In the wake of the pandemic, D&AD has gone digital with its New Blood Shift program in New York, a free opportunity for aspiring creatives without college qualifications to get a foothold in the creative industries. As the next generation of creative talent face significant barriers to education and employment as a result of the coronavirus, the organization is partnering with adidas and Spotify to continue offering a supportive and educational space for untrained talent. At a time when opportunities to learn new skills, impress creative employers and build portfolios are particularly difficult to access, especially for those without pre-existing networks, mentors or qualifications, D&AD is tackling this by continuing to offer 18 New York-based creatives a place on the Shift program. Now in its fifth year, the program is a night school designed to create pathways into the industry for those outside of the college system and provide aspiring talent a chance to develop and refine their creative skills. Due to take place earlier this year but delayed by the coronavirus, Shift has been relaunched in a primarily digital fashion through a program of online workshops, talks by industry leaders at agencies including VMLY&R and MullenLowe, alongside real client briefs. These learnings can help transform raw creative talent into tangible, marketable skills that help propel people forward in a career in the creative industries. D&AD aims to create an accessible space for untrained talent to continue learning from and connecting with the industry, during an exceptionally challenging economic climate. As part of Shift, applicants get the opportunity to work on a diverse range of projects that reflect the latest trends and topics of the industry, brought together in a final showcase of creative work in February 2021. In 2019, 74% of the “Shifters” in the London program secured placements after graduating, including at shops such as McCann, Droga5 and Design Bridge….
NYC-based production house PANOPTICA has assembled a new roster of directors which includes Javier Devitt, Erin Sanger, Evan Ari Kelman, and company founder Hughes William Thompson. Argentinian director Devitt recently made NYC his home base and has worked on campaigns with Ogilvy, McCann, and JWT. Since beginning his career in postproduction and specializing as a VFX supervisor, he has gone on to direct commercials and branded content for Coca-Cola, Disney, Starbucks, and USPS. He launched his first fictional series in 2019, M, an eight-part thriller that premiered at SXSW. Sanger’s background in the documentary realm has led her to projects with 23&Me, Allergan, JVC, and Bai. Her work has screened at over 60 film festivals internationally including SXSW and Tribeca, and has been featured on National Geographic, The Atlantic, PBS, and Topic. Recently she directed Mack Wrestles for ESPN’s acclaimed 30 for 30 series, which won five festival awards before airing on both ESPN and ABC. Kelman has directed content for brands including Foot Locker, Converse, Uber, Chevrolet, Gillette, and Coppertone, and his multi-spot campaign for Biotène won a 2020 Gold Telly Award. His narrative films have taken him to the Tribeca Film Festival three years in a row, with his latest short qualifying for the 2019 Academy Awards. Founder Thompson kicked off his directing career on rosters at The Colony and Stink Paris before expanding PANOPTICA’s production capabilities. He’s an alum of SHOOT’s 2015 New Directors Showcase. His work has taken prizes at the Cannes Lions-Young Director Awards, at Oscar and BAFTA-qualifying festivals, and has been featured many times on Vimeo Staff Picks and Short of the Week. He completed his first feature film in 2019, a romantic comedy titled The Divorce Party, which was released by Gravitas Ventures. PANOPTICA is represented for East Coast sales by DUBAY’s Dana Dubay, in the Midwest by Chris Breneman of BS Worldwide, and on the West Coast and in Texas by Yvette Mallory of Yvette Reps….
Global VFX house DNEG has bolstered its offering in Los Angeles with the appointment of executive visual effects supervisor Bryan Godwin. The former founder and CEO of Shade VFX has an impressive credit list of over 100 shows. His recent productions include the newly released Charlie Kaufman film I’m Thinking of Ending Things, blockbuster Sonic the Hedgehog and the lauded Joker. At DNEG Godwin will play a leading part in business development and client outreach in North America, as well as working with the studio’s global creative team to provide guidance, oversight and support on the development of current and upcoming projects. Godwin is also working closely with DNEG’s Virtual Production team, which has delivered services for productions such as Denis Villeneuve’s Dune and Kenneth Branagh’s Death on the Nile, and is in high demand to help content creators for both film and episodic projects overcome the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on production. Prior to setting up Shade VFX, Godwin held key positions at CafeFX, EA Chicago, Charlex and Blue Sky Studios, among others….
