Independent creative agency Zambezi has made five key hires across its creative and strategy departments: Creative director Matt Sherman, sr. art director Goran Krstic, sr. copywriter Diego Sarmiento, sr. designer Ting Teng, and strategy director Dalit Zagorin.
Sherman brings over 15 years of creative and leadership experience to Zambezi. He previously held senior creative positions at Deutsch, David&Goliath, and Mullen, and led efforts for brands, including Volkswagen, Kia Motors, ESPN, LG Mobile, California State Lottery, Acura and Chipotle. His work has been honored by D&AD, Cannes, Clios, and The One Show.
Sr. art director Krstic will work primarily with client Experience Kissimmee. His “human first” approach, combining design and concept, has driven award-winning work for clients, including Adidas, Nike, Under Armour, Microsoft, Garage Magazine, Jägermeister, PayPal and MTV, at agencies Crispin Porter+Bogusky, Campbell Ewald, Opperman Weiss, and David&Goliath. Some of Krstic’s most notable work includes developing Under Armour’s first-ever store and retail theater experience in Shanghai, as well as the PayPal “Local Selects” campaign, which received top honors at Cannes Lions, LIA, and The One Show.
As sr. copywriter, Sarmiento will also work primarily with Experience Kissimmee. Before joining Zambezi, Sarmiento spent time at Brooklyn Brothers in New York City, Ogilvy, and Mullen, and created work for clients including IBM, lululemon, Remy Martin, Babybel, Barnes & Noble and VH1. His IBM Watson “Hidden Portraits” campaign was shortlisted at Cannes.
As sr. designer, Teng will lead design efforts across all Zambezi clients. A native of Auckland, Teng moved to LA in 2017, and spearheaded digital and visual design work for agencies, including Something Massive and TBWA/Media Arts Lab, and brands, such as Fisher-Price, Singapore Air, and Apple. She also co-founded the brand strategy and marketing consultancy firm, Assembly. Her work was honored by the New Zealand Direct Marketing awards for excellence in strategy, direct response, not-for-profit, media, and social media for clients Cyber Insurance, Sour Patch Kids, New Zealand Blood Service, and Inspiring Ltd for “Stoptober.”
As strategy director, Zagorin will work closely with Zambezi’s creative and media teams, and lead related strategic efforts. Before joining Zambezi, Zagorin served as associate strategy director at Conill Advertising, where she led brand planning and development for clients like Toyota and Tundra’s World Cup campaign. Earlier in her career, Dalit served as a sr. strategist at Deutsch, where she oversaw work for Dr. Pepper, Snapple, Taco Bell, Foster Farmers; and Dlatino, Deutsch’s multicultural arm.
Gavin Lester continues as Zambezi partner/chief creative officer.
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