Humble has signed director Sorrel Ahlfeld, who comes over from Anonymous Content. Ahlfeld has been active in different genres and disciplines; his featurette Love & Stuff received recognition at the New York Short Film Festival, the Austin Film Festival, Anchorage International Film Festival, International Festival of Cinema and Technology, and Festival of Nations…..Oscar-winning visual effects company Framestore has restructured its New York office. Murray Butler has been promoted from head of Flame/VFX supervisor to creative director. He will be in charge of the overall creative output of the NY office, overseeing the execution of projects and in charge of quality control. He will continue to work on Flame and serve as a director on select projects. Meanwhile David Hulin, formerly head of CG, has been named director of operations, charged with optimizing workflow, pipelines and processes. He will partner with Framestore NY president Jon Collins and exec producer James Razzall on business development and new initiatives. Succeeding Hulin as head of CG is Andy Walker who joined the NY office from Framestore London’s VFX department in 2005 and has been heavily involved in the technical development of the CG department. Additionally Framestore NY has hired CG, motion graphics, design and production vet Ana Wolovick to fill the newly created position of CG manager….San Francisco-based agencytwofifteen is becoming Twofifteen McCann, taking on global leadership of the HP account while continuing to handle its current clients and lead the global Xbox account, which in partnership with McCann Erickson they serve in more than 30 markets. Twofifteen McCann will be led by the former management team of agencytwofifteen: Mike Parsons (managing director), Mike Harris (chief strategy officer) and Scott Duchon (chief creative officer). Formed in April 2010, agencytwofifteen had its key players come over from T.A.G. SF, a group inside McCann that had handled Xbox since ’07. Nick Brien, global CEO of McCann Erickson, said “Scott, Mike and Mike are some of the best creative minds in the business. They will be key players in the creative renaissance of McCann Erickson.”….Eric Kahn has joined entertainment advertising agency The Ant Farm as head of digital. Kahn brings more than 14 years of experience creating cutting-edge digital campaigns for major motion pictures, video games, and other entertainment properties. He comes over to The Ant Farm from mOcean where he was the co-managing director and launched digital campaigns for properties such as Toy Story 3, ABC’s Lost, Grand Turismo and MySims….
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