Though the advertising agency (Wieden+Kennedy) and production company (Serial Pictures) behind it are in Portland, Ore., and Los Angeles, respectively, Chrysler’s “Born Of Fire” struck a chord with its Midwest sensibilities that has resonated well beyond its Super Bowl telecast debut and into chat rooms and assorted other forms of earned media which continue to this day, the latest catalyst being the commercial winning the primetime commercial Emmy Award earlier this month.
The ad is operatic, patriotic, full of can-do attitude and American pride, playing as much as an anthem for Detroit–the Midwest work ethic and perseverance–as it does for the client Chrysler itself.
Often overlooked is the spot’s showcasing of the beauty of the Motor City’s depression era architecture–including the WPA mural of factory workers and a depression period limestone building. The commercial takes us back generations while remaining rooted in today and expressing an uplifting optimism for the future.
There’s a link between the first depression and the economic downturn we’re in currently, conveying a confidence that we came out of the first depression stronger and we’ll do the same again.
Those themes–the value of work, resourcefulness, resilience and a stick-to-it-iveness in the face of a daunting challenge or adversity–reflect in a great many respects the Midwest production, post and advertising community today.
We pick up on that defining parallel in this Midwest Production and Postproduction Series by examining resourcefulness in the form of different houses diversifying and expanding in the face of an uncertain economy–and by touching upon some of the notable work that’s come out of the Midwest marketplace so far this year.
Diversification
Optimus has been a Chicago mainstay since its founding in 1973. But being a mainstay requires evolving, adapting and reinventing as the editorial house over the years expanded into other postproduction areas spanning finishing, color grading and the like.
In early 2002, Optimus extended its reach West with the opening of a shop in Santa Monica. In the fall of 2005, Optimus launched a design department. And in ’08 came the stepping up of the company’s commitment to sound with the formation of a full fledged, fully staffed audio department with state of the art technology.
Later that same year a live-action production arm, ONE at Optimus, was formed, competing in the mainstream production marketplace while also being available for one-stop shopping by packaging production and post to the budgetary advantage of assorted clients.
This year too has been marked by expansive thinking and developments. First, Tom Duff, president of Optimus, along with other company partners teamed with Blair Stribley, owner of Backyard, to form production company Mighty Film.
Mighty and Backyard operate out of the same Venice, Calif. complex, which has been the longstanding home to Backyard. Mighty, Backyard and Optimus are completely autonomous and each operates independently. Still, said Duff, there are opportunities for synergies as necessitated by select projects. It all comes down, he explained, to offering agencies and clients more options and resources to mix and match as needed.
Furthermore, last month Optimus brought Morgan James on board as animation director. A well known Los Angeles talent who relocated to the Midwest, James–working in tandem with Optimus creative director Mike Ciacciarelli–serves as a technical and creative solutions leader, particularly in the area of CG animation, on the production and post sides for clientele. This brings an extra dimension to the graphics and design talent and resources that Optimus has built over the years.
And most recently, there’s been a changing of the guard at ONE at Optimus with Craig Leffel, a partner in Optimus since 1998, being named director of production for ONE, succeeding John Noble who stepped down after a three-year tenure at the helm of that operation, having helped to launch it and build its directorial roster.
Leffel himself reflects the openess with which Optimus charts new territory and redefines itself. An accomplished industry colorist for more than 20 years, Leffel now enters a new chapter in his career, teaming with executive producer Kipp Christiansen and bringing his assorted positive working relationships with agency creatives and producers to bear at ONE at Optimus.
With Optimus from its inception, Leffel is ideally positioned to connect producers from that company with their counterparts at ONE, creating an environment conducive to script-to-finish collaborations–inclusive of production and post–whenever required for projects. At the same time, ONE at Optimus and its ensemble of directors will continue to compete against mainstream production companies.
Freeing Leffel to assume the ONE mantle was Optimus’ hiring of colorist Tyler Roth, a talent who came into his own during the past four-plus years at Filmworkers Club, working for such brands as McDonald’s, Allstate, Walgreens and Wrigley’s Orbit chewing gum.
ONE at Optimus’ directorial roster consists of Michael Chaves, James Fleischel, Barry Kimm, Jim Matlosz, Sunny Zhao, Ryan Bosworth, Alex Beh and Otto Arsenault.
