Director connects with Anonymous Content for film & TV literary management
Filmmaker Daniel Askill has joined production company Serial Pictures for North American representation in commercials, branded entertainment, and music videos, and partner company Anonymous Content for film and television literary management.
Askill has helmed advertising campaigns for Audi, Dior, Smirnoff, XBOX and Sony. Prior to Serial, he was handled by RadicalMedia. Askill’s music videos include Sia’s instantly-iconic duo “Elastic Heart” and “Chandelier” starring Maddie Ziegler—the latter of which, with just under two billion views, is one of the most-watched YouTube videos of all time. Askill’s work has received numerous nominations and awards including The Grammys, MTV VMAs, Lumiere Awards, Clio, D&AD and Cannes Lions.
“We are thrilled to have Daniel bring his imaginative eye to Serial Pictures,” said the company’s founding partner Violaine Etienne. “And, we’re excited that through our partnership with Anonymous Content, we’ll be able to support and expand Daniel’s vision across all mediums.”
Askill, who was born in Australia, now splits his time between Los Angeles and New York, where the creative collective Collider Studio, which he co-founded, is based. As part of Askill’s signing, Serial Pictures will collaborate with the incubator for upcoming and established talent to craft creative visual experiences outside of the commercial space.
“I’m incredibly excited to be joining Serial Pictures and the extended Anonymous Content family,” says Askill. “I love the combination of a place that feels boutique and curated at heart and has an incredible reach across a broad spectrum of mediums. It is also an exciting opportunity for our collective Collider Studio.”
Before beginning his career in London, where he engaged in visual design work for top creatives including Alexander McQueen, Askill studied visual communication at the University of Technology Sydney, then moved the U.K., where he continued his studies at the Central Saint Martins College of Art. In addition to his background in film and video, Askill also has a background in music composition and performance. He also recorded an album with shakuhachi player Riley Lee when he was 19.
In 2003, Askill wrote and directed the critically acclaimed, surreal short film We Have Decided Not To Die. Exhibited in various international film festivals, the film won prizes at France’s Clermont-Ferrand festival, Melbourne International, Brooklyn International and SXSW. The work is notable for its portrayal of the human body, ritual and use of visceral special effects.
In 2009, Askill collaborated with the Sydney Dance Company in its creative work “We Unfold”. Askill was commissioned to provide video art to screen alongside the work, which was exhibited at the Venice Biennale in 2010. Askill’s most recent, solo exhibitions Modern Worship (2011) and Three Rituals (2011) have been exhibited in Los Angeles and Sydney. The works are described as “a meditation on the notion of ritual and how it can be viewed through the eyes of modern culture.”
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