Independent creative agency Zambezi has hired Tal Wagman as associate creative director. The writer teams up with art director Annie Johnston, who joined the agency in January. Wagman previously worked at Saatchi & Saatchi Los Angeles on Toyota and Bravo. Before that he worked in Toronto at the WPP agency Taxi on Koodo, Burger King and Mini Cooper, and at Saatchi & Saatchi Canada on Toyota, Wendy’s, Novartis’ Gas-X, and other brands. Most recently, Wagman led the digital effort for launching Toyota’s Prius Prime on the “Possibilities Now” campaign as well as the Toyota C-HR launch, collaborating with Bad Lip Reader. His work has been recognized at Cannes, Communication Arts, The Webby’s, and according to him, “many Canadian awards which no one has heard of”.
Wagman moved to Los Angeles to continue his advertising career while pursuing a side-hustle in stand up comedy.
“I thought I was good at standup,” said Wagman. “It was half the reason I came here. But with commuting to Torrance [Saatchi LA] every morning, the side hustle became impossible. I still write comedy, I just don’t perform it. What I try do is channel my humor into my ad work. Zambezi recognizes that, and that’s why I’m really excited about working here. I wanted to join an independent shop with an appreciation for comedy. It’s funny, I came to L.A. to do stand up, and Zambezi gave it to me, in the form of a stand-up desk. Actually, is that funny? I don’t know, and that’s why I’m not doing comedy.”
“Tal brings funny to Zambezi,” said Gavin Lester, chief creative officer. “There’s nothing more engaging than a brand story told with wit and humor. That’s Tal’s forte.”
First-Time Feature Directors Make Major Splash At AFI Fest, Generate Oscar Buzz
Two first-time feature directors who are generating Oscar buzz this awards season were front and center this past weekend at AFI Fest in Hollywood. Rachel Morrison, who made history as the first woman nominated for a Best Cinematography Oscar---on the strength of Mudbound in 2018--brought her feature directorial debut, The Fire Inside (Amazon MGM Studios), to the festival on Sunday (10/27), and shared insights into the film during a conversation session immediately following the screening. This came a day after William Goldenberg, an Oscar-winning editor for Argo in 2013, had his initial foray into feature directing, Unstoppable (Amazon MGM Studios), showcased at the AFI proceedings. He too spoke after the screening during a panel discussion. The Fire Inside--which made its world premiere at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival--tells the story of Claressa “T-Rex” Shields (portrayed by Ryan Destiny), a Black boxer from Flint, Mich., who trained to become the first woman in U.S. history to win an Olympic Gold Medal in the sport. She achieved this feat--with the help of coach Jason Crutchfield (Brian Tyree Henry)--only to find that her victory at the Summer Games came with relatively little fanfare and no endorsement deals. So much for the hope that the historic accomplishment would be a ticket out of socioeconomic purgatory for Shields and her family. It seemed like yet another setback in a cycle of adversity throughout Shields’ life but she persevered, going on to win her second Gold Medal at the next Olympics and becoming a champion for gender equality and equitable pay for women in sports. Shields has served as a source of inspiration for woman athletes worldwide--as well as to the community of... Read More