Paul Babb, former senior partner/executive producer at Ogilvy & Mather, Los Angeles, has returned to the production house side of the business, becoming executive producer in charge of Ka-Chew!, the newly launched live-action commercial division of Hollywood-headquartered animation studio Klasky Csupo. Ka-Chew! is a sister shop to Class-Key Chew-Po Commercials, the Klasky Csupo division that specializes in animation and mixed-media spots.
Babb is in the process of assembling Ka Chew!’s directorial roster. He said he is in negotiations with a couple of directors, including one whom Ka-Chew! has already put in the running for a prospective spot project. At press time, Babb wasn’t at liberty to publicly identify the directors or discuss the pending ad assignment. He envisions Ka-Chew! as opening with two or three established live-action directors, one or two up-and-coming talents, and perhaps a helmer or two best known outside the ad arena but available for some select commercials.
While the initial thrust of Ka-Chew! will be the production of spots that target the coveted youth and young adult demographics—in which Klasky-Csupo (with its animation features and TV series) and Class-Key Chew-Po Commercials have considerable expertise—Babb noted that the live-action spot arm will also broaden into other advertising genres, such as automotive and "wherever else good storytelling takes us."
Babb added that Ka-Chew! has access to the animation and CGI resources of Klasky Csupo. He said Ka-Chew! will be involved in straight live-action jobs as well as in multimedia projects. The latter—combining live action with animation and/or CGI—would likely be done in tandem with Class-Key Chew-Po Commercials.
Senior VP John Andrews and Liz Seidman are the executive producers of Class-Key Chew-Po Commercials. Andrews will oversee Class-Key Chew-Po and Ka-Chew! He chose Babb to head Ka-Chew!, citing the former Ogilvy staffer’s agency, production house and client experience. Babb has been at Ogilvy for the past nearly seven years. Prior to that, he served as director of advertising at Mattel Toys. In the production company arena, he was executive producer at such shops as Paramount Images (the now defunct commercial production arm of Hollywood-headquartered movie/TV studio Paramount Pictures) and The Haboush Company, a since shuttered house that was part of the EUE family.
"Production has been my first love," related Babb. "To be able to return to the production company side and be in on the ground floor of building Ka-Chew! was simply too good an opportunity for me to pass up."
Babb described his exit from Ogilvy as "amicable," noting that management entrusted him with taking a lead role in reorganizing the agency’s production department in the wake of his departure. Ogilvy & Mather, Los Angeles, producers Steve Williams and Francine Marchetti succeed Babb. Williams and Marchetti have been promoted to executive producers on the Mattel and Kraft accounts, respectively. The two exec producers report directly to executive creative director Joe McDonough.
Babb is no stranger to Class-Key Chew-Po. Recently, while at Ogilvy, he worked with the production house on a spot for Post Cereal’s Web site for Kids, Postopia. (Post Cereals is a subsidiary of Kraft Foods.) The combo live-action/animation commercial was directed by Bil White of Class-Key Chew-Po.
And earlier during his Ogilvy tenure, Babb collaborated with animation director Frank Molieri, then with Sherman Oaks-based Warner Bros. Classic Animation, on an ad promoting Post’s Pebbles cereal. Molieri recently signed with Class-Key Chew-Po Commercials (SHOOT, 4/13, p. 8).
"With the marriage of Ka-Chew!, specializing in live action, and Class-Key Chew-Po Commercials, in animation," said Andrews, "we can maximize our capabilities in a dynamically collaborative environment where creative talent from various mediums are free to exchange ideas and build relationships."
Babb is also currently looking to put together Ka-Chew!’s spot representation. He can opt to tap into some or all of Class-Key Chew-Po’s sales force, or to secure separate reps for Ka-Chew! Class-Key Chew-Po’s representation is handled by Rachel Finn and Mary Saxon of Finn Saxon, Los Angeles and San Francisco, on the West Coast, and by Nancy Jacobs of New York-based Batya Communications, which covers the Midwest and the East Coast.
Klasky Csupo has a track record of connecting with the youth, teen and young adult demographic. The animation studio created such Nickelodeon series as The Rugrats, The Wild Thornberrys, Rocket Power and As Told by Ginger. Klasky Csupo also produced the features The Rugrats Movie and The Rugrats In Paris. Additionally, the studio is in development on two live-action movies. Terry Thoren serves as CEO of the overall Klasky Csupo.
