Executive creative director Halle Petro has been named a partner in Sonic Union. She will apply her multifaceted experience as a creative, musician, and businessperson to her expanded leadership role.
“Halle has contributed to our culture in so many ways. She can speak to the work, nurtures careers, and like many here, acts and thinks with full investment in our community, so it’s very gratifying to be able to recognize this more fully,” said Sonic Union managing director/founder Adam Barone. “She also inspires all of us to engage in meaningful dialogue internally and externally as we expand and develop what Sonic Union means to us and our clients moving forward. That’s leadership.”
“I am very honored to take on this role with the right team and right community at the perfect moment,” noted Petro who added, “This is a time of rapid change in our industry (and the world!) and it is my belief that we must lead conversations that challenge convention so that we can evolve not just as a company but industrywide.”
As executive creative director, Petro has been instrumental in deepening the studio’s sonic storytelling experiences for entertainment and advertising. She has also sought meaningful ways to contribute to knowledge-sharing and thought leadership to the industry as a whole. Among them, an interactive workshop created with creative director and composer Zac Colwell that premiered at Ciclope and has been presented at select agencies. “Musical Bias and the Brief: A workshop For The Storytelling Process in Original Film Composition,” explores the cognitive science behind musical biases, then moves to finding inspiration and crafting music briefs that effectively interpret emotional cues using musical terms.
Throughout her time at Sonic Union, Petro has been developing music and sound collaborations while exploring ways to further diversify the studio’s offerings. Among them, working with clients to develop high-impact content with creatively driven sound design, solidifying a production partnership PRX/Radiotopia, and creating a team for original composition and a premium catalog of music for exclusive licensing. The breadth of work that is now embedded in Sonic Union’s DNA includes commercials, documentary features, episodic television, animated series, award-winning podcasts and artistic sound installations.
