Psyop has added Remus & Kiki–the London animation duo consisting of Remus Buznea and Kyriaki Kyriakou–to its roster for their first commercial representation in the U.S. Remus & Kiki are also repped in France by longtime Psyop partners Wizz. And they continue to be handled in the U.K. by Blinkink. Remus & Kiki additionally remain on the roster of King Boss for music videos in the U.S.
Remus & Kiki’s creative storytelling talents span varied projects–from Adult Swim promos for “Rick and Morty” to designing Coachella visuals for music sensation Burna Boy and making educational films come alive for Netflix’s “Storybots.”
Psyop’s executive producer Andrew Linsk said, “We could not be more thrilled to welcome Remus + Kiki into the Psyop fold, having been big fans of their quirky and delightfully demented brand of humor for some time. Everything R&K do is infused with their distinctive visual style and edgy comedic sensibility–and this has led not only to great creative work, but also to building a worldwide fanbase. We look forward to introducing them to the U.S. market, and are excited to see what epic collaborations are to come.”
In addition to their work for Adult Swim like “Beef House,” Remus & Kiki have infiltrated the gaming space with trailers such as Risk of Rain Returns and mobile game NecroMerger’s teaser. A natural fit for Psyop’s roster as creative leaders in the gaming space. Remus & Kiki have also been turning heads with their award-winning short “Dateless.”
In a joint statement, Remus & Kiki shared, “Joining the list of top-notch talent represented by Psyop is a huge honor for both of us. We look forward to our collaboration yielding an abundance of juicy, colorful, funky-smelling-yet-delectable fruit.”
Google Opens Its Defense In Antitrust Case Alleging Monopoly Over Online Ad Technology
Google opened its defense against allegations that it holds an illegal monopoly on online advertising technology Friday with witness testimony saying the industry is vastly more complex and competitive than portrayed by the federal government.
"The industry has been exceptionally fluid over the last 18 years," said Scott Sheffer, a vice president for global partnerships at Google, the company's first witness at its antitrust trial in federal court in Alexandria.
The Justice Department and a coalition of states contend that Google built and maintained an illegal monopoly over the technology that facilitates the buying and selling of online ads seen by consumers.
Google counters that the government's case improperly focuses on a narrow type of online ads — essentially the rectangular ones that appear on the top and on the right-hand side of a webpage. In its opening statement, Google's lawyers said the Supreme Court has warned judges against taking action when dealing with rapidly emerging technology like what Sheffer described because of the risk of error or unintended consequences.
Google says defining the market so narrowly ignores the competition it faces from social media companies, Amazon, streaming TV providers and others who offer advertisers the means to reach online consumers.
Justice Department lawyers called witnesses to testify for two weeks before resting their case Friday afternoon, detailing the ways that automated ad exchanges conduct auctions in a matter of milliseconds to determine which ads are placed in front of which consumers and how much they cost.
The department contends the auctions are finessed in subtle ways that benefit Google to the exclusion of would-be competitors and in ways that prevent... Read More