Creative Monster Launches

First up for Creative Monster are back-to-back broadcast projects for McDonald’s out of Stern/OH and a three-spot viral campaign via Ayzenberg/CA, for WET, the new game developed by A2M for the Xbox 360 and PS3 platforms.

"Years ago, it might have been a natural progression for me to open my own visual effects shop," explained Anderson , who recently served as the Stereoscopic DFX Supervisor on Cloudy With A Chance of Meatballs and CG Supervisor on Beowulf 3D; he’s also been a CG Supervisor and Digital Artist on some of Sony Pictures Imagework’s most successful movies, including the Spider-Man trilogy, The Matrix 2: Reloaded, Lord of the Rings 2: The Two Towers, and The Aviator, and former Sr. Engineer for Apple. "Today, the applications of technology to advertising are vast, and commercial production in particular has been in need of a new business model. So, we’ve created that model."

Anderson became acquainted with the new media marketplace early on, while working in the Skunkworks division at Stan Lee Media. The company’s vision of integrated marketing was ahead of its time, and Anderson was charged with the task of finding new forms of storytelling online, including cross-platform projects that bridged film, television, and the web; non-narrative interactive fiction; and 3d storytelling. "Most people were still on dial-up," Anderson laughed. "But now the technology has caught up and the goal is to be more than a production or VFX company, to offer a more complete vision while keeping an eye on the client’s bottom line."

With his eye on Creative Monster’s bottom line is Co-Founder Gambogi, a Sonoma Valley native with years of experience in the Capital and Credit Markets, working with such prestigious companies as Credit Suisse, Barclays Global Investors, Washington Mutual Securities, and Duetsche Bank. "It’s so appropriate that we’re coming out of the gate with a project like the WET virals (screen grabs, r.)," said Gambogi, who follows three generations of theatre owners (his great-grandfather founded what is now North American Cinemas, Inc. in the 1920′s) into the entertainment field. "It has everything that we’re interested in – great creative and production value, VFX, online integration, and interactivity. It shows what we and our partners can deliver in terms of creative and budgetary value." Gambogi added that the gaming world is "a hard crowd to win over. Their embrace of the work is extremely gratifying."

The WET and McDonald’s projects were helmed by Jamie Sterba, whose additional work includes projects for Dell and the Ohio Lottery. He is one of five directors on the roster at Creative Monster, along with Mike Goedecke, Harry McCoy, George Wieser, and Peter Fuszard. "Part of our approach is seeing an entire project through with one director and a singular vision," Anderson said. "Our roster is rich with talent perfectly calibrated to get the job done, whether it’s traditional broadcast or new media. We’ve been selective, looking for directors who bring something unique to the company." Goedecke, for example, is a visual storyteller who integrates VFX into his work for Budweiser, SONY, and Lexus; McCoy, on the other hand, is a lifestyle director known for eliciting strong performances from real people and kids, whose reel highlights include Samuel Adams and Blue Shield of California. Where Sterba is an up-and-comer, part of the new generation of spotmakers, Wieser has years of experience as a DP and is transitioning into directing, having recently completed a spot for Hoover/Target. Fuszard is an auto director who also works in the world of extreme sports, bikes, and motocross; his clients include Honda, Acura, Bank of America, and Billabong.

Instrumental in assembling the roster, and overseeing production for Creative Monster, is Flor, whose experience includes executive tenures at iconic production companies Headquarters Films and Propoganda. "Grant and Bryan have formed this company at exactly the right moment," said Flor, adding that from a production standpoint, Creative Monster has a definitive edge. "We all know that the commercial production world has changed. We have the benefit of starting with the new dynamic in mind, and have capabilities to deliver and leverage content for broadcast, film, online, and mobile."

Gambogi said that Creative Monster’s plans include producing long-form branded content and feature films, in addition to projects for broadcast and the Web. "I’m a fourth-generation movie guy," he mused. "We came into this endeavor with a slate of features in development, and will have something up on the silver screen before too long."