The latter two earned inclusion into SHOOT’s annual New Directors Showcase at the Directors Guild of America (DGA) Theatre in New York. Arsenault made the Showcase earlier this year while Beh garnered the honor in 2010.
Solid Foundation Another champion of diversification is Samantha Hart, president of Foundation Content, Chicago and Los Angeles. Hart’s take on the need to intelligently diversify and Foundation’s corresponding business plan are reflected in her comments in this issue’s lead news story on industry diversification.
Hart noted, “The old models just don’t apply anymore. The companies that have responded and evolved are surviving and, even thriving, despite the tighter budgets and fractured media plans. To keep up with the changing landscape, we’ve gone from specializing in postproduction to offering full-service creative and content development. We’ve got everything under one roof–producers, directors, graphics, color correction, shooting stage–so we can keep costs down and offer cohesive, nimble, efficient solutions to our clients.
“Opening a second office in Los Angeles was a way to capitalize on our roots in the entertainment industry,” continued Hart. “With the lines between commercial and entertainment getting less and less distinct, it just makes sense. It might seem like a risky time to expand in light of the economy, but the business is not going away. It’s just evolving. You’ve got to be willing to evolve with it. I firmly believe that creativity and courage is always rewarded.
RingSide seat Back in April (SHOOTonline, 4/7), Steven Wild of Wild Acquistions partnered with Cutters, Inc., a Chicago fixture, to purchase Oak Park, Mich.-based integrated media studio RingSide Creative LLC.
This led to the July announcement that Cutters, an editorial/post house with a Chicago flagship studio and a Santa Monica facility, was adding a third shop, Cutters Detroit.
Cutters Detroit opened with a roster of editors consisting of Dave Mariani and Chris Moore, both formerly of Griot, Kevin O’Brien, who had been with Kinetic Post, and Byron Pink who shifts over from Cutters sister house RingSide Creative.
Cutters Detroit is located next door to RingSide, allowing a smooth workflow for projects that both houses are working on.
Besides its resident talent, Cutters Detroit can tap into Cutters’ national roster, collaborating with editors in the Chicago and Santa Monica studios.
In between the Ringside acquisiton and the Cutters Detroit announcement came word that editor Chris Hafner, synonymous for many years with RingSide, had moved to Chicago to be closer to family members, taking up residence at Cutters in the Windy City. He too is available through Cutters’ other locations as well as to connect with his RingSide compatriots in the Detroit market.
Underscoring the diversification theme, Hafner also joined Cutters’ affiliate Dictionary Films as a director for commercials and varied forms of branded content.
This hearkens back to Hafner’s days prior to focusing on commercial editorial when he directed and edited music videos for such acts as Methods of Mayhem, Tommy Lee, Lil’ Kim, Fred Durst, Nickel Bag, Cypress Hhill, No Doubt, Snoop Dog, Nirvana and Tupac.
The RingSide management team consists of CEO Steven Wild, veteran executive Doug Cheek and CFO Brian Efrusy. Tim McGuire is Cutters’ president and founder.
The Cutters family of companies includes Cutters, Dictionary, picnic Transmedia, audio studio Another Country and Sol design.
At the time of the finalization of the RingSide deal, McGuire said, “There are a lot of synergies possible with the RingSide acquistion involving all these companies. Detroit has always been known for strong creative advertising agencies that produce award-winning and iconic work. Now it’s experiencing a new beginning, a sort of ‘rebirth,’ and we’re excited to make an investment in this great city.”
McGuire expreessed hope that synergies resulting from the RingSide acquisition will in turn help advance Detroit’s resurgence.
Utopic of conversation Chicago-based integrated digital media company Utopic formally launched a production division this summer with the signing of its first director, Michael LaBellarte. Utopic also offers post, audio, web, design, mobile and interactive services.
LaBellarte has already wrapped several assignments at Utopic, including a pair of commercials and interactive content for Nintendo out of Leo Burnett, Chicago.
LaBellarte and executive producer Michael Antonucci also have plans to build the Utopic roster by bringing on more directors.
LaBellarte’s longtime experience as an editor and graphic designer allows him to structure a story from beginning to end, with a creative approach that opens doors to impromptu inspiration.
LaBellarte began his directing career through Z Group Films in Venice, Calif., in 2006 and worked under the Altar Film banner in Los Angeles for six years prior to joining Utopic, relocating to be part of its production division.
He first established himself in the business as an editor, a career which began with staff positions at Edit Chicago and then Optimus.
