Target has launched a partnership with fashion icon Liberty of London, which combines Target’s budget-conscious ethos with Liberty's legendary styles. A Very Small Office (AVSO) Director Mikon van Gastel delivered the campaign, collaborating with Target agency Peterson Milla Hooks, to buck industry trends and create an oversized practical environment that showcases Liberty's clothing, home and tableware, garden products, bicycles and more. “Liberty of London” comes from AVSO's recent series of high-profile Target "Frugalista" spots that aired during the Grammys, the Golden Globes and the Winter Olympics. The spot, shot at Greystone Mansion and other inspiring locations, shows fashion model-types gallivanting through impossible practical landscapes of oversized dimensions: a sprawling tabletop stocked with human-sized china; a soaring bedroom with mattresses stacked to the ceiling beside a 12-foot-tall lamp; a garden with head-high mushrooms, giant roses, and a 14-foot watering can. By shooting in these arresting settings, van Gastel captured the youthful interpretation of Liberty’s floral prints and British heritage, mixed with Target's design sense and great value. Agency credits go to Matthew Parr, Dave Peterson and Aldo Hertz.  For AVSO, Saffron Case executive produced. Channel Z’s Brett Astor cut the spot. Pixel Farm handled VFX, with Lead VFX  Kurt Angell, Flame Artist Tony Mills and Producer Bill Kruse. Modern Music’s John Hermanson and Eric Fawcett composed and Joanna Jahn produced.

We’ve all done it before--you know, when you shout out loud at the screen to the protagonist in the movie to run, or look behind them, or to warn them of on-coming terror. Well, now viewers will have the opportunity to do as they always have, but this time with the protagonist taking the advice. “Last Call”, directed by Milo for Film Deluxe, Germany, is an interactive flick via 13th Street, a television channel specializing in action and suspense shows and movies in France and Germany.  The project was created by agency Jung Von Matt/Berlin. Using comprehensive software, viewers send their phone number to a speed dial database.  The database then calls a viewer and the dialogue begins. To see how it all works, see the trailer here. But beware--you may need a new phone number should the bad guy find the cell phone left behind.  Agency credits go to Marius Bell, Daniel Leverenz, Peter Gocht, Andreas Henke, Christian Kroll, Wolfgang Schneider, Matthias Stiller and Julia Cramer.  Additional Film Deluxe credits go to  EP’s Glenn Bernstein and Juergen Krause, Producers Katharina Strauss and Stephan Pauly, Animator Daniel Kundrat and Line Producer Marion Dopfer.

The weight loss supplement alli just got a makeover courtesy of director Sarah Pirozek, via Rapp Collins Worldwide in New York.  Pirozek, who now directs out of her production company Dame Work, Inc., shot the spot, titled “Christina,” in collaboration with Tangerine Films, the New York-based production company, working with Executive Producer Sal Del Giudice.  Pirozek traveled to five cities in the US for the spot, speaking with women who made lifestyle changes using the new alli program.  Rapp Collins’ Creative Director, Kostas Karanikolas, tapped Pirozek for the project because he wanted a female perspective, sensitive to the women being interviewed and a genuine feel. He also wanted the visuals to exhibit a flattering look that he knew Pirozek could deliver, based on her work as a fashion and beauty director.   Additional credits on the spot go to DPs Brian Jackson and Liz Rubin.  The spot was edited at Tangerine by Vera Itkin, and produced by Sal Del Giudice.

It's every kid's dream, entering a candy store and being swept away on a fanciful train ride through the various shelves stocked with lollipops, peppermints, cupcakes and sweetened fruit--oh, and don’t forget the miniature airplane with the gingerbread man pilot. The spot is called “Candy Store” directed by Mark Toia for Jakarta-based production company Se7en Sunday Films via Blue Circle Advertising for Gulaku Sugar. To the tune of “Sugar, Sugar,” the spot shows the variety of products that Gulaku goes into. The spot itself is visually stimulating with its vibrant color, animation and child-like feel. Additional credits go to EPs Rachel Srisumarsih and Rodney Vincent.

