Moves this week at TBWALondon, McCann-Erickson London, Jet, Crossroads, Twist, Cutting Vision; Beam.TV and Outsider Editorial
TBWALondon has promoted Matt Shepherd Smith, managing director of the agency, to CEO. Neil Dawson, the agency's executive planning director, has been made chairman. The pair will fill the gaps left by the departure of Andrew McGuinness and Trevor Beattie respectively, who left with deputy creative director Bil Bungay to form start-up Beattie McGuinness Bungay in the first half of last year.
McCann-Erickson London client services manager Chris Macdonald has been promoted to managing director of the agency. Macdonald takes the place of Nick Wright, who left the agency at the end of 2004. Macdonald joined from Rainey Kelly Campbell Roalfe Y&R at the start of last year.
Michel Fortin has been appointed president of Canadian production company Jet Films. Fortin has spent the last 12 years at the company as executive producer and partner.
Crossroads Films has signed director Kevin Samuels. Samuels comes to Crossroads from HSI. He most recently helmed the Boys spot for Sprint for Publicis/Hal Riney, San Francisco, and Home Depot's Good Bye out of Spot Makers in Dallas, but has also shot campaigns for Blue Cross Healthcare, ESPN and The Discovery Network. Samuels started as a creative, spending 12 years at various agencies including Saatchi & Saatchi, San Francisco, DDB Needham, Chicago, and TBWAChiatDay, Los Angeles.
Production company Twist has opened a New York office, Twist East, and expanded its directorial roster to include Grady Cooper and Jonathan Bekemeier. The company has also named Amyliz Pera as executive producer of the commercial division, and promoted Jared Yeater to head of production.
Editing house Cutting Vision has taken on editor Luis Lacau. Lacau has freelanced for the last five years with Match Frame, San Antonio, and Red Car, in Dallas and New York. Lacau most recently cut a five-spot campaign for HBO Latin America.
Digital asset management company Beam.TV has hired Simon Boyce as a director of business development, North America. Boyce is a veteran of the agency world, having had stints in account management at Grey Tokyo, Saatchi & Saatchi London and McCann-Erickson London, as well as in the software world with Siebel Systems in San Francisco.
Sila Soyer, head of business development at Outside Editorial, has been promoted to executive producer, taking the helm of the Soho-based editorial, design and visual effects studio.
