Mike McKay, formerly executive creative director at BBDO San Francisco, has been named partner/chief creative officer at San Francisco agency Eleven Inc., reporting to CEO Courtney Buechert. At his new roost, McKay will lead the creative department, teaming with recently named president, Rob Kabus, and partnering with the shop’s founders/creative directors, Rob Price and Michael Borosky.
Prior to BBDO, McKay was executive creative director at Saatchi & Saatchi LA in Torrance, Calif., where he led the charge for Toyota. Earlier McKay was a creative director at Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco, where he had a creative hand in HP’s “The Computer Is Personal Again” campaign as well as ad fare for Haagen-Dazs, Budweiser, Netflix and Comcast. For the latter, he worked on the lauded Comcast “Rabbit” spot. McKay began his career at TBWAChiatDay, Los Angeles.
Eleven Inc. is an independently owned, full-service creative communications agency, brand studio, and innovations lab. Founded in April 1999. Eleven has a client roster which includes Apple, Virgin America, Coinstar, Crystal Geyser, Eaton Vance, NetApp, San Francisco Travel Association, Sun Valley Resort, Visa and AAA.
Matthew Forrest Launches Commercial/Branded Content Production Company Cloud Forest
Producer Matthew Forrest has officially launched Cloud Forest, a Los Angeles-based video production company specializing in commercials and branded content, with additional capabilities in emerging formats like AI and VR.
With the mantra “Where your vision meets our production precision,” Cloud Forest aims to serve brands, agencies and networks with a blend of creativity and operational efficiency.
Forrest brings over 20 years of experience to Cloud Forest. His portfolio includes producing commercial content for Square, Aveeno, and Lyft, branded content series for KitchenAid, Pizza Hut, and Verizon, and projects like Mariah Carey’s “Keys of Christmas.” Forrest’s career highlight came at Endemol Shine, where he earned a Sports Emmy in 2018 for producing Life VR’s “Capturing Everest.”
“Leveraging my varied experiences in both traditional and digital formats, I’m excited to create content across a wide array of platforms with the partners I admire,” said Forrest. “Our focus is on delivering excellence in commercials and branded content, while also offering cutting-edge solutions in AI and VR when appropriate for our clients’ needs.”
Cloud Forest’s talent roster currently features long-time Forrest collaborators such as commercial directors Ben Pluimer, Michael Belcher, Clyde Bessey, Christopher Louie and Kevin K. Shah; director/photographer Shawn Corrigan; photographers Gabriela Oltean and Will Deleon; and creative directors Natalie Perry and Drew Grossman. The studio’s strength lies in curating the right team and accurately defining the necessary resources--budget, roles, and technology--allowing every project to meet its creative and business goals.
This approach has earned praise from industry... Read More