Creative editorial company Beast has named postproduction industry veteran Valerie Petrusson as its president. A co-founding member, Petrusson returns to Beast after steering sales and marketing for commercial and feature projects at parent company Deluxe. In her new role, Petrusson will be responsible for overseeing Beast’s seven offices across New York, Santa Monica, San Francisco, Chicago, Atlanta, Detroit and Austin.
“Valerie has an insider’s perspective and flawless track record at both Beast and Deluxe, so she’s the ideal leader for this expanding group,” said Stefan Sonnenfeld, CEO, Deluxe Creative Services.
“Beast holds a special place in my heart, ” Petrusson shared. “I’ve gained invaluable knowledge working in the boutique business as well as the corporate world. This experience will allow me to navigate Beast to the next level creative. Our editors are some of the best in the industry, so it’s an absolute joy to be working with them on a day-to-day level again.”
Petrusson will be based in the Santa Monica office but frequently engages with all facilities in the Beast network. She co-founded Beast in 2006 and headed up the company until transitioning to Deluxe corporate in 2012. Prior to Beast, Petrusson served as a professional consultant to editorial companies, recruiting talent, helping to devise advertising and marketing strategies, and working with management to enhance efficiencies and profits. She began her career over two decades ago while working with boutique editorial houses in Los Angeles and San Francisco, where she established both a loyal clientele and strong community presence.
Review: Director Morgan Neville’s “Piece by Piece”
A movie documentary that uses only Lego pieces might seem an unconventional choice. When that documentary is about renowned musician-producer Pharrell Williams, it's actually sort of on-brand.
"Piece by Piece" is a bright, clever song-filled biopic that pretends it's a behind-the-scenes documentary using small plastic bricks, angles and curves to celebrate an artist known for his quirky soul. It is deep and surreal and often adorable. Is it high concept or low? Like Williams, it's a bit of both.
Director Morgan Neville — who has gotten more and more experimental exploring other celebrity lives like Fred Rogers in "Won't You Be My Neighbor?,""Roadrunner: A Film About Anthony Bourdain" and "Steve! (Martin): A Documentary in Two Pieces" — this time uses real interviews but masks them under little Lego figurines with animated faces. Call this one a documentary in a million pieces.
The filmmakers try to explain their device — "What if nothing is real? What if life is like a Lego set?" Williams says at the beginning — but it's very tenuous. Just submit and enjoy the ride of a poor kid from Virginia Beach, Virginia, who rose to dominate music and become a creative director at Louis Vuitton.
Williams, by his own admission, is a little detached, a little odd. Music triggers colors in his brain — he has synesthesia, beautifully portrayed here — and it's his forward-looking musical brain that will make him a star, first as part of the producing team The Neptunes and then as an in-demand solo producer and songwriter.
There are highs and lows and then highs again. A verse Williams wrote for "Rump Shaker" by Wreckx-N-Effect when he was making a living selling beats would lead to superstars demanding to work with him and partner... Read More