Action for Children is a private, non-profit organization which provides childcare and early learning services in central Ohio. The organization continues its mission with a new spot entitled “Emily.” Directed by Dan Sumich at Passion Pictures and devised by agency creatives Fabrice Ward and Steven Grime, “Emily” uses a tiny model of a child to make its point.  It’s a metaphorical vision of the real child out in an environment where she shouldn’t be, left feeling vulnerable, invisible and worthless. In each of the films to date, Sumich has employed a different animation style to convey the children's stories in a visually interesting way.  Around 80 one-inch models were produced for the outdoor shots and 15 six-inch versions made for the closing sequence. These were then hand-painted and shot in a live action environment during an outdoor night shoot and a further studio-based session.  Sumich wanted to create both the smallest scale stop frame piece and the world’s first full character rapid prototype animation. As with the previous commercials in Sumich’s AFC campaign, the use of stop frame and real physical materials echoes the truth of the stories being recounted.  Additional Passion credits go to Producer Erika Forzy, DPs Ray Lewis and Mark Stewart, EP Hugo Sands, 2D Designer Dan Sumich and Animator Chris Hemming.

DigitalKitchen has announced the addition of Gabriel Marquez as Head of Production.  Marquez will oversee DK productions in the agency’s New York office, as well as those requiring collaboration between offices. Most recently Marquez worked with Transistor Studios as Senior Producer. While there he pitched, bid, developed and produced live action, animated and interactive content for TV, web, and mobile formats. Prior to Transistor, Marquez was a producer working on non-fiction television programs, on both the development and production front.  His experience includes supervising production for some of TruTV’s (formerly Court TV) programs, as well as their documentary series called “Stories of the Innocence Project.”  In doing so he has managed research, story/script development, casting, locations, licensing, budgeting and field productions across the US.  Marquez’s production background also includes working in television production on projects for Discovery, OLN (now Versus), TLC and Lifetime, as well as post for film and television programming for the History Channel and A&E.  His work has been recognized by industry organizations including the Clios, BTAA, Promax and the Cannes Lions Festival; he also received a CINE Golden Eagle award in the investigative non-fiction category for “Stories of the Innocence Project: Broken Words.”

"Gallery," the latest spot from LA-based special effects and finishing boutique Arsenal FX, showcases the Cadillac CTS Sports Sedan as it is meant to be appreciated.  Directed by Ago Panini of Tate USA via McCann Worldgroup, the spot features a couple strolling through a gallery exhibit of the new CTS. Photos of the car's interior and exterior are augmented by quotes from Car & Driver magazine.  By the time the couple emerges from the building and drives off in their own CTS, we can see why the model has been voted one of Car & Driver's "Ten Best" for the third consecutive year. Agency credits go to Matt Canzano, Tom Parr, Mark Reichard and Stacey Gizinski. For Arsenal, credits go to EP Ashley Hydrick, Producer Yole Barrera and VFX Supervisors Mark Leiss and Eli Guerron, who recently joined Arsenal as Lead 3D Generalist, along with Senior VFX Artist Terry Silberman. In addition, Joseph Grosso  has been promoted to Senior Flame Artist. After two years with Blissium, Guerron gained experience freelancing for Transistor, Logan, Psyop, Imaginary Forces, A52 and Yu+Co, among others, and his work has garnered Clio and AICP honors. Silberman comes to Arsenal FX with 20 years in the industry.  Previously and audio engineer and sound designer, he transitioned years ago into visual effects.  His work includes projects for Honda, Baby Ruth and K-Swiss. Silberman was previously on staff at SOLID.

There’s nothing like a good night's sleep. And as demonstrated by an animated - and for the most part - willing backbone, it's also necessary. Directed by Yoram Ever Hadani of Tel-Aviv based Gustavo Productions for Aminach Mattresses via agency Glikman Neteler Samsonov/Tel-Aviv, “Backbone” opens on the Aminach testing facility. An animated backbone, personified with big brown eyes and a mouth, is pulled, stretched, put under water and even tied in a knot before being placed on the mattress by the demonstrating scientist. Feeling snug and relaxed, the smiling backbone shows us how comfy he is--until his next set of tests, that is. Credits go to DP Itay Neaman and Producers Gustavo Nadel and Savion Einstein.

