Digital studio Reel FX, with studios in Dallas and Santa Monica, has signed VFX veteran Keith McCabe as general manager of its commercial division. In this role, McCabe’s primary focus will be to oversee all aspects of commercial production from motion design to CG and VFX work.
McCabe comes to Reel FX from Charlex where he supervised CG work on campaigns for top brands including Verizon Wireless, Cover Girl, Clairol, AIG and Hershey’s. In his 16 years of experience in the advertising and feature film industries, he has garnered numerous accolades for his work including a 2006 AICP Award for Excellence in Animation for his contributions on M&M’s “Kaleidoscope.”
McCabe said drawing him to his new roost were its deep talent pool and reputation spanning jobs ranging from stereoscopic 3D, to CG animation, to turn-key live-action/visual effects and cutting edge design.
New York native McCabe graduated valedictorian with a degree in Digital Media from Full Sail University in Orlando, Florida. He immediately dove into the industry working as a technical director at VIFX in Los Angeles, crafting particle-based dynamics and visual effects animation for films including Titanic, Blade and Volcano. He continued to work as a technical director for top companies including Sony Pictures Imageworks, Rhythm & Hues Studios and Industrial Light +Magic.
In 2004, McCabe returned to New York as a technical director at Blue Sky Studios (a division of 20th Century Fox) on its animated feature Robots. He moved on to Charlex when offered a position as head of computer graphics. While there, he managed up to 40 CG artists, editors, programmers and designers. Additionally, he served as the primary creative contact collaborating with such agencies as BBDO, McCann Erickson, Grey, Y&R and Mullen.
Trump Asks Supreme Court To Delay TikTok Ban
President-elect Donald Trump asked the Supreme Court on Friday to pause the potential TikTok ban from going into effect until his administration can pursue a "political resolution" to the issue.
The request came as TikTok and the Biden administration filed opposing briefs to the court, in which the company argued the court should strike down a law that could ban the platform by Jan. 19 while the government emphasized its position that the statute is needed to eliminate a national security risk.
"President Trump takes no position on the underlying merits of this dispute. Instead, he respectfully requests that the Court consider staying the Act's deadline for divestment of January 19, 2025, while it considers the merits of this case," said Trump's amicus brief, which supported neither party in the case and was written by D. John Sauer, Trump's choice for solicitor general.
The argument submitted to the court is the latest example of Trump inserting himself in national issues before he takes office. The Republican president-elect has already begun negotiating with other countries over his plans to impose tariffs, and he intervened earlier this month in a plan to fund the federal government, calling for a bipartisan plan to be rejected and sending Republicans back to the negotiating table.
He has been holding meetings with foreign leaders and business officials at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida while he assembles his administration, including a meeting last week with TikTok CEO Shou Chew.
Trump has reversed his position on the popular app, having tried to ban it during his first term in office over national security concerns. He joined the TikTok during his 2024 presidential campaign and his team used it to connect with younger... Read More