of Cut+Run LA; and in Public Service for Macmillan’s “Give Support” from VCCP, edited by Ben Campbell of Cut+Run London.

Cutters Studios won in the categories of Comedy for Oscar Mayer’s “Giving Thanks” for mcgarrybowen in Chicago, edited by Grant Gustafson; and in Best Of Chicago for IBM’s “On Brand” for VSA Partners, edited by Michael Lippert. Flavor, Cutters Studios’ design arm, won in the Design category for the AICP “Show Opener,” created for the AICP Show.

Rock Paper Scissors won in the categories of Broadcast Promotion for Netflix’s “House of Cards Season 2 Teaser,” edited by Grant Surmi; and in Montage and Best of Los Angeles for Nike’s “Possibilities,” edited by Angus Wall.

Umlaut won in the categories of Alternative Media (over :90) for Skype’s “Born Friends” for Pereira & O’Dell, edited by Jessica Congdon; in Fashion/Beauty for Levi’s “Modern Frontier Train” for AKQA, edited by Doug Cox; and in Online Campaign for Skype’s “Born Friends,” “Denis” and “Growing up Family” for Pereira & O’Dell, also edited by Jessica Congdon.

The Best in Show winner from Beast SF also won AICE Awards in the Storytelling and Best of San Francisco categories. The only other multiple winner in the competition was The Mill, which won in the Color Grading category for Guinness’ “Guinness Sapeurs” for AMV BBDO in London, which was graded by colorist Adam Scott of The Mill’s L.A. office, and in the Visual Effects category for PETA’s “PETA: 98% Human” for BBDO, with effects from Angus Kneale and Vince Baertsoen of The Mill’s New York office.

Best in Show Analysis
Editor Craig Lewandowski, a member of the Curatorial Committee, notes that several category winners could have merited recognition as the show’s top winner. He was asked what propelled the Google spot “Fearless” to its Best in Show award.

“When you’re judging work it can be hard to separate concept from editorial,” Lewandowski said. “But as an editor, when we looked at it I remember thinking, ‘I don’t know if I would have done it any differently.’  It communicated a lot of information in a short amount of time, the sound was impeccably woven into the piece and it highlighted the benefits of the brand in a way that made it part of the story.”

Lewandowski was impressed with how the Curatorial Committee approached its mandate of selecting the Best in Show and providing an overall vision for the winning entries to ensure they properly reflected the crafts and disciplines of their respective categories.  “We had a really high level of engagement, and everyone on the committee was totally into it,” he said.  “And having the perspectives from the different disciplines like effects, audio mixing and color grading was really great.”

Burke Moody
Tom Duff, president of Optimus, introduced Moody last night and paid tribute to him, citing his extensive experience prior to joining AICE. He noted that Moody and his wife and business partner Annie were founding partners of Seventh Art, a Philadelphia-based editorial and creative development company. For nearly 30 years, Burke Moody was Seventh Art’s sr. creative editor and post supervisor, editing more than 3,000 TV commercials and shorts during his career. Additionally, Moody conceived and wrote Speakeasy, a computer program which automated the film-to-tape conform process.

Awards rundown
Here’s a category-by-category rundown of the 2014 AICE Awards winners:

ALTERNATIVE MEDIA (:90 and under)
Sam Ostrove, Cut+Run London
Nike
“FuelBand” :80
AKQA

ALTERNATIVE MEDIA (over :90)
Jessica Congdon, Umlaut
Skype
“Born Friends” 3:00
Pereira & O’Dell

AUDIO MIX
David Papa, Sonic Union
Hennessy
“The Man Who Couldn’t Slow Down” :90
Droga5

AUTOMOTIVE
Terry King, Territory
Cadillac
“Monkey Do” :30
Rogue

BROADCAST PROMOTION
Grant Surmi, Rock Paper Scissors
Netflix
“House of Cards Season 2 Teaser” :120
Netflix

COLOR GRADING
Adam Scott, The Mill LA
Guinness
“Sapeurs” :90
AMV BBDO

COMEDY
Grant Gustafson, Cutters
Oscar Mayer
“Giving Thanks” :60
mcgarrybowen Chicago

DESIGN
Flavor
AICP
“Show Opener” 2:27
AICP

DIALOGUE/MONOLOGUE/SPOKEN WORD
Chris Franklin, Big Sky Edit
New York Lottery
“Glory Days” :30
DDB

FASHION/BEAUTY
Doug Cox, Umlaut
Levi’s
“Modern Frontier Train” :60
AKQA

MONTAGE
Angus Wall, Rock Paper Scissors
Nike
“Possibilities” :90
Wieden + Kennedy

MUSIC VIDEO
Paul Martinez, Nick Rondeau, Geoff Hounsell, Arcade Edit
Jay Z
“Picasso Baby” 8:07
Jay Z

NATIONAL CAMPAIGN
Graham Turner, Frank Effron,  Cut+Run LA
Moto X/Motorola
“Music” :60
“Drive” :60
“Meeting” :60
Droga5

ONLINE CAMPAIGN
Jessica Congdon, Umlaut
Skype
“Born Friends” 3:00
“Denis” 3:00
“Growing up Family” 3:00
Pereira & O’Dell

PUBLIC SERVICE
Ben Campbell, Cut+Run London
Macmillan
“Give Support” :60
VCCP

REGIONAL CAMPAIGN
Paul Proulx, Married to Giants
Sunnybrook Foundation
“Brian” :30
“Katie”  :30
“Michelle” :60
Grip Limited

SOUND DESIGN
Rommel Molina, Nicholas Interlandi, 740 Sound Design & Mix
Duracell
“Derrick Coleman/Trust the Power Within” :60
Saatchi & Saatchi NY

SPEC SPOT
Dave De Carlo, Rooster
Engage Diamond Studio
“The Artist” :48

STORYTELLING
Brian Lagerhausen, Beast SF
Google
“Fearless” :60
Autofuss

UNDER $50,000
Jon DeVries, School
National Ballet of Canada
“Lost in Motion 2” 3:22
National Ballet of Canada

VISUAL EFFECTS
Angus Kneale,Vince Baertsoen, The Mill in NY
PETA
“PETA: 98% Human” :32
BBDO

BEST OF BOSTON
Joel Walker, Peel & Eat
City Year
“Anthem”  :60
Allen & Gerritsen

BEST OF CHICAGO
Michael Lippert, Cutters
IBM
“On Brand” 2:14
VSA Partners

BEST OF DALLAS
Richard Gillespie, Fast Cuts Edits
Domtar Paper Company
“PAPER Because/Bridal Shower” :40
Eric Mower + Associates

BEST OF DETROIT
Rich Smith, Hudson Editorial
Quicken Loans
“Chase” :60
Driven

BEST OF LOS ANGELES
Angus Wall, Rock Paper Scissors
Nike
“Possibilities” 1:30
Wieden + Kennedy

BEST OF MINNEAPOLIS
Jim Stanger, Channel Z
Canterbury Park
“Dynamic Moments” :30
Hunt Adkins

BEST OF NEW YORK
Sonejuhi Sinha, Final Cut USA
Coalition to Stop Gun Violence
“Stand Your Ground” 1:25
Grey

BEST OF SAN FRANCISCO
Brian Lagerhausen, Beast SF
Google
“Fearless” :60
Autofuss

BEST OF TORONTO
Alison Gordon, Relish
Kobo
“The Gift of Reading” :60
John St.

Rom-Com Mainstay Hugh Grant Shifts To The Dark Side and He’s Never Been Happier

Monday, November 4, 2024

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

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