British director Chloe Hayward has signed with blink productions for representation in the U.K. and Amsterdam. After a prolific career on the other side of the lens, Hayward–motivated by a desire to dive deeply into authentic female stories–decided to pick up a camera and begin to shoot and edit her own films. Hayward’s background in theatre studies and time in front of the camera show through in her emotion-driven storytelling across a body of work spanning commercials, shorts and documentaries….
Adobe and Havas have expanded their partnership, transforming the agency’s end-to-end content workflows and paving the way for a smarter and more responsible content supply chain. The collaboration will enable all Havas agencies to leverage Adobe generative AI, and more efficiently deliver personalized customer experiences. Havas agencies will adopt Adobe GenStudio–Adobe’s breakthrough enterprise content supply chain solution that brings together best-in-class applications across Adobe Creative Cloud, Express and Experience Cloud. The integration will enable agencies to accelerate the content process from ideation to delivery, while also giving them direct access to Adobe Firefly, Adobe’s family of creative generative AI models, so they can generate content that is designed to be safe for commercial use. Using Adobe GenStudio, Havas agencies will be able to choose which content creation techniques and practices they employ, as well as how they prefer to leverage generative AI when activating new and variant content. They will also gain access to audience-specific data insights, enabling impact-based content optimization, and Adobe GenStudio’s seamless collaboration features, which empower cross-functional teams to create, edit and deliver customer experiences in real time. On the heels of the recent launch of Prose on Pixels, Havas’ global content at scale network, this collaboration reaffirms Havas’ commitment to driving transformative change in the content production field. It will also help Havas agencies keep up with growing demands for real-time personalized content without compromising quality or brand consistency and while reducing waste…..
Austin-based indie creative agency Bakery has appointed Alisa Sengel Wixom as its first-ever executive creative director. A seven-time Cannes Lions winner, she has held key roles at Dentsu, TBWAChiatDay, Goodby Silverstein & Partners, Fallon, and BBH New York, working on award-winning campaigns for Budweiser, Levi’s, Skittles and Jameson Whiskey. She will report directly to Bakery founder/chief creative officer Micky Ogando and turn out work for a roster of clients which includes Diageo, DeLorean Motors, Nike and Shiner…..
Rom-Com Mainstay Hugh Grant Shifts To The Dark Side and He’s Never Been Happier
After some difficulties connecting to a Zoom, Hugh Grant eventually opts to just phone instead.
"Sorry about that," he apologizes. "Tech hell." Grant is no lover of technology. Smart phones, for example, he calls the "devil's tinderbox."
"I think they're killing us. I hate them," he says. "I go on long holidays from them, three or four days at at time. Marvelous."
Hell, and our proximity to it, is a not unrelated topic to Grant's new film, "Heretic." In it, two young Mormon missionaries (Chloe East, Sophie Thatcher) come knocking on a door they'll soon regret visiting. They're welcomed in by Mr. Reed (Grant), an initially charming man who tests their faith in theological debate, and then, in much worse things.
After decades in romantic comedies, Grant has spent the last few years playing narcissists, weirdos and murders, often to the greatest acclaim of his career. But in "Heretic," a horror thriller from A24, Grant's turn to the dark side reaches a new extreme. The actor who once charmingly stammered in "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and who danced to the Pointer Sisters in "Love Actually" is now doing heinous things to young people in a basement.
"It was a challenge," Grant says. "I think human beings need challenges. It makes your beer taste better in the evening if you've climbed a mountain. He was just so wonderfully (expletive)-up."
"Heretic," which opens in theaters Friday, is directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, co-writers of "A Quiet Place." In Grant's hands, Mr. Reed is a divinely good baddie — a scholarly creep whose wry monologues pull from a wide range of references, including, fittingly, Radiohead's "Creep."
In an interview, Grant spoke about these and other facets of his character, his journey... Read More