Imported Artists has added a new u.s. director, New England-based Wayne Gibson, to its roster.

Gibson has a 15-year history on the agency side as an art director and creative director and a reel plump with visually stimulating comedic spots. He spent four years directing internally at agencies, and after it became apparent he was doing more directing than art directing – and winning awards at it – he made the leap to directing full time.

Gibson was steeped in a comedic tradition, working on the creative side of the Roy Rogers business in the u.s., and says he takes pains to reinvent the genre, paying close attention to visuals and story. He comes to Imported after a three-year relationship with Radke Films and says he wants to focus his efforts on more than comedy.

Imported has also hired on a new sales rep in the person of Shane Nakoneshny.

Flashcutter

Flashcut’s Brian Noon is settling into full-fledged editorhood nicely. Noon, who recently began editing his own jobs, just completed a spot for the Ontario Lottery Corporation from Promanad.

Animation addition

The Animation House, based in Toronto, has added a new rep to service u.s. markets. Rich Durkin of Ice Tea Productions will cover the east coast and Midwest.

BBH does itself

Toronto’s Big Black Hat has done the previously unthinkable in becoming the first Canadian ad agency to air its own, self-promoting creative. The spot, entitled ‘No Limits,’ was shot in one day using a rented Sony DX 1000 and High-8 and edited by Laurence Robinson, with music by u.k. acid jazz outfit Beamish and Fly.

After any number of directors balked at the prospect of tackling the job (‘That would be like shooting myself in the foot, I’d never work again,’ they said), the agency shot the commercial itself. The spot takes a hidden-camera look at the creative process at other agencies and is airing through October on CBC Newsworld.

Eamer’s game plan

In true entrepreneurial spirit, Spy Films’ Jeff Eamer is taking the next logical step from copywriter, creative director, commercial director togame magnate. Eamer and partner engineer/ marketer/entrepreneur David Spence released their long-awaited Rumors game at a Bellair Cafe soiree on Oct. 3.

The game, nine and a half years in the making, has national distribution through Mad Hatter’s Toy & Game Factory in Oakville, Ont. Eamer is also securing distribution in Manhattan in time for Christmas, with u.s. distribution pending.

Rumors, doubtless inspired by years of working in the ad industry, is an adult ‘conversation’ game which examines a variety of subjects in three categories – from the factual to the controversial – and follows in the grand Canadian tradition (Trivial Pursuit, Balderdash, Pictionary) of producing stimulating parlor games for grownups.

Online ad fun

As yet another resource for the advertising-inclined, The Biz Web site (www.bizmag.com), offers news and views on film, tv, music, new media and, of course, ‘advertainment.’ L.T.B. Productions’ George D’Amato is one of the commercial types profiled on the site, which features audio clips of D’Amato’s dulcet tones and downloadable examples of his work.

MuchMerriment

If you haven’t caught the taped proceedings of the MuchMusic Video Awards during any of the thousands of times it’s been replayed on the nation’s music station, it was once again TheBash featuring many of the bright lights of Canadian music and commercial production.

Save the silly cosmic theme and annoying aliens milling about, the party was a smash, complete with french fries and science guys and Kim Mitchell, walking around just like he was a regular Joe.

Awards-wise, Jolly Rogers’ Curtis Wehrfritz took Best Director kudos for The Tea Party’s Sister Awake video and Eric Yealland was in on Best Video honors as director of The Tragically Hip’s Ahead By a Century. Spy Films’ Javier was cited in the Global Groove and editing categories.

And while Alanis was her usual eloquent, bum-scratching self, the video-viewing public has of late been given a reprieve from the relentless ubiquity of her charmingly quirky mug with the help of director David Rheaume from Toronto’s Videogenics.

Rheaume is the man behind the pint-sized version of the charmingly quirky Ironic video, now airing on Much, mtv and vh1. The video features Rheaume’s daughter, little four-year-old Alison, in the roles of quadruplets in the car on the way to grandma’s house and was undertaken as a ‘family project.’

Rheaume shot and edited the piece with a home-video camera and gave it to his sister, a production manager on tour with the master Ironist, who immediately loved it. And the rest is ironic.

Top Spots call for nominations

Attention Top Spots contenders. It’s time. Send in your nominations for this year’s 11th annual Top Spots competition before Oct. 14, please. Send in one nomination per director. Your half-inch vhs tape will have no production company or director identifiers visible to viewers. (provide those separately, including all pertinent credits). Also, be on the look-out for the faxed questionnaire which will help us compile updated industry statistics.

Send tapes to Cheryl Binning at Playback and call her with any questionnaire questions at (416) 408-2300, ext. 224.

S.K. H. leaves L.T.B.

Sarah Ker-Hornell was, at press time, ‘considering several offers’ after leaving l.t.b. after two years as executive producer.