SunSpots, the commercial production house headed by director David Dryer and president Linda Dryer, has launched Tantrum, a comedy division that will represent director Craig Worsham. SunSpots has repped Worsham in the U.S. spot arena for the past year (SHOOT, 7/23/99). Tantrum is located on the SunSpots premises, in Hollywood.
"Craig has a very unique style and sense of comedic timing that warrants a separate identity," said Linda Dryer. "We want Tantrum to have its own identity as a production house that specializes in comedy."
Additionally, director/cameraman Bruce Logan, who was previously repped by The Directors Network, Studio City, Calif., has signed with SunSpots for exclusive commercial representation in the U.S.
Linda Dryer serves as president at Tantrum, working alongside Carlton Ashley, who is executive producer of both SunSpots and the new division. A longtime friend of the Dryers, Ashley joined the production house earlier this year, after SunSpots’ former executive producer, David Coulter, exited the company to launch Santa Monica-based Tropix Films, a satellite of Atlas Pictures, Santa Monica (SHOOT, 6/23/00).
Prior to coming aboard SunSpots, Ashley was senior manager of physical production at The Secret Lab, the Burbank, Calif.-based in-house digital production studio of Walt Disney Feature Animation. From 1994 through ’99, Ashley was an executive producer at Studio City-based Image G, a motion control and effects house. While there, he worked on features such as The Green Mile and Stuart Little, as well as on more than 200 commercial shoots.
Worsham said that the eventual goal is to build Tantrum’s roster with additional comedy helmers, but not at this juncture. Tantrum will be repped by the SunSpots sales contingent, which comprises Sandra Riley of San Francisco-based Free Lunch on the West Coast, New York-based John Naitove of Naitove & Company on the East Coast, and Chicago-based Jack Lewis in the Midwest-with the exception of Detroit, which is handled by Pat Costa of Illumini Productions.
Known for his offbeat, character-driven comedy, Worsham has helmed his first assignment under the Tantrum banner: a campaign for Carl’s Jr. via Jordan Associates, Oklahoma City. The ads feature the fast-food chain’s "Happy Star" character in various scenarios in his apartment.
Worsham continues to be represented in much of Canada by Trailer Park Films, Toronto, and in Western Canada by Apple Box Productions, which maintains offices in Toronto, Vancouver and Edmonton. Earlier this year, he helmed a five-spot campaign for the Enmax power company via Calgary-based Highwood Communications and Apple Box. Worsham’s other recent credits include a Trailer Park-produced campaign for KFC, out of Ogilvy & Mather, Toronto; and several spots for Dell Computers via Ammirati Puris Lintas (now Lowe Lintas & Partners), New York, and produced by SunSpots. "Small Business," a Worsham-directed Telus Communications spot via Palmer Jarvis DDB, Vancouver, and Apple Box, was short-listed at this year’s Cannes International Advertising Festival.
