Stuff that's shaking at agencies around the world

BETC Euro RSCG opens exhibit - BETC Euro RSCG and the Passage du Désir with the backing of the Paris Municipality, the Caisse des Dépôts, Havas, Partizan, in cooperation with the Amicale Austerlitz, Lévitan, Bassano yesterday opened an exhibition that looks at the looting of Jewish property in Paris titled "Retour Sur Les Lieux" which translates to "return to the scene". The exhibit shows 85 photographs from a small album of photos found in the German federal archives in Coblenz which were taken at the former Lévitan building "Aryanized" by the Nazis, now the Passage du Desir during WWII. Admission is free and the exhibit runs from 18 April to 20 May 2007, every day except Tuesday from 11 am to 7 pm at the Passage du Desir, 85-87, rue du Faubourg Saint-Martin 75010 Paris - Metro: Château d'Eau or Gare de l'Es.

tbd hires Kevin Smyth as AE - tbd, a full-service advertising agency, today announced that Kevin Smyth has joined its team as a new account executive. "It's great to have Kevin back on board at tbd," said René Mitchell, Vice President and Director of Client Services. "He's been on the client side and managed a national brand in a major category. For our team at tbd and our clients, he adds expanded strategic thinking on how to best communicate our clients' brands." One of the first employees at tbd seven years ago, Smyth was previously the finance manager for the company. He changed career paths, earned his MBA in Marketing at Indiana University and gained several years of job experience in the marketing field. His love of the Bend area, and tbd itself, brought him back.

GM Planworks hires Vinson, promotes O'Brien - GM Planworks, a division of Starcom MediaVest Group, has hired Dr. Michael Vinson as its SVP/Managing Director, Digital Insights and Analytics and Jana O'Brien has been promoted to new global role as EVP, Chief Consumer Officer of SMG. Vinson will lead the development of digital and emerging media research efforts for GM and spearhead advancements in the area of digital audience measurement across the Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG) network, while O'Brien will lead the network's consumer context planning (CCP) across all client brands.

Special Ops Media Names Lisa Bronson Interactive Media Director - Special Ops Media, a full-service interactive advertising agency with offices in New York and Los Angeles, Monday announced the appointment of Lisa Bronson as Senior Interactive Media Director. "Special Ops Media's dynamic clients and ability to execute cutting edge campaigns is well recognized within the industry," said Lisa Bronson. "I am extremely excited to be a part of such a creative and innovative team."

Chicago-Based Fulton Market Media Assembles Talented Team for Content Development - Building on a powerful and successful track record in commercials and advertising, Chicago-based Fulton Market Films launched a new division focused on the development, production, and delivery of emerging media content. Recognizing a need for a broader reach in all facets of branded content, Fulton Market's founder John Fromstein put together a diverse group of talented directors, producers, and filmmakers to form Fulton Market Media. Fromstein is a 25-year veteran of the advertising business who managed the production of over 100 commercials including the acclaimed Be Like Mike spots for Gatorade with Michael Jordan. Discussing the venture, Fromstein notes, "There is definitely a growing need for innovative forms of both branded content and feature film production. We have been aggressively pursuing a business model that takes advantage of the blurring lines between advertising, production, and entertainment and Fulton Market Media is the result." Further discussing his strategy for Fulton Market Media, Fromstein continues, "We can, and do, act as a traditional production company with an ad agency client base. Yet, we are also involved in the creation, production, and delivery of client-direct projects outside of the agency relationship."
Joining the team are several talented and acclaimed creatives and filmmakers. As Creative Director for Chicago ad agencies Leo Burnett and Element 79, Scott Smith brings an award-winning track record in both commercials and films to Fulton Market. Ruth Leitman has directorial credits that include films, feature documentaries, music videos, experimental films, and PSA's. Director David Brooks’ award-winning animation work includes a 35mm short entitled Red Planet Blues, a short for Saturday Night Live Saturday TV Funhouse, and Holidaze—The Christmas That Almost Didn’t Happen, which represented a branded content deal between Wal-Mart, Campbell's, and Coca-Cola. Rounding out the production capabilities at Fulton Market are producers Nicole Bernardi-Reis and Leigh Jones.