By SARAH WOODWARD
John Author has been hired as executive producer at tomandandy, the bicoastal music and sound design house founded by partners/composers Tom Hajdu and Andy Milburn. Based at the company’s Santa Monica office, Author succeeds Chris Doyle, who left the company in July to pursue other interests. Author arrives at tomandandy after two-and-a-half years at Santa Monica-based music house Ear to Ear, where he also served as executive producer.
The addition of Author comes as tomandandy gears up for significant growth on several fronts. The shop recently established a U.K. sales presence via Julia Reed, who bought 90% of The End’s London operation and is in the process of renaming it Harry Nash (SHOOT, 9/3, p. 1). Tomandandy’s New York-based VP of operations Jonathan Slater said tomandandy’s West Coast office has already completed work on a high-profile campaign for One2One wireless telecommunications service via Bartle Bogle Hegarty, London. The spots were scored by composer Sam Retzer.
Tomandandy is diversifying beyond spots and longform into other arenas. In the works are a record label called atomcandy, a music software venture and signature merchandise ranging from pajamas to candy bars. Asked if he and Milburn were creating a multimedia enterprise, Hajdu said: "It’s more like IKEA. We’re not building a chair. We’re building a dining room set."
Slater, who was instrumental in Author’s hiring, first met the executive producer a couple of years ago on a Sprint campaign. At the time, Slater was working as a freelance producer out of J. Walter Thompson, San Francisco, while Author was at Ear to Ear. When Slater took on his current post earlier this year (SHOOT, 2/12 p. 7), Author called to congratulate him. "I just thought, ‘Hmm, interesting. I would love to bring him in somehow,’" Slater recalled. A talented composer in his own right, Author spent five-and-a-half years as an agency producer at BBDO/West, Los Angeles, prior to his tenure at Ear to Ear. Said Slater: "[Author is] extremely buttoned up. He has a strong agency background, and he knows the music side of the business. He’s very well-rounded."
Hajdu echoed that sentiment. "[Author] brings a level of professionalism and management to tomandandy which [in turn] has raised the level of service and attention to detail [at the company]," he said.
For his part, Author was intrigued by the tomandandy "vibe." "It’s a style and an attitude that’s different," Author said. "I feel that my musical tastes have [already] been broadened. The other day we brought in a rapper and [record] scratcher, and we’ve been doing interesting things with ethnic vocalists and woodwind players to get that world vibe. It was just a great opportunity for me to take the helm in L.A."
Growing the West Coast operation is Author’s top priority. While tomandandy is well established in New York, its three-year-old Santa Monica office is lesser known. "A lot of people think the L.A. office is a satellite," Author said. "I’m trying to give tomandandy/L.A. its own identity." He plans to hire a staff sound designer as well as add to the West Coast-based composer roster, which currently consists of Hajdu, Retzer and Tim Boland. The executive producer is also looking to increase office space.
Another key Santa Monica staffer is tomandandy’s operations manager Pegi Murray, who came aboard earlier this year. Prior to tomandandy, Murray spent four years as a producer at West Hollywood-based Sublime Music (now The RecRoom).
Thus far at tomandandy, Author has executive produced music compositions for a 10-spot J.C. Penney campaign via Temerlin McClain, Dallas; a pair of commercials for San Francisco-based Internet directory LookSmart out of Rathjy Chadwick & Company, San Francisco; and a spot for KBKids.com via Goldberg Moser O’Neill, San Francisco.
Author’s notable credits at Ear to Ear included executive producing music for IBM via Ogilvy & Mather, New York; Budweiser out of Open Minds, Laguna Beach, Calif.; United Airlines for Fallon McElligott, Minneapolis; and Saturn via Publicis & Hal Riney, San Francisco.
Jury Presidents Named For The One Show 2025
The One Club for Creativity has announced the global creatives from around the world who will serve as jury presidents for The One Show 2025.
These creatives will lead judging for each discipline, and have a vote on the work.
Confirmed One Show 2025 Jury presidents, by discipline, are as follows:
--Brand-Side/In-House: David Lee, CCO, Squarespace, New York
--Branded Entertainment: Malcolm Poynton, Global CCO, Cheil Worldwide, London
--Creative Use of Data, Creative Use of Technology: Nancy Crimi-Lamanna, CCO, FCB Canada, Toronto
--Cultural Driver: Bianca Guimaraes, partner, ECD, Mischief, New York
--Design: Liza Enebeis, creative director, partner, Studio Dumbar/DEPT®, Rotterdam
--Direct Marketing: Vicki Maguire, CCO, Havas London
--Film & Video: Javier Campopiano, global CCO, McCann Worldgroup & McCann Global, Madrid
--Gaming: Taj Reid, global chief experience officer, US CCO, Edelman, New York
--Integrated, Experiential & Immersive: Chris Beresford-Hill, worldwide CCO, BBDO New York
--Fusion Pencil: Walter T. Geer III, CCO, Innovation North America, VML, New York
--Green Pencil: Barbara Humphries, ECD, The Monkeys, Sydney
--Health & Wellness, Pharma: Wendy Lund, chief client officer, WPP, New York
--IP & Product Design: Ronald Ng, global CCO, MRM, New York
--Moving Image Craft & Production: Irene Kugelmann, chief creative officer, DDB Group of Companies Germany, Berlin
--Music & Sound Craft: Joel Simon, CCO, JSM Music, New York
--Out of Home, Print & Promotional: Kainaz Karmakar, CCO, Ogilvy India, Mumbai
--Public Relations: Patricia Ávila, regional director for Latin America, Ágora, São Paulo
--Radio... Read More