Who’s gone where? From where? And when? As the Revolving Doors spin, we put the spotlight on spot-makers on-the-move.

Toronto-based commercial director Fernando Arrioja has left The Partners’ Film Company to join Avion Films, a spot house he proudly refers to as ‘the best shop in town.’

Arrioja began his new life at Avion earlier this month and says he is already being considered for a few jobs through the shop. To add to what the Mexican-born director sees as good fortune in Canada, Arrioja is also pleased with the progress he is making south of the border, having recently signed a deal with a bicoastal u.s. shop, Palomar.

At Partners’, Arrioja helmed shoots for such clients as Bell Mobility, Roots and espn, among others.

The director says he looks forward to broadening his directorial horizons with Avion.

‘I’m interested in doing stuff that is going to challenge me and make my director muscle work, and that is normally stuff with strong concept as well,’ says Arrioja. ‘As a director you kind of grow as you go along in your career and you have to be really keen on growing with the market as well. You have to be aware of what is going on outside yourself to grow with that market.’

He says at this point in his career, Avion just feels right.

‘Avion is a company that is going to get me to the next level,’ says Arrioja. ‘You walk into the place and you can tell right away the quality of the people, and the most important thing is you can feel they are passionate for what they are doing.’

-www.avionfilms.com

*Blink’s slick Oil

Toronto’s Blink Pictures has signed an exclusive Canadian representation deal with London, Eng.-based commercial and music video producer Oil Factory. According to Blink’s director representative Carmen Jarzabek, Blink will be repping seven Oil Factory directors and one directing team.

Oil, founded by Billy Poveda and John Stewart in 1985, has garnered a reputation for its commercial and video work. A second branch of the shop was founded in Los Angeles in 1989. It has produced commercials for the likes of Sony, Levi’s, Nike and Porsche, and music videos for such artists as David Bowie, Garbage and Madonna.

Under the deal, Blink will rep the London-based team of Dom & Nic, along with fellow Londoners Jamie Thraves and Shynola. It will also be passing along boards to l.a.-based directors Sophie Muller, Elen Von Unwerth, Frank Sacramento and Steven Tsuchida. Philipp Stolzi, based in Berlin, Germany, rounds out the list.

‘We are only representing directors who are a realistic fit for this market and have demonstrated an interest in working in Canada,’ says Jarzabek.

According to Jarzabek, Blink was keen to ink a deal with Oil Factory for a number of reasons, among them the innovation many of its directors bring to commercials through experience gained from music video shoots.

‘They’ve got an incredibly solid roster covering the full spectrum of genres, from comedy to high-art visual storytelling,’ says Jarzabek. ‘What is particularly exciting for us is the fact that this is the first time that most of these directors are being represented in this market. It’s an opportunity for Canadians to tap into a remarkable pool of talent that has not been previously available.’

Jarzabek anticipates work for the Oil Factory directors will come along imminently. Blink has already bid on jobs for Dom & Nic and Tsuchida. Dom & Nic were in Toronto recently to shoot an Oil Factory job for Saturn, roadhoused through Blink. Jarzabek says the director team was ‘impressed with the quality of production offered in Toronto.’

-www.blinkpictures.com

-www.oilfactory.com

*Bieber offers Maxx talent

Chicago-based director/dop Tim Bieber has signed on with Toronto’s Maxx Productions for exclusive representation in Canada.

Bieber started his career about 10 years ago as a stills photographer, moving into photo journalism, spot shooting and finally directing. He says his move to Maxx continues a longtime professional relationship with Maxx executive producer Lisa Whittall, who repped Bieber during his tenure at her former employer, International Shooters.

‘Lisa and I had a relationship before and we’ve been looking for an opportunity to work together again, so I thought this would be a good time for that,’ says Bieber.

Bieber, who operates his own production company in Chicago, Mr. Big, is reportedly being considered for three jobs through his new Canadian base.

‘Tim represents an amazing body of work and I think it addresses a certain market need in this country,’ says Maxx owner/executive producer Harve Sherman. ‘The industry here allows for a fairly large amount of creative latitude on projects, and what they really like in this market is a director/cameraman, especially one that can get great imagery to go with the concept in a fashion that both speak to the end product.

‘Nowadays, the market really needs a director who can do all facets of work, so they are not pigeonholed into to doing just cars [for example],’ adds Whittall. ‘We have a great list of spots to draw from to create different looks for Tim, so he can be put into a number of different projects.’

Bieber, who has elicited many a tender tear on shoots for Hallmark, also includes ads for Leica, Subaru and kpmg, among others on his reel. He says his strength lies in visual storytelling.

‘I think my biggest strength is that I am able to tell a story and use an appropriate style to tell the story and get the message across so that it is not a technique for technique’s sake,’ says Bieber. ‘It’s applying the right style and the right filmmaking techniques to whatever story it happens to be.’

-www.mrbigfilms.com

*Tiberius raises bull horn for Head Gear

Toronto’s Head Gear Animation has named Paula Tiberius as its new producer/director of marketing. Tiberius is an independent filmmaker whose last short film Busk aired on The Comedy Network and wtn. She comes to Head Gear after three years in marketing at Toronto animation house Canuck Creations.

With her heart very much devoted to filmmaking, Tiberius says she is gearing up to shoot her first feature, on digital video, in February, and says the staff at Head Gear has been very supportive of her long-form ambitions.

‘These guys are totally cool with that,’ says Tiberius. ‘I told them I’m going to get the bull horn out and tell everybody about Head Gear, but I also want to make film and they seem to like that about me.’ *