Zulu Alpha Kilo has hired two new creative directors and two strategy directors.
On the creative front, Gerald Kugler and Rodger Eyre join from Juniper Park/TBWA where they were most recently group creative directors. Prior to the merger of Juniper Park and TBWA, the pair were executive creative directors at TBWA where they oversaw notable campaigns such as Gatorade’s “Sledge Hockey” and Nissan’s “Back in the game” documentary. They spent six years running Nissan, creating the “Conquer All Conditions” campaign, which recently earned them a Gold Cassie award in the “Sustained Success’ category in 2016. Throughout their careers, their work has won Cannes Lions, One Show, Communication Arts, Clios, and Marketing awards. Prior to TBWA, they’ve worked at Crispin, Porter & Bogusky, Roche Macaulay, BBDO and ACLC.
They will report into Zulu’s chief creative officer and founder, Zak Mroueh. Kugler and Eyre will join a diverse creative team which includes six other creative directors.
In addition to the hires on the creative team, Zulu strengthened the strategy team by adding two strategy directors, Laura Kim and Tim Hopkins.
Kim joins Zulu from Leo Burnett Chicago and its innovation group, Farmhouse. Kim has worked with such clients as Pfizer, Visa, McDonald¹s, Samsung and Dunkin’ Donuts. Her strategic skillset combines cognitive psychology, trend analysis, and research. Prior to Burnett, she worked at SapientNitro.
Hopkins joins Zulu from Grey London where he lead strategy across some of Grey’s global clients and was a founding director of Grey Response. He has 20 years’ experience in brand, integrated, and transactional marketing with clients such as Vodafone, Volvo and Marks & Spencer.
Is “Glicked” The New “Barbenheimer”? “Wicked” and “Gladiator II” Hit Theater Screens
"Barbenheimer" was a phenomenon impossible to manufacture. But, more than a year later, that hasn't stopped people from trying to make "Glicked" — or even "Babyratu" — happen.
The counterprogramming of "Barbie" and "Oppenheimer" in July 2023 hit a nerve culturally and had the receipts to back it up. Unlike so many things that begin as memes, it transcended its online beginnings. Instead of an either-or, the two movies ultimately complemented and boosted one another at the box office.
And ever since, moviegoers, marketers and meme makers have been trying to recreate that moment, searching the movie release schedule for odd mashups and sending candidates off into the social media void. Most attempts have fizzled (sorry, "Saw Patrol" ).
This weekend is perhaps the closest approximation yet as the Broadway musical adaptation "Wicked" opens Friday against the chest-thumping sword-and-sandals epic "Gladiator II." Two big studio releases (Universal and Paramount), with one-name titles, opposite tones and aesthetics and big blockbuster energy — it was already halfway there before the name game began: "Wickiator," "Wadiator," "Gladwick" and even the eyebrow raising "Gladicked" have all been suggested.
"'Glicked' rolls off the tongue a little bit more," actor Fred Hechinger said at the New York screening of "Gladiator II" this week. "I think we should all band around 'Glicked.' It gets too confusing if you have four or five different names for it."
As with "Barbenheimer," as reductive as it might seem, "Glicked" also has the male/female divide that make the fan art extra silly. One is pink and bright and awash in sparkles, tulle, Broadway bangers and brand tie-ins; The other is all sweat and sand, blood and bulging... Read More