By MILLIE TAKAKI
Publicly traded, bicoastal Paradise Music & Entertainment (NASDAQ: PDSE) has named M. Jay Walkingshaw its president and COO. He succeeds Jay Moloney, who took a leave of absence from the presidency on Aug. 1 and has since decided to exit the company. Moloney is best known for his tenure as an agent and later a partner at Creative Artists Agency, Beverly Hills, Calif.
Walkingshaw has served as a consultant to Paradise for the past four months. A 25-year veteran of the entertainment industry, he previously held senior executive positions with such companies as Columbia Pictures, TriStar Pictures, HBO and Time Life Films. Walkingshaw was one of the group of executives that founded TriStar, where he served as executive VP/CFO. Following TriStar’s merger with Columbia Pictures, Walkingshaw played an instrumental role in the restructuring and integration of Columbia’s combined studio operations.
Spot Profile
Walkingshaw comes on board as Paradise is on the verge of assuming a higher profile in the commercialmaking arena. The company has moved closer to its planned acquisition of Straw Dogs, a bicoastal spot production house headed by director Jesse Dylan and executive producer Craig Rodgers. Paradise and Straw Dogs have signed a definitive agreement subject to shareholder approval, which at press time was considered a formality. When the deal closes, Rodgers will become president of Straw Dogs.
Dylan was named CEO of Paradise earlier this year (SHOOT, 5/7, p. 1) when the letter of intent to buy Straw Dogs for 900,000 shares of restricted Paradise stock was announced. (Dylan’s private holding company—through which his directorial and production services are conducted—is also being bought in exchange for 541,000 restricted Paradise shares.)
Paradise’s current holdings include concert film and music video production house Picture Vision, Nashville; spot music company Rave Music, New York (which also maintains alchemy, a New York-based commercial music division); music artists management company All Access Entertainment Management Group, New York; and independent record label PUSH Records, New York.
"Paradise is rapidly evolving into a diversified public entertainment company focused on nurturing and supporting creative talent in a variety of markets and media," said Dylan in a released statement. He noted that Paradise figures to benefit from having access to leading directors, citing several helmers at Straw Dogs, including Neil Burger, Charlie Cole, Mike Rowles and Rob Lieberman. (Lieberman maintains his own bicoastal shop, The Lieberman Company, in association with Straw Dogs.)
Rodgers concluded that Straw Dogs "will actively seek to add talented commercial directors to our growing creative team, with Paradise’s support as a publicly traded entertainment company and through the vast relationships Paradise’s management maintains with others in the entertainment industry."
Jury Presidents Named For The One Show 2025
The One Club for Creativity has announced the global creatives from around the world who will serve as jury presidents for The One Show 2025.
These creatives will lead judging for each discipline, and have a vote on the work.
Confirmed One Show 2025 Jury presidents, by discipline, are as follows:
--Brand-Side/In-House: David Lee, CCO, Squarespace, New York
--Branded Entertainment: Malcolm Poynton, Global CCO, Cheil Worldwide, London
--Creative Use of Data, Creative Use of Technology: Nancy Crimi-Lamanna, CCO, FCB Canada, Toronto
--Cultural Driver: Bianca Guimaraes, partner, ECD, Mischief, New York
--Design: Liza Enebeis, creative director, partner, Studio Dumbar/DEPT®, Rotterdam
--Direct Marketing: Vicki Maguire, CCO, Havas London
--Film & Video: Javier Campopiano, global CCO, McCann Worldgroup & McCann Global, Madrid
--Gaming: Taj Reid, global chief experience officer, US CCO, Edelman, New York
--Integrated, Experiential & Immersive: Chris Beresford-Hill, worldwide CCO, BBDO New York
--Fusion Pencil: Walter T. Geer III, CCO, Innovation North America, VML, New York
--Green Pencil: Barbara Humphries, ECD, The Monkeys, Sydney
--Health & Wellness, Pharma: Wendy Lund, chief client officer, WPP, New York
--IP & Product Design: Ronald Ng, global CCO, MRM, New York
--Moving Image Craft & Production: Irene Kugelmann, chief creative officer, DDB Group of Companies Germany, Berlin
--Music & Sound Craft: Joel Simon, CCO, JSM Music, New York
--Out of Home, Print & Promotional: Kainaz Karmakar, CCO, Ogilvy India, Mumbai
--Public Relations: Patricia Ávila, regional director for Latin America, Ágora, São Paulo
--Radio... Read More