Merman, the indie launched by Catastrophe co-creator Sharon Horgan, has launched a branded entertainment division
Merman’s new advertising division is led by US-based former Pulse Films exec Kira Carstensen, alongside Jeremy Rainbird, an advertising and production industry executive.
The division will work alongside Merman’s film and television division run by co-founder Clelia Mountford, tapping into talent including Horgan, along with the likes of David Cross, Rob Delaney, Chris O’Dowd, Heather Graham, British comedian Morgana Robinson, and Jack McBrayer.
The company’s directing talent includes Academy Award-nominated documentary filmmaker Lucy Walker, Mariana Youssef, MJ Delaney and Peter Lydon.
In the UK, the Merman branded entertainment division is led by EP/Partner Dan Dickenson, formerly of Partizan, and Business Development Director, Siobhan Murphy, who moved over from Moxie.
In addition to Merman’s roster of talent, they will exclusively represent the directors signed to Superprime in the UK, including Martin Scorsese, Paul Thomas Anderson, Terence Malick, David Lachapelle and Damian ‘La La Land’ Chazelle.
“In most advertising projects, companies are asked to primarily execute concepts, which is great and we do that. But we are also in a unique position to ideate and create interesting branded entertainment that lives somewhere between the world of commercials and TV/Film” said Carstensen. “The whole point is to get people’s attention through smart, funny, real situations, whether they are funded by a brand or not.”
Horgan said: “It’s not a romantic thing, like I watched ‘Mad Men’ and thought I wanted to be them. It’s more about the people I’ve met in advertising, the directors and creatives, and the work they do. That you have 30 seconds worth of time to create something, and that something could make you laugh, was a surprise to me. We are also in an environment where there is a lot of crossover in making content. It used to be a different world, but it doesn’t feel like a different world now. Good content is good content, no matter what form it’s in.”
Staff Reporter
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