Commercial industry veterans Stuart Gross and Kevin Townsend have teamed with the principals in the former Open Films-president/executive producer Tory Hazard, exec. producer Dan Watson, and director Lee Pearson-to launch Random/Order Information and Entertainment, a spot production and convergent media company. The new venture is bicoastal, having taken over Open’s headquarters in Culver City as well as its New York office.
Gross had been on extended hiatus from the commercialmaking biz since ’93 when he left both Harmony Pictures, a company he co-founded in the late ’70s, and its publicly traded parent, Harmony Holdings Inc. (HAHO). Gross took the now defunct Harmony Pictures public in ’91, creating the HAHO banner which today includes bicoastal/international The End and bicoastal Curious Pictures. Harmony Pictures spanned three decades before closing late last year (SHOOT, 12/4/98, p.1).
After taking some R&R, Gross in Feb. ’97 became CEO of Scala Computer Television, an international media software company started by Scandinavian venture capital. He was in that role for a year and then served as a consultant to the firm until Feb. ’99.
Meanwhile also a couple of months ago, Townsend exited his post as general manager of spot and feature visual effects at Palo Alto, Calif.-based Pacific Data Images (PDI), ending a brief four-month stint there (SHOOT, 2/19, p. 1). Prior to that, he spent five years at Industrial Light+ Magic Commercial Productions (ILMCP), San Rafael and Los Angeles-the first three years as its executive producer, the last two as VP/general manager. He resigned from ILMCP back in June ’98, also stepping down as a VP of the firm’s San Rafael parent, Lucas Digital.
Gross now becomes CEO of Random/Order and will lead its efforts into enhanced television and other emerging media. Random/Order is working under non-disclosure agreements with what Gross described as several key players in applications and technology for interactive media. Details of these strategic alliances are scheduled to be announced in the coming months. According to Gross, Random/Order was born out of the advertising industry’s need for savvy content providers in traditional spot production and emerging convergent media. The latter he characterizes as "visual dialogue," combining the powerful imagery of television with the interactivity of the Worldwide Web. He claimed that Random/Order has elements in place that will enable ad agencies and advertisers to educate themselves about and to tap into convergent media opportunities. "We have strategic partners in technology who will make this real and help to create new forms for advertising as media come together," contended Gross who expects to begin making presentations to ad agencies in June or July.
At the same time, Random/ Order is looking to grow its directorial roster. As managing director and chief production officer, Townsend will play an integral role in that expansion, working closely with chief marketing officer/head of sales Watson. During his tenure at ILMCP, Townsend was credited with helping to shape that operation into a full-service production company, with staff directors helming spots encompassing live action and visual effects.
Hazard, who largely orchestrated the growth at Open Films over the years, now assumes the role of Random/Order’s president and COO. Open thus ends a business run that lasted some nine years, the first four as the Labhart Production Group. With the death of his partner, director Philip Labhart, in January ’94, Hazard linked with Pearson that April to unfurl the Open banner. Watson had been at the former Labhart studio for about a year and became a minority partner when Open was formed.
Townsend’s and Hazard’s expertise in running the production company, said Gross, will free him "for the first time to step back from production and to focus on the future." Meanwhile Pearson, who continues as a tabletop director/cameraman, will serve on the Random/Open board.
Much of what Hazard, Pearson and Watson built at Open will provide the initial core of Random/Order’s commercial production operation. This includes a lineup of directors consisting of Pearson, Rod Davis, Michael Givens and Kevin Bourland. Davis and Givens joined Open a year ago, coming over from Hollywood-based Orbit Productions and West Hollywood’s Dark Light Pictures, respectively. Bourland, an actor turned director, joined Open last September and has begun to establish himself as a spotmaker.
Davis figured prominently in the formulation of Random/ Order. He and Gross are long-time friends, dating back to when the director was at Harmony Pictures. Davis introduced Gross to the Open partners, setting the stage for what eventually evolved into Random/Order.
Other former Open resources that are now part of Random/ Order include: animation and graphics workstations; visual effects capabilities, with digital compositing and imaging; a fully equipped sound stage; and two Avids. Executive producer and post supervisor is Jonathan Whitehead, formerly general manager of Hollywood-based editorial shop Rye Films. Prior to Rye, Whitehead was executive producer at such agencies as DMB&B, Los Angeles, and Saatchi & Saatchi L.A., Torrance, Calif.
Townsend said that Random/ Order is positioned to help build directorial careers through several different means. For one, he cited the studio’s tool kit, including its stage, visual effects and editorial operations. He also pointed to his, Gross’, Hazard’s and Watson’s track record of developing directors. And Townsend added that this development takes on an extra dimension with Random/ Order’s approach to creating content spanning traditional commercials, interactive advertising and creative programming. "Our goal is to create what our advertising clients need and to do it in a manner in which they are accustomed," related Townsend. "We’re not looking to be creatives. We want to be partners with agencies in creating for the new forms of advertising that are evolving. To be able to do that and to help agencies with strategic problems can only help us take our directors’ careers where they want them to be."
As for the Random/Order moniker, Gross explained that randomness and order are two separate ideas that depend on each other. This, he related, is exemplified in "the random behavior" of interactive media users who sift through different sources of information yet ultimately make order and sense out of the varied elements to meet their needs. "It’s like a combination of serendipity and strategy," said Gross. "It’s all about coming together which is what convergent media represents. And in the same vein, we as a company are in commercials, advertising and convergent media-but those are not divergent business plans. There’s a link between them which we hope to make real to the advertising community."