A new national advertising campaign for the US Census, directed by Bully Pictures’ Fredrik Callinggard for IW Group/DraftFCB, makes its point about the importance of completing the government’s census form through the use of some cinematic magic. Each of the eight spots employs the same premise: a man crosses a street with his young daughter to deposit his census form in a mail box. As he does so, the camera performs a graceful 360 degree pan, while revealing that the street behind him—which had been deserted—is suddenly filled with people applauding his action. Hundreds of actors were choreographed to step into place as the camera sweeps by to complete the tableau. The same scenario was shot eight times with different principals representing different ethnic groups.  The US Census is not the only advertiser to recently make use of Callinggard’s skills. He also just shot a spot for Suzuki and L.A agency Siltanen & Partners launching the new Kizashi. ”Rich Guys” offers dynamic views of the sporty car on a stage bathed in laser lighting and driving through a desert environment. Bully Brothers Post handled post work for both the US Census and Suzuki work. Adam Marsden was DP for US Census and Jordan Valenti was DP for Suzuki. For both US Census and Suzuki, additional Bully credits go to EP Jason Forest, Post Producer Gaelon Swift and VFX artist Kiki Chansamone.

Toronto based Partners Film Inc. has recently signed director Duane Crichton to its roster for Canadian Representation. After graduating from the Radio and Television Arts Program at Ryerson University in Toronto, Crichton cut his teeth directing music videos for various artists at both major and independent labels. He shot his first commercial in 2003, and has since directed spots for a variety of clients including VW, Toyota, Rogers, Sick Kids and Ontario Tourism. In 2004, Crichton won two MuchMusic Video Awards - Best R&B and Best Hip Hop for In Essence's “Friend Of Mine” and Jelleestone featuring Elephant Man's “Who Dat”, respectively. In 2005, he won a Shots’ Young Director Award in Cannes for his Adidas 3 spec spot. Crichton joins the roster of directors at Partners which includes Joachim Back, Aleysa Young, Clay Staub, Steve Chase, Bart Timmer and Rupert Wainwright, to name a few.

“Blood Into Wine,” is documentary look at the wine-making operation at Maynard James Keenan's Caduceus Winery, set on a beautiful Arizona mountainside. The film features audio mix and sound design from Bob Giammarco of audioEngine.  True Story Films directors Ryan Page and Christopher Pomerenke follows the  wine-making process from planting to cultivation to harvest to manufacture to the first successful taste test, interspersing interviews with vineyard workers and others. The documentary features comedians Bob Odenkirk and Patton Oswalt, along with Tim Heidecker and Eric Wareheim of Cartoon Network's "Tim and Eric's Awesome Show, Great Job!", who perform mock interviews demeaning the winery's product.  "The most challenging portion of designing and mixing the doc was dubbing in songs from Maynard's library of songs, as they had to perfectly synch with existing dialogue to underscore key points in the film," noted Giammarco. Additional credits go to DP Cary Truelick, with Copper Post handling editing and post. In other audioEngine news, Mixer and Partner Rex Recker, along with New York agency Gotham and Smuggler director Henry Alex Rubin, mixed a spot for Reebok Sports Licensed Division's Speedwick Tees, starring the NHL Pittsburgh Penguins' Sidney Crosby and Maxime Talbot.  The spot features the two facing off in Crosby's basement, firing pucks across the room into Sidney's clothes dryer. Recker ensured that the booming noise of the puck colliding with the metal crossbar, and additional game play sounds, synched perfectly with the onscreen action. Gotham credits go to Michael Jordan, Pat Walsh and Neal Bergman. Darren Lew was DP for Smuggler, and Elizabeth Amaral produced. PS 260 edited and audioEngine's Charles Nickles produced.

Backyard director Rob Pritts finds getaway vehicles in unexpected places in the new :30 spot for AT&T out of GSD&M Idea City, Austin, TX.  “Speedy Van” opens on a dashing, James Bond-like gentleman seen sprinting and jumping through and over the rooftops of buildings in downtown LA.  He’s not doing this for sport, he’s being pursued by two bad guys in black leather.  Our hero races down a staircase into a parking lot, where he spots three very fast-looking sports cars.  He then eyes a nearby AT&T van and smiles; he knows where to go for speed.  The man hops in the van and says to the driver, “Step on it!”  The driver, without flinching, declares, “Let’s do this!” and they drive away to safety.  The AT&T logo closes out the spot. Agency credits go to Laurie Lehnert and Gene Brenek. Additional Backyard credits go to DP Toby Irwin, Producer Carr Donald and EP Kris Mathur.  Editor Staci LeVan of Charlieiniformtango edited. The Lodge/New York handled sound design.

