Jay Chiat, founder of Chiat/Day, now TBWA/Chiat/Day, has died after a long bout with cancer. He was 70….At press time, there seemed to be an uneasy status quo between actors and talent agents following the rejection last week (4/19) by Screen Actors Guild (SAG) members of a proposed pact between SAG and the Association of Talent Agents (ATA). Nearly 55 percent of those SAG members who voted gave a thumbs down to the tentative agreement, which would have allowed advertising agencies and small to mid-sized independent producers to buy a limited ownership stake in Hollywood talent agencies. The defeat of the agreement means that for the first time since 1939, talent agencies are no longer bound by SAG rules governing commissions and other aspects of business. For the moment, there don’t seem to be any dramatic moves in the offing, such as agents unilaterally raising commissions or selling pieces of their firms. Meanwhile, ATA and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) have reached a tentative agreement, subject to AFTRA board and membership approval. Details of that proposed pact had not yet been released as SHOOT went to press…..Diane Flynn, who most recently served as a freelance producer, has been named executive principal/director of broadcast production for Publicis, New York. Prior to freelancing, she was senior VP/director of broadcast production/creative director at Merkley Newman Harty, New York. Previously, she was senior VP/director of broadcast production/ associate creative director at FCB Chicago….Preston Lee, formerly of Venice, Calif.-based Play, has joined Area 51 Films, Santa Monica, as executive producer. He will work closely with Area 51’s managing director, Mark Thomas….Colorist Tim Masick has joined Company 3, New York. He comes over from Moving Images, New York…. Kandoo Films, a Los Angeles shop specializing in entertainment advertising, has launched a commercial production division, signing director Brent Loefke. The move comes on the heels of Kandoo’s opening of feature and music video divisions….
SUPERLATIVE Signs Director Claudia Abend For Spots and Branded Content
Latin American director/editor and documentary filmmaker Claudia Abend has joined SUPERLATIVE for her first U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content.
Abend's empathetic docu-style POV has garnered several international awards for the documentary films Hit (2008) and The Flower of Life (2018). Her spotmaking credits include such brands as Procter & Gamble, Nestle and Blue Cross/Blue Shield. SUPERLATIVE has already worked with Abend, together producing a new ad campaign for digital agency Tinuiti and The Honest Company, a consumer goods corporation featuring eco-minded products.
“We found Claudia through her poignant documentaries on the festival circuit,” said SUPERLATIVE creative manager Stefan Dezil. “We are excited about her textured narratives, emotional storytelling, and her powerhouse long-form storytelling abilities, currently on her third feature film. As SUPERLATIVE continues to build our brand after premiering our latest films at Sundance and SXSW, Claudia is the kind of multidimensional artist we are excited to partner with on branded content and beyond. Fluent in English and Spanish, her reel shows real prowess with infants, food and skin products, families both young and old. Great visual storytelling and inspirational doc work.”
Abend began her career in her native Uruguay, studying film and editing in college. “My dad would show me films like Citizen Kane,” she said. “I love cinema and became an editor. It was here that I learned all about communicating human emotion.”
From the get-go, Abend hit it big as a documentary director, teaming with Adrianna Loeff on Hit, a movie chronicling pop artists of Uruguayan music. Abend took home a Best Editing... Read More