Independent creative agency Zambezi has brought Gavin Lester on board as its first chief creative officer. He also has been named an equity partner in the agency. His career has spanned 20 years and two continents, having worked in London, New York, San Francisco and Los Angeles, for agencies such as 180LA, Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, BBH London and NYC. Over the years he has had a hand in high-profile campaigns for Sprint, Levi’s, Lexus, Sony, Netflix and Google, among others. He has won assorted awards including Cannes Gold Lions, Andys, Addys, D&AD and Clios.
Lester comes to Zambezi following a long spell of freelance work at 72andSunny and previously was EVP, executive creative director at Deutsch L.A. where he led creative for Sprint.
Lester’s hire is a reflection of Zambezi’s rapid expansion following a streak of new business wins over the past two years, including Cox Communications, Hubert’s, Stance and Las Vegas Sands Corp. Recently, Lester worked with the Zambezi team in a freelance capacity on the agency’s “Come As You Are” campaign for Las Vegas Sands Corp’s Venetian Resort. He will take charge of a growing creative department that counts two other recent hires, creative director Dan Maxwell and associate creative director Annie Johnston, as well as key internal promotions–Ben George and Nick Rodgers to creative directors and Chris Rutkowski to associate creative director.
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