Geico’s cavemen are hitting primetime as ABC has picked up for its fall schedule a sitcom based on the characters in the long-running commercial campaign directed by the team of Speck/Gordon of Santa Monica-based Furlined for The Martin Agency, Richmond, Va. Titled Cavemen, the series will center on modern-day cavemen as they adapt to contemporary society in Atlanta. The Martin Agency’s Joe Lawson, on sabbatical from the agency, will serve as writer/co-executive producer of the show. Directors Will Speck and Josh Gordon are also among the exec producers of the Touchstone Television series….Australian director Jon Gwyther, repped by Film Graphics in Sydney, has signed with Fools and Horses, Los Angeles, for U.S. representation. He has directed spots for international clients such as Ford, Nissan and Toyota….Gordon Robertson has joined MARC USA as senior VP/Group Creative Director for the flagship Pittsburgh office. He reports to Bryan Hadlock, agency-wide chief creative officer. Robertson and senior VP/group creative director Ron Sullivan will lead work for all of the Pittsburgh shop’s clients. Robertson most recently was executive creative director of Chicago boutique SWAY Creative Group where he led work for PepsiAmericas, Macy’s and Comcast SportsNet. His experience includes group creative director at both BBDO in Chicago and DMB&B in St. Louis….Copywriters Julia Regan and Ryan Scott have joined WongDoody, Los Angeles. The latter was last at DDB LA. Regan was at Publicis USA….Meanwhile exiting WongDoody, Seattle, is Noah Will who joins Olson, Minneapolis, as a copywriter…..
Ron Cicero and Bo Clancey Launch Production House 34North
Executive producers Ron Cicero and Bo Clancey have teamed to launch 34North. The shop opens with a roster which includes accomplished directors Jan Wentz, Ben Nakamura Whitehouse, David Edwards and Mario Feil, as well as such up-and-coming filmmakers as Glenn Stewart and Chris Fowles. Nakamura Whitehouse, Edwards, Feil and Fowles come over from CoMPANY Films, the production company for which Cicero served as an EP for the past nearly five years. Director Wentz had most recently been with production house Skunk while Stewart now gains his first U.S. representation. EP Clancey was freelance producing prior to the formation of 34North. He and Cicero have known each other for some 25 years, recently reconnecting on a job directed by Fowles. Cicero said that he and Clancey “want to keep a highly focused roster where talent management can be one on one--where we all share in the directors’ success together.” Clancey also brings an agency pedigree to the new venture. “I started at Campbell Ewald in accounts, no less,” said Clancey. “I saw firsthand how much work agencies put in before we even see a script. You have to respect that investment. These agency experiences really shaped my approach to production--it’s about empathy, listening between the lines, and ultimately making the process seamless.” 34North represents a meeting point--both literally and creatively. Named after the latitude of Malibu, Calif., where the idea for the company was born, it also embraces the power of storytelling. “34North118West was the first GPS-enabled narrative,” Cicero explained. “That blend of art and technology, to captivate an audience, mirrors what we do here--create compelling work, with talented people, harnessing state-of-the-art... Read More