LaBellarte became a founding partner of the former editorial house NuWorld in 1993, and then launched Outsider in ’00.
He edited assorted notable commercials, including European cinema ad “Transglobe” for Philip Morris brand L&M out of Leo Burnett, Chicago, which was nominated in ’06 for a Best of Chicago Association of Independent Creative Editors (AICE) Award.
“Transglobe” was also significant in that it was helmed by LaBellarte in late ’04, helping to rekindle his directorial ambitions, which dated back to his college days.
Initially upon graduating, LaBellarte broke into editing as a means to transition into directing, but he wound up enjoying cutting commercials a great deal and his career path detoured to the post arena for some 20 years. He then transitioned successfully into the director’s chair.
“The opening of the Utopic production division is a significant step forward in realizing our integrated content offering,” said Antonucci. “Michael is the perfect addition to the high level of creative talent that resides at Utopic.”
Filmworkers Also forming a production unit is Filmworkers. The new division is Filmworkers Media Content and its first major hire this summer was director Matthew Egan, a specialist in branded entertainment and other new media content.
Egan has directed web-based projects for a number of national brands including Target, POM Wonderful, Geico and Chicago-based designer Agga B.
At Filmworkers Media Content, plans call for Egan to pursue similar work. He will also team with Filmworkers and its affiliates Vitamin and Giannini Creative to provide packaged creative services for broadcast and interactive platforms.
Egan was formerly with Foundation Content’s Chicago shop and prior to that Digital Kitchen. He began his career as an editor at Cutters. His notable recent work includes several web, broadcast and in-store projects for Target. Among those is a stop-motion campaign promoting the store’s reusable bags and Earth Day event.
He also directed a viral video for POM Wonderful in which a man dressed as an orchestra conductor gives an elaborate demonstration of how to open a pomegranate. In addition to directing, Egan often conceives, writes and edits his work.
Egan notes that joining Filmworkers gives him access to a broad range of production resources, including visual effects and color correction. He also hopes to take advantage of the company’s sales reach to broaden his clientele.
Filmworkers president Reid Brody said that Egan’s arrival is part of the company’s plan to offer companies and advertising agencies a one-stop production solution.
“We’ve developed a network of creative boutiques within Filmworkers. Matt is another piece in that puzzle. He takes us into a new and growing area of production with the new Filmworkers Media Content division,” related Brody. “It’s another service that our clients are demanding.”
Work ethic As earlier alluded to, joined at the hip with diversification is the legendary Midwest work ethic.
And what better way to reflect that longstanding ethic than the nature of the work being handled by Midwest shops in 2011?
In that vein, Optimus’ Duff observed, “We just went through a reel of our best work this year, and with full bias, I had a real proud feeling for what we’ve accomplished for our clients. I don’t think I’d want to single out any particular project, but I can tell you that I think we have done our best overall work ever in 2011.
“Why? Because it has been the most challenging year ever. With incredibly shrinking budgets and timelines, we have had to use more combinations of creativity, imagination, resourcefulness, collaboration, and technology to pull off what we have been able to do.”
In the big picture, Duff observed, “I think we in the Midwest overall have, more than ever, lived up to our reputation of ingenious creativity combined with a work ethic second to none. Agency creatives (our clients) have also shown incredible resilience and toughness. Their staffs have been decimated, their demands increased, and yet, they have risen above it all and are kicking out more creative ideas than ever before.
“What I enjoy the most out of these challenges,” he continued, “is the all-hands-on-deck collaboration that takes place between all the players on a project, from the agency creative teams to our artists at Optimus. We need each other, and necessity is the mother of invention. And boy, have we ever had to be inventive.
SHOOT surveyed Midwest shops about what their best work has been this year. We posed two questions:
1) What do you consider your company’s best work this year and why?
2) How does it exemplify what the Midwest market has to offer?
Here’s a sampling of the feedback we received:
Whitehouse Post Midwest continues to push creative bounds. Certainly one of our most prolific collaborations has been Leo Burnett and Allstate’s “Mayhem” campaign, which we’ve worked on since its inception, edited by Matthew Wood and Carlos Lowenstein and John Smith. The campaign has been exemplary in its dedication to character development. Matthew Wood said it best: |
|
|
|
Dan Bryant, executive producer, 
Terry King, managing editor, 
Lisa Masseur, executive producer, 
Melissa Thornley, executive producer, 