The SHOOT stories that generated the most engagement (clicks to view) in 2017 delved into subject matter ranging from groundbreaking Oscar nominees in animation and VFX, to Agency of the Year coverage, the announcement of filmmakers selected for SHOOT’s 2017 New Directors Showcase, and the lineup of 15 female future creative leaders assembled for the Cannes Lions See It Be It Program.
Topping the click tally for SHOOT in 2017 was The Road To Oscar feature titled “Bucking The Oscar Nomination Norm: Kubo and the Two Strings.” The story explored the artistic merits of Laika/Focus Features’ Kubo and the Two Strings which scored a pair of Academy Award nods–for Best Animated Feature Film and for Best Achievement in Visual Effects. The directorial debut of Travis Knight (president/CEO of Laika), Kubo and the Two Strings became the first animated feature nominated in the VFX category since 1994 when director Henry Selick’s stop-motion The Nightmare Before Christmas earned that distinction. The most viewed SHOOT story of 2017 additionally looked into Pearl, a Google Spotlight Stories and Evil Eyes Pictures Production, which garnered a Best Animated Short Film Oscar nomination. Pearl departed from the Academy Award nomination norm by virtue of being a VR project. Pearl was directed by Patrick Osborne who won the Best Animated Short Oscar two years earlier for Disney’s Feast.
Next up in our rundown was coverage of Gary Koepke joining TheBridge.Co–the NY-based production and content company that specializes in connecting artists with brands–as a director/art director/producer. This marked the first time he has been affiliated with a production house. Koepke is best known for his ad agency pedigree. An award-winning designer, art director and creative director, Koepke served as North American chief creative officer for SapientNitro (now SapientRazorfish), the digital shop that’s part of Publicis Groupe. He also earlier co-founded the Boston agency Modernista!
Third in our hit parade was a story on Comma composer Matt Kelly scoring the Showtime documentary Tough Guys, directed by Henry Roosevelt and W.B. Zullo.
The fourth most click-worthy entry in 2017 was the unveiling of the 15 women selected to participate in this year’s Cannes Lions See It Be It program. The initiative was launched in 2014 when Festival organizers identified a dramatic gender imbalance in its audience of middle and senior level creatives, reflecting the low numbers of women in upper levels of the industry globally. Fewer women involved in the creation process resulted in more gender-biased work, which perpetuated a cycle of objectification and maintained the low levels of female creative directors, which at the time was around 3%.
“See It Be It was launched to highlight extremely talented creative women and accelerate their careers. This year’s group come from all over the world and bring a wide range of experiences and strong leadership potential. They will be exposed to the best inspiration Cannes Lions has to offer, with exclusive mentoring sessions, workshops and a program of events designed to extend and enhance their network,” said Louise Benson, executive Festival director, Lions Health, Lions Entertainment and eurobest, and executive lead, See It Be It. “It’s fitting that so many of our alumni have gone on to achieve fantastic success and having them involved in creating a shortlist from all of the applications this year truly enhanced the intense selection process. This community of women have gone on to become powerful role models for the next generation and we look forward to meeting this year’s group.”
Among those in the 2017 See It Be It group were Adebola Adegbulugbe, group copy head, Insight Publicis, Nigeria; Atiya Zaidi, executive creative director, Synergy Dentsu, Pakistan; Jaki Jo Hannan, sr. art producer, AMV BBDO, London; Kara Coyle, associate creative director, Ogilvy & Mather, NY and Chicago; Lizi Hamer, regional creative director, Octagon, Singapore; Marla Natoli, director, video and mobile, AOL Canada; and Satoko Takada, creative director, McCann Tokyo.
Finishing fifth in the clicked stories derby was our “Agency of the Year: Statue of No Limitations,” a reference to State Street Global Advisors “Fearless Girl” statue, which was among the signature creative accomplishments of McCann New York in 2017. This marked the second straight year that McCann NY was named SHOOT’s Agency of the Year.
Coming in sixth place was a story about the launch of Cabin Editing Company, a Santa Monica, Calif.-based creative editing and VFX boutique formed by managing partner Carr Schilling and editors Chan Hatcher, Graham Turner and Isaac Chen.
