Vrse.works Becomes Here Be Dragons, Adds to Executive Team

Cannes Lions Grand Prix-winning Vrse.works, the virtual reality studio behind the celebrated New York Times experience "The Displaced," has changed its name to Here Be Dragons. "On old maps, uncharted territory would be marked by the term Here Be Dragons," said Co-founder Chris Milk in a statement. "And for the first time in nearly a century, we now face a similar uncharted territory at the birth of a new medium; a completely unexplored frontier for storytelling, communication and human connection." "We did not really want VR in the title of the name," explained Co-Founder Patrick J. Milling Smith. "Every company that launched in last year or so has 'VR' in title, and who knows if that's even what we will call this medium in a few years? We found a name that felt like it encapsulated the spirit and the nature of exploration within the company." Along with the moniker change, the company has added new members to its executive team, including Executive Creative Director Edu Pou, former Chief Creative Officer at The Barbarian Group, who has also had stints at Wieden & Kennedy and CP+B; Technical Creative Director Justin Denton; and Chief Opperating Officer Frederik Frizell, formerly of top digital production shops Mediamonks and Stopp. The company's "The Displaced" for The New York Times earned the Entertainment Lions Grand Prix at Cannes this year, as well as the AICP Next Awards Best in Show. Unit 9, has signed film and commercial directing team, Brandon Roots and Felix Thompson, of "Lefty" to its growing U.S. roster. The duo recently released its feature film "King Jack," starring Charlie Plummer. The two met in college before forming Lefty, and they have worked both in the narrative space individually as director and cinematographer, and in the commercial space as co-directors. Recent commercial work includes campaigns for both the New York City Ballet and Success Academy Charter Schools, among others. Wanda London has added Director James Copeman to its roster. Copeman is a visual storyteller who started his career in graphic design, moving image, and animation. He worked with clients including 4music E4 and MTV before he ventured into directing music videos. He won the award at the VMA's for best new director. He has also directed short films for Cornetto. Superseed Content has signed Documentary Director Erik Shirai. He most recently won "Special Jury Mention for the Best Documentary Director" at The Tribeca Film Festival for "The Birth of Sake," a look at the 2,000 year old endangered art and science of making rice wine by hand. The film also won "Best Feature Documentary" at this year's Palm Springs International Film Festival. Shirai, a Japanese American, began working on film sets as a lighting technician and cinematographer. He never attended film school or college, but has studied painting and photography. His work includes "Eye What You Eat" and "Shot in the Dark." Nice Biscuits welcomes Producer Carl Grinter. With over 25 years of experience in the industry, Grinter co-founded digital special effects and design company Gaul Bryers. He then went on to serve at Red Post Production as managing director before joining Rushes Post Production in 2003. At Rushes, Grinter first served as director of production and new business, before becoming commercial director. Nomad Editing has added Editors and Partners Jim Ulbrich and Adam Schwartz. Ulbrich comes to Nomad from editorial shops in New York. Since joining Nomad, he has worked on projects for Saatchi & Saatchi New York and Toyota with Droga5. He also collaborates on projects with Director Matt Smukler from Community Films. Ulbrich began his career at Berlin Cameron and then moved to 89 Edit and then onto Mad River before he landed at Beast where he became a partner in the company. He has edited campaigns for AT&T, Cheerios, Hanes and Coke. Schwartz's client list includes Google, Hewlett Packard, Verizon, Reebok, and Nike. Schwartz is now editing with BBDO New York. Schwartz began his career in editing at Lost Planet before he became a founding partner at Beast. Sound Lounge has appointed Ali Corsie to the role of producer. In her new role, Corsie serves in a project management and administrative capacity across mixing, sound design and casting for television and radio commercials, digital content and interactive media. Since joining Sound Lounge, Corsie has worked with agency partners on projects for brands such as Heineken, Mercedes Benz and Duracell.

Vrse.works Becomes Here Be Dragons, Adds to Executive Team

Featured Stories