Bicoastal hybrid production and post company humble has expanded its live-action and VFX menu to now include food and tabletop with the addition of director Jerry Simpson to its roster. Simpson’s work–which often incorporates live action and performance as well as food and product cinematography–includes spots for such brands as Avon, Pepsi, Kraft, Whole Foods, Corona and Burger King.
Simpson continues to maintain his SFI Productions in Long Island City, NY, for still/print work. His shooting stage there is also available for rental. As a director, Simpson is represented nationally by humble which also provides full production and EP support for all of his commercials and other content work for ad agencies.
The SFI operation will remain a base for Simpson’s food and tabletop work as well as provide humble with access to a shooting stage for its own projects. In addition, Simpson’s recently opened postproduction and color grading facility–also based in his Long Island City complex–will continue to operate as a standalone facility and similarly will be available to work on various humble projects on an as-needed basis
Simpson said he’s excited about the opportunity to focus his efforts exclusively on his creative work rather than on the demands of running a single-director production house. “This will free me up to deliver great work for clients and to tell stories in the most dynamic fashion possible,” he related. “And it’s going to open a lot more doors for my work and get more handshakes going. I’m really looking forward to that.”
Eric Berkowitz, president/executive producer of humble, described Simpson as “a great storyteller with an eye for detail, texture and nuance….We’re really excited about the prospects for extending his reach into new areas of the media business.”
Additionally, humble will be able to tap into the skills of photographer Chris Simpson who continues with SFI, which handles production for his still work. Via humble, Chris Simpson will be available for integrated projects. A second-generation advertising image maker, his recent assignments includes a print campaign for BBDO New York.
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