Ad agency Modernista! has tabbed Matt Howell to assume its presidency and Alex Hesz to serve as managing director. Howell and Hesz will be part of a management team alongside Sebastian Gard, director of social media, and creative directors Davi Liu and Xavier Teo. Modernista! founders/executive creative directors Gary Koepke and Lance Jensen will continue to be the driving creative and cultural forces behind the agency.
Said Koepke, “Under my interim presidency, we cast aside the old agency model and became something much more valuable; a true creative agency, not a channel shop. So as Lance and I step aside to go back to what we do best — shaping the ‘product’ of Modernista! — we’re trusting in a leadership team which is in itself an illustration of how Modernista! is different.”
Howell is a leader in agenda-setting marketing strategy who has worked on brands from Sony to Prada, Nike, Ericsson, Cingular and more. He arrived at Modernista! as chief interactive officer to run the interactive practice, where his first act was to dissolve the group, integrating interactive thinking into the heart of the agency’s offering. Howell had previously been a group director at R/GA where he ran the Nike+ project, and was recently named to the board of directors of Boulder Digital Works, where he is an ever-present speaker.
Hesz joined Modernista! as client services director in June before being promoted to managing director. He was previously at DDB London where he ran the Nestle UK business and the Guardian newspaper’s digital account. While at BBH, Hesz oversaw brands including British Airways and Johnnie Walker, and worked on two campaigns recognized with Cannes Gold Lions.
Directing Duo Mindcastle Joins Farm League For Commercials and Branded Content
Film company and certified B Corporation Farm League has added directing duo Mindcastle--consisting of Casey Warren and Danielle Krieger--to its roster for U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content.
Mindcastle has spent a decade building a body of work that takes viewers from energetic anthemic sports campaigns to emotional narrative stories to big worlds layered with CGI and VFX. The common link through each genre is their crafted, highly cinematic visual language and grounded performances from believable heroes.
After developing their cinematic eye through photography, they first began directing when ESPN approached them to create a piece from the NFL draft. This snowballed into travel across the globe for numerous films, commercials and TV shows, and collaborations with talent including Derek Jeter, Floyd Mayweather, and Guillermo del Toro. Mindcastle’s work for Adidas, Questrade and Patron shows the spectrum of their worlds and themes.
In a joint statement, Mindcastle shared, “Farm League’s work has an energy and dynamism to it where it’s not only defined by a strong visual style, but it also captivates your heart. We love the passion and mindset that the Farm League team brings to each project, including their drive to infuse a creative-first ethos into each project. We are incredibly excited to dig in together to continue expanding our roots of memorable and dynamic narratives.”
Tim Lynch (TL), Farm League Founder and EP, commented, “Mindcastle’s passion for telling big, crafted stories struck me immediately. They create worlds that are visually intriguing and grounded in humanistic performances, exactly the balance we seek at Farm League. We can’t wait to see where their vision can go... Read More