GS&P Hires Two New Creative Directors

In a somewhat unprecedented move, GS&P turned the hiring of its two newest creative directors into…a customized beer cozy giveaway.

It’s symbolic, see: Danny Gonzalez and David Suarez, or “the guys who did all the Ragu and Little Caesar’s stuff at BFG”, will work on the Corona Light and Modelo accounts, hence the brew theme.

The duo most recently made news in 2012 when they jumped the Chiat ship to join BFG9000. Gonzales previously wrote copy for JWT while Suarez served as art director.

This move serves as a reunion of sorts as it once again unites Gonzales and Suarez with Eric Kallman, the copywriter behind “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like” who Graf hired from W+K in 2011. Kallman, who has been CD at GS&P since February, writes:

“Working with them again will be like putting on a really comfortable pair of jeans, but jeans that also surprise you, impress you and make you laugh. So, basically, way better than jeans.”

We would tell you to email dannyanddavidarecoming@gspsf.com for your free cozy, but those things are hotter than the weather in Manhattan this week.

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Hey, Welcome to Goodby, Eric Kallman

59_Eric_Kallman_thumbYes, San Francisco-based Goodby Silverstein & Partners has hired Eric Kallman as a creative director. In case you don’t recall, Kallman is one of the creative minds who was behind the now-ubiquitous, award-winning Old Spice “Man Your Man Could Smell Like” campaign who was poached by Gerry Graf and Barton F. Graf 9000 nearly three years ago. During his time at said agency, he helped win and worked with clients ranging from Little Caesar’s, DISH, Finlandia to Disney among others. Anyhow, he’s now headed to the Bay Area to join up with GS&P co-founder/co-chairman Jeff Goodby, who says in a statement, ““I think Eric will be an inspiration to our clients, to our people and, frankly, to me. I’m looking forward to watching how he sells such challenging, distinctive work.”

Along with his time with Gerry Graf and W+K Portland, Kallman served at TBWA\Chiat\Day New York. According to Goodby, the CD will work on accounts including fast-food chain Sonic and “got milk?” for California Milk Processor Board  as well as helping to lead various new business pitches.

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Barton F. Graf 9000, Psyop Charm with ‘Clash of Clans’ Anthem Ad

Gerry Graf’s Barton F. Graf 9000 NY has worked with production company Psyop, fresh off their game-developing debut with the Susan Sarandon-narrated Nightmare: Malaria, to develop this charming spot for the Supercell-developed strategy game Clash of Clans.

The one-minute anthem ad places the viewer in the middle of the action, on the same level as the melee taking place. To bring the game to life in the spot, Psyop “embraced the bright, stylized and saturated look of the game,” explained Psyop Director Fletcher Moules. “We wanted to fully conceptualize what the world would look like if we were running alongside the horde of barbarians, what would it feel like to be covered in their saliva.”

The impressively animated ad really does a good job transporting the viewer into the world of Clash of the Clans, thankfully without any saliva. One noteworthy moment occurs when two giants chuckle as they are hit with cannonballs. It was one of Psyop’s favorite segments to animate, as well. “It added the heart and the warmth that was only achieved when we removed ourselves a little from the ruckus to enjoy it from their perspective,” said Moules.

It would appear that Supercell’s audience is enthusiastic about Clash of Clans as well. The video was released on December 23rd, and garnered 14 million views in its first week. Credits after the jump. continued…

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Well, We Figured as Much: Vitrone, Reichenthal Reunite with Gerry Graf

vitrone-reichenthal

As sources hinted yesterday, we were on to something when we started hearing that longtime creative partners Scott Vitrone and Ian Reichenthal were leaving Wieden + Kennedy New York, which the agency eventually confirmed. Our guess was that the duo, which has been working together for nearly 15 years, was joining Gerry Graf‘s NYC-based Barton F. Graf 9000, a notion that was only heightened when we got this tip around the same time: “Eric Kallman was let go today from BFG9000. It was totally unexpected.” There’s no confirmation on the nature of his departure but yes, that Eric Kallman, the award-winning copywriter behind “The Man Your Man Could Smell Like” for Old Spice who left W+K in early 2011 to rejoin old TBWA colleague Graf, but who’s now been left as a mere footnote in the BFG 9000 news about Vitrone/Reichenthal. When we called BFG 9000 yesterday, we were told simply that Kallman was “not available.” Ah well, why steal the thunder, read on here.

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