Media production and content company Alkemy X has brought Frank Rocks aboard its business development team. He brings a wealth of experience across management, sales and creative roles. After earning his Bachelor’s degree in professional media and communications at the University of Pittsburgh, Rocks moved into freelance work, starting his career working as a director and DP on small-budget commercials around Pittsburgh. Rocks later transitioned into the role of producer and came to enjoy the development process, shooting for Pittsburgh’s growing tech and robotics scene, and then furthering his experience with brands such as DSG, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, and Pittsburgh advertising agencies. Alkemy X managing director Jim Huie cited Rocks’ “comprehensive grasp of the production process, from concept to completion, and an innate ability to effectively communicate our company’s value to both agencies and brands alike”…
The Garage has partnered with New-York based talent agency Commonwealth Reps–which is led by founder Emily Friendship–for commercial and branded representation on the East Coast….
Common People in London has launched Common Image, a photo division representing a diverse collective of contemporary image makers. As an artist management agency, Common Image will offer tailored strategy and management, with an emphasis on nurturing emerging talent spanning across documentary, lifestyle, fashion and still-life photography, helping them establish their presence in the commercial space. The new division will be based in London and sit equally alongside Common People Films, utilizing its in-house production capabilities as well as its extensive external network to facilitate any production needs related to photography commissions. The division will be led by head of photo Tom Burns. Burns, who joined Common People last November, began his creative career in art production at BBH where he set up the Unsigned platform; a talent network championing diverse, global artists across photography, film and illustration, which has since evolved into Unsigned Union. Burns also has experience working on the photo agency side, having held roles at At Trayler and Object & Animal. Common Image launches with nine photographers including Unsigned alumni Christina Poku, Poppy Thorpe and Lou Jasmine, as well as Holly-Marie Cato, Seb Barros, Olivia Richardson, Charlie Birch, Julian Buchan and Ezekiel. While the majority of its roster is U.K.-based, Common Image also represents talent in the U.S. and has an off-book roster of artists in places including Amsterdam, Cape Town, New York and Germany. While Common Image will predominantly act as a modern-day photo agency and consultancy, Burns also hopes to offer art buying services by tapping into this global network of talent. The agency has already begun working with brands such as Adidas, Apple, Tanqueray, Belmond and Matches Fashion….
SCHROM x Yacht Club and Be Electric Studios Launch Electric XR for Virtual Production
SCHROM x Yacht Club, a full-service live-action, tabletop, and postproduction company, has teamed with Be Electric Studios, a soundstage, equipment rental, and virtual production company, to launch Electric XR, a virtual production collective.
Industry veteran Thomas Rossano will lead the new venture, which provides advanced virtual production solutions across multiple facilities. He brings over 25 years of experience in live-action, tabletop, postproduction and talent curation to enhance Electric XR’s offerings as a resource for brands and agencies, as well as other production companies in need of virtual production solutions. Additionally Rossano continues to serve as EP at XR New York (XR-NY), a role he’s held since December 2022. SCHROM x Yacht Club originally established XR-NY to help provide XR services for third-party rentals. While XR-NY will continue to function independently for SCHROM X Yacht Club, it now operates under the Electric XR umbrella.
Rossano’s expertise spans producing live-action commercials, branded content, interactive and experiential content. In addition to leading Electric XR, he holds responsibilities at SCHROM x Yacht Club which include driving business development, collaborating with sales reps and expanding the company’s creative talent network. Rossano’s career includes serving as an exec producer at Hungry Man for about 11 years, right from that company’s inception. He then went on to become a partner at Station Film where he also had a lengthy tenure. Later he was a partner at PRISM. Then after the pandemic hit, he became a freelance EP for nearly two years, looking into opportunities in virtual production, which led him to XR NY and now Electric XR. Over the years, he has produced high-profile... Read More