Cathleen Kisich named EP of L.A. shop
U.K.-based production house Knucklehead is opening its first U.S. office this month. The Los Angeles shop will be headed by Cathleen Kisich who becomes Knucklehead’s first U.S. executive producer. The stateside launch comes at a time when Knucklehead has already made inroads into the American ad market, working with such agencies as Wieden+Kennedy, Droga5, TBWAChiatDay, McCann, Leo Burnett and Team Detroit.
Kisich began her career as an agency producer before making the jump to executive producer in 2010 when she joined Caviar, representing such notable directors as AG Rojas and Keith Schofield. Kisich also brings along producer Lauren Small to the new Knucklehead U.S. Small previously worked at Partizan, and at Caviar, where she and Kisich met.
Established in 2005 by EP/managing partners Tim Katz and Matthew Brown, Knucklehead has made its creative mark internationally with a body of work that most recently includes: director Siri Bunford’s documentary-style film 1000 Years of Less Ordinary Wisdom for Finlandia Vodka; Charlie Crane’s short film about the life of an expedition doctor in Greenland for IKEA’s “There’s No Bed Like Home” campaign; and director Chris Hewitt’s new emotion-driven ad for Dunlop. Other Knucklehead fare includes a pair of Rob Leggatt-directed campaign films for VO5; William Armstrong’s nighttime “Run More” spot for Adidas; and choreographer-turned-director Holly Blakey’s monochromatic dance performance video for Gwilym Gold’s “Triumph.”
Eleanor Adds Director Candice Vernon To Its Roster For Spots and Branded Content
Director Candice Vernon has joined production house Eleanor for U.S. representation spanning commercials and branded content. She has already wrapped several jobs at Eleanor, which waited to announce her until they had a body of work together.
Via Eleanor, Vernon made history as the first Black director on a Febreze commercial. The “Small Spaces” campaign marks a major departure from Febreze’s typical blue-and-white world. The home of the “Revolving Door” commercial is a beautiful array of bold sunset hues, African prints, and African art.
Vernon said, “I asked myself, what feels right to me? What feels new? I wanted to bring an essence of not just Black Americans but the full diaspora. I wanted to make a statement that we’re not a monolith.”
Following the success of the “Small Spaces” campaign, Febreze brought Vernon back for a comedy-infused trifecta exploring the hilarious situations that call for an air freshening hero.
Febreze Brand VP Angelica Matthews said, “About two years ago, we realized the consumers that were the most loyal to Febreze were the African American consumers. And the more we learned, the more we realized the richness that we were really missing. So we said we have to go beyond just Black casting, we need to get Black directors that truly understand the culture that truly understand how to bring authentic performances out on screen. We really looked around the industry and noticed there’s actually a shortage of African American directors who have experience doing commercials. When we all saw Candice’s reel, we could all tell the passion for the craft, passion for really trying to help us from where we are to where we’re trying to go.”
Vernon brings a unique lens to... Read More