MassMarket has announced that Todd Sarsfield has joined their New York office as Visual Effects Supervisor.  With over a decade's experience in commercial production and feature film visual effects, Sarsfield is an accomplished compositor, colorist, 3D artist, editor and live action filmmaker.  He comes to MassMarket after eight years at Digital Domain. "He comes with an extensive knowledge of visual effects and has worked on some very high profile spots with David Fincher, Lance Accord, Mark Romanek and Carl Erik Rinsch, to name a few,” says Justin Lane, Managing Director/Executive Producer for MassMarket.  Sarsfield's  commercial work  includes brands such as Lexus, BMW, Volkswagen, Sony, AT&T, Heineken, Prada, Apple, Adidas, Nike, HP, Gatorade and Visa, and has collaborated with advertising agencies including Crispin Porter + Bogusky, Fallon, TBWA\Chiat\Day, Goodby, Silverstein & Partners, Wieden+Kennedy, 180 Amsterdam and Mother. In addition, Sarsfield has worked on numerous feature films, including “I Robot,” “The Italian Job,” “Daredevil” and “Star Trek: Nemesis.” He joins the roster at MassMarket which includes Jon Saunders, Marcelo Pasqualino, Nick Tanner, Jamie Scott and Jacob Slutski, to name a few.

Kommitted Director Nathan McGuinness, in collaboration with the VFX house Asylum and the New York-based agency Kaplan Thaler Group, completed a recent :30 spot promoting the ease of travel on Continental Airlines. "Seamless," which McGuinness shot in Buenos Aires, is the second spot he's done for the airline, the first being “Features,” a spot highlighting the company's newest-in-the-industry jet fleet.  "Seamless" features the classic suit-and-tie, rolling-luggage businessman strolling down an urban street, only the street continually morphs, from New York to London to Shanghai and beyond, as the man strolls along. The visual effects, which is the work of Asylum VFX Supervisor Paul O'Shea, seamlessly shifts the environment from one city and culture to the next. When the international traveler approaches a newspaper stand, the kiosk--along with the paper that he buys, the attendant he buys it from, and the currency he buys it with--fluidly morphs through a half dozen incarnations.  Agency credits go to Michael Grieco, Tim LeGallo and Jack Cardone.  For Kommited, Marc Siegel was EP and Jody Fisher produced. Jump’s Nick Lofting  cut the spot.

 O Positive’s Jim Jenkins recently directed a comedic spot for American Airlines via TM Advertising/Dallas titled “Win Win.” The spot opens on a meeting with the boss, employee and client, as we pick up the last part of the conversation “This could be a win win,” says the plucky staffer.  The spot then takes off, showing cut after cut of the employee and boss, luggage in hand, traveling from one meeting to the next, all with the catch phrase “win win” being repeated.  It's obvious the employee is getting on the boss's nerves. The boss finds the quick fix via his mobile phone, where he logs on to AA.com to change his seat to the rear of the plane--far from his overly enthusiastic employee.  Agency credits go to Shep Kellam, Bernard Park, Bill Oakley, Hayden Gilbert, Hal Dantzler and Stephanie Murdoch. Additional O Positive credits go to EP Ralph Laucella and Line Producer Marc Grill. Charlieuniformtango handled post, with Jack Waldrip editing. Other credits go to Audio Mixer Jake Kluge,  Composer Jimmy Haun, and EP Mary Alice Butler. HUM Music handled sound design, with CD Alex Kemp, EP Debbi Landon and Producer Chanel Scott. Robert Yeomans was DP on the spot, and Nice Shoes’ Chris Ryan was colorist.