Occupying the seventh slot of most viewed stories was the debut of SHOOT’s 2017 New Directors Showcase reel, featuring the work of 35 directors–29 individual helmers and three duos. The story included coverage of a panel discussion in which five of the directors participated: Sophie Cole, half of the sibling duo The Coles (the other half being Walker Cole) from production house Hey Wonderful, part of the RSA family of companies; Josh Franer of CoMPANY Films; Jendra Jarnagin who is not affiliated with a production company; the mono-monikered Kiran who is an art director with Innocean Worldwide, but unaffiliated with a production company; and Jenn Shaw, who also has no company affiliation. The discussion session was moderated by SHOOT publisher and editorial director Roberta Griefer.
Earning eighth place was a piece titled “Issa Rae feels ‘validated’ by Black Women in Hollywood honor, which covered the awards ceremony presented by Essence magazine. Rae was recognized for her contributions which included creating and starring in HBO’s Insecure. Also honored were singer-actress Janelle Monae who starred in two films up for the Best Picture Oscar, Hidden Figures and the eventual Academy Award winner, Moonlight; actress Aja Naomi King who’s featured on the TV series How to Get Away With Murder; and Yara Shahidi who appears on the acclaimed sitcom black-ish.
Women were also featured in the ninth entry in our countdown, EP Micki Poklar’s launch of Empress Studios with an all-female directorial roster consisting of Alissa Torvinen, Charlotte Rabate, Montana Mann and Tabitha Denholm.
And rounding out our Top Ten clickable stories was “Travis+Maude plus tonefarmer equals New Math,” chronicling the merger of music and sound studios tonefarmer and Travis+Maude which have rebranded as full service bicoastal operation New Math.
Here’s a rundown of SHOOT's most engaging stories of 2017 (click headline to view):
1. Bucking The Oscar Nomination Norm: “Kubo and the Two Strings”
2. Ex-Modernista! and SapientNitro Creative Gary Koepke Joins TheBridge.Co
3. Comma composer Matt Kelly scores Showtime documentary “Tough Guys”
4. 15 Female Future Creative Leaders Set For Cannes Lions See It Be It Program
5. Agency of the Year: Statue of No Limitations
6. Schilling, Hatcher, Turner, Chen Open Cabin Doors
8. Issa Rae feels "validated" by Black Women in Hollywood honor
9. Empress Studios Opens With All-Female Directorial Roster
10. Travis+Maude plus tonefarmer equals New Math
11. DGA Names Derek Cianfrance Best Commercial Director of the Year
12. Up-and-Coming Directors: Assembling The Spring Collection
13. Merman Launches Branded Entertainment Division; Sharon Horgan, Kira Carstensen Among Key Players
14. McCann’s “Fearless Girl” Scores Three Grand Prix Honors At Cannes Lions Festival
15. “Godfather” Reunion, Screenings, Coppola Conversation To Mark Tribeca’s Closing Night
16. Moxie Pictures Signs Directing Duo MEN
17. Women’s Voices Heard At American Film Market
18. Commercial Directors Diversity Program Expands To Offer Training, Mentoring, Spec Spot Grants
19. Issa Rae Discusses Season 2 of HBO’s “Insecure”
20. Lisa Mehling Becomes Sole Owner of Chelsea Pictures
21. Tracy Mays Launches The Bigger Picture; Shop Opens With 5 Directors
22. 3AM Promotes Chris Eyerman To ECD, Adds 3 Key Staffers
23. DP Perspectives On “Sherlock,” “The Man in the High Castle”
24. Comedy Director Matt Pittroff Joins Station Film
25. Director Rachel McDonald Joins Tool For Spots, Branded Content
26. Antfood Tops AMP Awards Shortlist, Followed By Yessian, Droga5
27. PromaxBDA's Marketing Team of the Year Honors Again Go To CNN Worldwide, FX Networks
28. Taylor Sheridan Discusses His “Trilogy”: “Sicario,” “Hell or High Water,” “Wind River”
29. Lucky 21 Signs Director Andrew Ryan Shepherd
30. DGA Spot Nominees Reflect On Their Work, Recognition From Peers
32. Nonfiction Signs “Chef’s Table” Director Abby Fuller For Spots, Branded Content
33. Craft promotes Shay Fu to managing director across its North American studios
34. Street Talk for March 3, 2017
35. “Meru” Directors Chin, Vasarhelyi Join Nonfiction Unlimited For Spots, Branded Content
