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    Ghost VFX expands leadership team; Patrick Davenport named president

    By SHOOTUpdated:No Comments1089 Views
    LOS ANGELES --

    Ghost VFX, part of the Streamland Media community of postproduction businesses, has appointed Patrick Davenport as its president. Tom Kendall, previously serving as Ghost VFX president, has taken on the new role of head of business development, sales and marketing for the visual effects house. Rounding out the team, Paul Richards has joined Ghost as EVP of technology and Crys Forsyth-Smith has been named EVP of global production. All four will be based at the company’s Burbank, Calif., location.

    Bill Romeo, Streamland Media president and CEO, said, “Patrick’s background and international experience make him the right leader at this time of tremendous growth and opportunity for Ghost VFX.”

    Davenport most recently served as COO at Method Studios, a division of Company 3. He previously held the same role at MPC Advertising. He brings 30 years of industry knowledge that includes producing visual effects for commercials and features. He led teams behind the scenes of such notable recent titles as Top Gun: Maverick, The Witches, Loki and For All Mankind.

    Kendall has chosen to lead the company’s business development and outreach. This new role harnesses his expertise and passion for building alliances with the talented people and companies creating compelling episodic stories for audiences everywhere.

    Richards brings 20 years of technical and business experience in visual effects to Ghost VFX, having successfully led teams in structuring enterprise-level architectural design, development, and operations onto a secure unified pipeline. Richards most recently held the position of CTO of VFX at Method Studios, where he was responsible for the company’s brands serving major motion pictures, streaming platforms, broadcast TV, advertising, and video games.

    Forsyth-Smith joins Ghost VFX from Method Studios where she served as VP of digital production operations. Her extensive background in studio and production management in visual effects includes over 20 years of collaborating with filmmakers and clients to achieve their vision.

    Davenport added, “At a time of extraordinary change and challenges within the VFX industry, we are looking to build upon the great creativity and 20-plus years of experience at Ghost VFX, using this solid foundation to expand globally. We see many opportunities for innovation and doing things differently, which we believe will allow for continued success and a sustainable business.”

    Tags:Crys Forsyth-SmithGhost VFXPatrick DavenportPaul RichardsTom Kendall



    Does “Hundreds of Beavers” Reflect A New Path Forward In Cinema?

    Monday, November 25, 2024

    Hard as it may be to believe, changing the future of cinema was not on Mike Cheslik's mind when he was making "Hundreds of Beavers." Cheslik was in the Northwoods of Wisconsin with a crew of four, sometimes six, standing in snow and making his friend, Ryland Tews, fall down funny.

    "When we were shooting, I kept thinking: It would be so stupid if this got mythologized," says Cheslik.

    And yet, "Hundreds of Beavers" has accrued the stuff of, if not quite myth, then certainly lo-fi legend. Cheslik's film, made for just $150,000 and self-distributed in theaters, has managed to gnaw its way into a movie culture largely dominated by big-budget sequels.

    "Hundreds of Beavers" is a wordless black-and-white bonanza of slapstick antics about a stranded 19th century applejack salesman (Tews) at war with a bevy of beavers, all of whom are played by actors in mascot costumes.

    No one would call "Hundreds of Beavers" expensive looking, but it's far more inventive than much of what Hollywood produces. With some 1,500 effects shots Cheslik slaved over on his home computer, he crafted something like the human version of Donald Duck's snowball fight, and a low-budget heir to the waning tradition of Buster Keaton and "Naked Gun."

    At a time when independent filmmaking is more challenged than ever, "Hundreds of Beavers" has, maybe, suggested a new path forward, albeit a particularly beaver-festooned path.

    After no major distributor stepped forward, the filmmakers opted to launch the movie themselves, beginning with carnivalesque roadshow screenings. Since opening in January, "Hundreds of Beavers" has played in at least one theater every week of the year, though never more than 33 at once. (Blockbusters typically play in around 4,000 locations.)... Read More

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