Picture Park's directors have been busy on a variety of projects. Marc Colucci recently saw the release of his documentary “Lemonade” via Feed the Animals agency.  The short film, featuring the cinematography of Peter Nelson, tells the story of a series of recently unemployed advertising professionals and the inspiring journeys that their pink slips have launched.  Well received by the media and blogosphere alike, “Lemonade” has taken its message to the road and is now on an international tour. You can see the trailer here.  Agency credits go to Carrie Jacobson and Jennifer McKenzie.  Additional production credits go to DPs Todd Heater, Neal Morrell, and Will Van Hazel. Kat Baker of Finish Editorial and Andre Betz of Bug Edit cut the film. For Picture Park, Scott Burnett executive produced.  John Huet has been busy with Taylormade, Eastern Bank and directing a new web campaign for the all new GMC Terrain entitled “Life in Reverse”. Jonathan Bekemeier has been working on a spot with the New Alliance Bank via Conover Tuttle Pace, shooting entirely on a duet of Canon 7Ds.  Bekemeier’s eye combined with the 7Ds full HD, narrow depth of field and  filmic look, produced a memorable series of spots entitled “I Do,” “Can Do,” and “Hair Do.”  He is now gearing up for a new campaign for Webster Bank. New Alliance's agency Adams & Knight credits go to Nikke Brown-Moore and Don Carter. For Picture Park, credits go to Editor Carl MacNeal, Producers Mark Hankey and Steve Heller and DP Patrick Ruth. Charles Wittenmeier brought his breed of comedy to Verizon via MRM Partners Worldwide for their new spot “State Trooper,” where a laptop is ticketed by a state trooper for speeding. Agency credits go to Shawn Kelly, Todd Heyman and Anthony Ramirez. Picture Park credits go to Producer Eric Korsh, EP Mark Kankey. The spot was edited at Cut + Run/ NY by Jon Grover and VFX were handeled by Charlex,  Adam Beckman was DP.

Boston and Los Angeles-based filmmaker Paul Cummings has signed with LA-based creative studio DUCK. Cummings’ experience is in commercials, music videos and short films, with a specialty in stop motion. His ad work includes spots for such clients as New Balance, Zipcar, the Webby Awards, Kyoto Planet, McDonald's, Go-Gurt, Red Vines, Shoe Carnival, Power Rangers, Proximus (Belgium), MTN (South Africa) and Nestle. He's worked with agencies such as Saatchi & Saatchi, Dentsu, Alma DDB and 22squared,to name a few. Many of Cummings' popular short films have played the festival circuit,such as his Webby Award-nominated stop-motion film “Tony vs. Paul,” which became a viral success and took the top prize in iFilm's "Show Us Your Junk" competition. "Paul brings many things to DUCK - enhanced stop-motion capabilities, a major client list, and the talent and experience to cross over into other genres when necessary," notes DUCK EP Mark Medernach.  Prior to joining DUCK, Cummings ran his own production company and worked with Los Angeles-based Ka-chew! "While I've been able to get a lot done working on my own and with other companies, I wanted to step up to a studio that had the capabilities and connections to take me to the next level," he says about the signing.

“City Island,” the motion picture edited by wild(child)’s David Leonard, is the story of a dysfunctional family living in New York’s only remaining fishing village, City Island. The family comedy stars Andy Garcia, Julianna Margulies, Emily Mortimer and Alan Arkin, and was written and directed by Raymond De Felitta.  Leonard previously edited De Felitta’s 2005 comedy, “The Thing About My Folks,” starring Paul Reiser and Peter Falk, as well as his Sundance Audience Award-winning film "Two Family House." “This is David's third feature that he's edited at wild(child).  Our sister company, Resident, did special effects for the film as well," says wild(child) Founder Yvette Pineyro.  In addition to Leonard’s roster of independent features, early in his career he assisted on such films as “Goodfellas,” “The Last Temptation of Christ” and “Crossover Dreams.” “City Island” won the Heineken Audience Award at the 2009 Tribeca Film Festival, receiving the most votes from audiences attending the event.  The film is currently in theaters.

New York based editing shop Breathe welcomes Jason Weissman as Producer.  Weissman comes to Breathe from the agency side of the business, having worked as a producer at Grey, New York and Merkley + Partners on numerous accounts.  At Grey he worked on such brands as Pringles and Febreze, while at Merkley he worked on such accounts as Mercedes and Arby’s.  Weissman joins a team at Breathe that includes Executive Producer Kenny Pedini and Editors Andy Jennison and Michael Schwartz.  In his new role, Weissman will help develop relationships with creative talent and produce agency projects.

Can't put this newsletter down?  Envious of all the great publicity and exposure these production and post houses are getting?  Well, you can have your company’s news featured in the SourceEcreative biweekly newsletter, too. If you’re a SourceEcreative member company, just submit information about a new spot or campaign, a new director signing or any other changes such as new representation, new talent, etc. All you have to do is email us at news@sourceecreative.com with a press release or a blurb about your news item. Make sure to include the basics—we’ll need full agency, production and post credits, along with some details about the project’s subject matter, content, strategy and media distribution. If you're writing about a spot, a promo or a music video, please make sure it's first been uploaded to our system via the ADD SPOTS feature on our home page. All newsletter submissions must be in English.