ONE at Optimus has expanded its filmmaking roster with addition of director Otto Arsenault.
Describing himself as a custom fit for his new roost, Arsenault noted, “ONE is unique because it’s a production company built out of a postproduction house [ONE is an arm of Optimus]. This is parallel to how I got my start in the industry and is one of the many reasons this union has been such a great fit.”
Arsenault added that he looks at production differently because he understands what can be achieved in post. He established his post roots while at Southern Illinois University through his work on alt.news 26:46, a syndicated, PBS program that won five regional Emmy Awards. After migrating to Los Angeles, he co-created PlasterCITY Digital Post, one of the first non-linear post-production studios in LA. He then transitioned his focus to production, collaborating on a feature-length music documentary and directing several music videos. His work on Matt and Kim’s “Lessons Learned” garnered him the 2009 MTV Music Video Award for Breakthrough Video and MTV U Woodie for Best Video.
“Otto’s strong grasp of concept coupled with his unique visual storytelling skills makes him a perfect complement to our director stable here at ONE,” said John Noble, ONE at Optimus executive producer/managing director.
Arsenault’s first project with ONE is a :30 TV spot for an international liquor brand through Markham Unlimited Miami, Fla. His unconventional music video for Greg Laswell’s “Take Everything,” shot in one take completely in reverse, resonated with Markham and complemented the agency’s vision for the spot, in which the story unfolds in reverse. The international commercial will begin shooting in Miami in early October.
“Otto’s keen sense of composition and framing, which he elegantly displayed in the Greg Laswell video, was instrumental in helping ONE win this new project,” stated Noble.
Apple and Google Face UK Investigation Into Mobile Browser Dominance
Apple and Google aren't giving consumers a genuine choice of mobile web browsers, a British watchdog said Friday in a report that recommends they face an investigation under new U.K. digital rules taking effect next year.
The Competition and Markets Authority took aim at Apple, saying the iPhone maker's tactics hold back innovation by stopping rivals from giving users new features like faster webpage loading. Apple does this by restricting progressive web apps, which don't need to be downloaded from an app store and aren't subject to app store commissions, the report said.
"This technology is not able to fully take off on iOS devices," the watchdog said in a provisional report on its investigation into mobile browsers that it opened after an initial study concluded that Apple and Google effectively have a chokehold on "mobile ecosystems."
The CMA's report also found that Apple and Google manipulate the choices given to mobile phone users to make their own browsers "the clearest or easiest option."
And it said that the a revenue-sharing deal between the two U.S. Big Tech companies "significantly reduces their financial incentives" to compete in mobile browsers on Apple's iOS operating system for iPhones.
Both companies said they will "engage constructively" with the CMA.
Apple said it disagreed with the findings and said it was concerned that the recommendations would undermine user privacy and security.
Google said the openness of its Android mobile operating system "has helped to expand choice, reduce prices and democratize access to smartphones and apps" and that it's "committed to open platforms that empower consumers."
It's the latest move by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic to crack down on the... Read More