Philip McIntyre (founder of The Brand Gallery) and veteran producer Brian Bennhoff have launched live action production company Standard Directors. The new venture opens with four directors: Martin Rosete, who has directed commercials domestically and internationally for such brands as Omnitel, Cablevision Optimum, Mangali Water and Doritos; Mark Chaudoir whose agency collaborators include Ogilvy & Mather, Rainey Kelly Y&R, and Leo Burnett; Iain Greenway, a branding expert with assignments for HBO, BBC America and Univision; and tabletop expert John Hunter, who after beginning his career as a DP for tabletop legend Bruce Nadel, has made his own mark directing spots for NutriSystem, Kashi, and Cuisinart….Sound designer and mixer Drew Weir has just traveled to Another Country, which is Cutters Studios’ sound division. He formerly was the head engineer at Vagabond Audio. Weir has worked on commercials (McDonald’s, Kraft) and documentary and feature films including the recently released Drinking Buddies. He was nominated for an MPSE Golden Reel for Best Audio Editing for his work on the documentary, The Interrupters. He’s also received the New York Art Directors Club Award, several Telly Awards, and the Intercom Awards Special Achievement for Sound Design….
Utah Leaders and Locals Rally To Keep Sundance Film Festival In The State
With the 2025 Sundance Film Festival underway, Utah leaders, locals and longtime attendees are making a final push — one that could include paying millions of dollars — to keep the world-renowned film festival as its directors consider uprooting.
Thousands of festivalgoers affixed bright yellow stickers to their winter coats that read "Keep Sundance in Utah" in a last-ditch effort to convince festival leadership and state officials to keep it in Park City, its home of 41 years.
Gov. Spencer Cox said previously that Utah would not throw as much money at the festival as other states hoping to lure it away. Now his office is urging the Legislature to carve out $3 million for Sundance in the state budget, weeks before the independent film festival is expected to pick a home for the next decade.
It could retain a small presence in picturesque Park City and center itself in nearby Salt Lake City, or move to another finalist — Cincinnati, Ohio, or Boulder, Colorado — beginning in 2027.
"Sundance is Utah, and Utah is Sundance. You can't really separate those two," Cox said. "This is your home, and we desperately hope it will be your home forever."
Last year's festival generated about $132 million for the state of Utah, according to Sundance's 2024 economic impact report.
Festival Director Eugene Hernandez told reporters last week that they had not made a final decision. An announcement is expected this year by early spring.
Colorado is trying to further sweeten its offer. The state is considering legislation giving up to $34 million in tax incentives to film festivals like Sundance through 2036 — on top of the $1.5 million in funds already approved to lure the Utah festival to its neighboring... Read More