Bicoastal Celsius Films has hired Wendy Kalison as its sales rep in New York. She will be working with Celsius head of sales Jack Fahey in repping the production house on the East Coast. Celsius has also added San Francisco-based Courtney Smith for West Coast sales….Bicoastal HKM Productions and The Directors Bureau have signed Chicago-headquartered Kristina Kovacevic to handle Midwest sales….San Francisco-based production house Pandemonium has secured new representation on the East Coast and in the Midwest. The latter market is being handled by Liz Laine of Liz Laine Reps, Chicago. And Carolyn Hill and Michelle Stuart of New York Office have been hired to cover the East Coast….Ellen Knable of Ellen Knable & Associates, Santa Monica, has been signed to rep Area 51 Films, Santa Monica, on the West Coast and in Texas….Jeremy D. Berman has been added as New York rep for Yessian Music, Farmington Hills, Mich., and New York….Donald R. Stogo Associates, New York, has signed an exclusive agreement with Saraceno Productions, Sydney, Australia, to represent director Antonio Saraceno in the U.S….Santa Monica-based broadcast design firm Fuel has signed Chicago rep Hillary Herbst to cover the Midwest….Darr Hawthorne of Sherman Oaks, Calif.-based Burning Motor Home is no longer handling the West Coast for New York-headquartered Highway 61….The Skouras Agency, Santa Monica, has signed DP Derek McKane for exclusive representation….Barbara Lamon has been named VP of sales for DJM Post Production, New York. She will be repping the facility nationally…. Seattle-headquartered Getty Images has named James A. Bonaventura senior VP of sales….
Matthew Forrest Launches Commercial/Branded Content Production Company Cloud Forest
Producer Matthew Forrest has officially launched Cloud Forest, a Los Angeles-based video production company specializing in commercials and branded content, with additional capabilities in emerging formats like AI and VR.
With the mantra “Where your vision meets our production precision,” Cloud Forest aims to serve brands, agencies and networks with a blend of creativity and operational efficiency.
Forrest brings over 20 years of experience to Cloud Forest. His portfolio includes producing commercial content for Square, Aveeno, and Lyft, branded content series for KitchenAid, Pizza Hut, and Verizon, and projects like Mariah Carey’s “Keys of Christmas.” Forrest’s career highlight came at Endemol Shine, where he earned a Sports Emmy in 2018 for producing Life VR’s “Capturing Everest.”
“Leveraging my varied experiences in both traditional and digital formats, I’m excited to create content across a wide array of platforms with the partners I admire,” said Forrest. “Our focus is on delivering excellence in commercials and branded content, while also offering cutting-edge solutions in AI and VR when appropriate for our clients’ needs.”
Cloud Forest’s talent roster currently features long-time Forrest collaborators such as commercial directors Ben Pluimer, Michael Belcher, Clyde Bessey, Christopher Louie and Kevin K. Shah; director/photographer Shawn Corrigan; photographers Gabriela Oltean and Will Deleon; and creative directors Natalie Perry and Drew Grossman. The studio’s strength lies in curating the right team and accurately defining the necessary resources--budget, roles, and technology--allowing every project to meet its creative and business goals.
This approach has earned praise from industry... Read More