With the September merger of Angel Films and Generator Films, the overall roster of the organization (which retains the Generator moniker) has changed, incorporating what executive producer Sarah Ker-Hornell calls ‘a breadth that is necessary for any mature company.’

Ker-Hornell says she was able to bring on international directors she had coveted in her Angel days, but was unable to rep in a one-executive shop. Signed for exclusive Canadian representation are Italian Carlo Sigon, New Zealander Matt Murphy and L.A.-based Jim Zoolalian and J. Brown.

Sigon, a multilingual dialogue and action specialist has helmed spots such as ‘Bike’ for Gatorade and ‘G-Shock’ for Casio.

Murphy worked in production design for both features and commercials before he turned to spots full-time in 1995. Ker-Hornell describes his specialty as ‘epic-scale visual storytelling’ and his credit list includes ‘MIG’ for Foster’s Lite Ice, ‘Big Shots’ for Coca-Cola and ‘Soccer’ for Tiger Beer.

Zoolalian is a comedy director who has helmed spots such as ‘Late’ for Acura and ‘The Bridge’ for Audi.

J. Brown, a visual stylist who makes ads that resemble short films, has directed the spots ‘Friends’ for Coca-Cola, ‘Road Show’ for Credit Suisse, ‘Painter’ for Bell South and ‘Muscles’ for Google.com.

The reshaped Generator roster also includes Canadian directors Zach Math, Steve Shackleton, Mark Walton and Jamie Way. Canadian director/DOPs include Derek Case, George Morita and Bob Perks. Generator continues the exclusive Canadian repping of L.A.-based Neil Abramson, Nick Brandt, Buddy Cone, Breck Eisner, Walter Kehr, Dan Rush and Peter Nydrle. It also has U.S. affiliations with Tombo Films, Palomar Pictures, Boxer Films and Nydrle.

Of the former Angel roster, only James Hyslop is not with the new Generator, having recently inked a deal with Bedlam Films.

Ker-Hornell reports the new roster is going over well with the agencies: ‘The board flow has picked up dramatically, both in volume and in caliber of creative.’ At press time, Ker-Hornell had landed a successful bid by Way, although the client cannot yet be named.

-www.generatorfilms.com

Apple Box gets McWatters

Toronto-based director Gord McWatters has signed up with Apple Box Productions, which has offices in Toronto, Vancouver and Edmonton. He joins from Toronto’s Spy Films.

ABP executive producer Clare Cashman says of McWatters: ‘We wanted to get more local directors and comedic directors, and he is both.’ She indicates that McWatters chose Apple Box because of its activity in Canadian markets outside of Toronto.

His reel includes ‘How Do You Eat Your Oreo?’ for Oreo cookies, ‘Toby’ for the Metro Toronto Zoo and ‘Protect Your Sandwich’ for Maple Leaf sandwich meats. The latter is a mocking montage of a self-defense instructor teaching his pupils some tough moves to keep mooches away from their highly coveted sandwiches.

-www.appleboxproductions.com

Boyle, Ashley and Cognito Maxx out

L.A.-based commercial director Danny Boyle has signed an exclusive Canadian representation agreement with Toronto’s Maxx Production, headed by Harve Sherman. According to Sherman, Boyle, who holds U.S. and Canadian citizenship, excels in storytelling and comedy spots with an intellectual bent.

‘He has a very big look in terms of art direction and production value and is always very performance-driven,’ says Sherman. ‘He spends a lot of time getting the right talent.’

Boyle became aware of Maxx last year when he was in Toronto shooting a Walt Disney World spot for Leo Burnett, Chicago, and Sherman let him run the production out of his space. Boyle immediately took to the producer and his shop.

‘I like the idea of going with a smaller shop, rather than one of these places that has so many directors that when a job comes up they just send out lots of reels,’ says Boyle. ‘I wanted to be at a place where there is a little more focus and attention. There is only a certain amount of jobs and everybody knows about them. Harvey has a heck of a background and I like the whole stability.’

Boyle’s reel includes spots for Budweiser, Hertz, McDonald’s, Mountain Dew, Western Union and Campbell’s Soup.

L.A.-based commercial and music video director Ashley Beck has also signed a Canadian representation agreement with Maxx. Like Boyle, Beck says he is pleased to be breaking into the Canadian market with a shop the size of Maxx.

‘I was looking for a small company, and somebody that is very passionate about what they do, versus one that has 100 directors,’ says Beck. ‘I like a company this size and I like the basis of it.’

Sherman and Maxx executive producer Ron Grittani wasted no time in introducing Beck to an assortment of agencies and record labels. Beck, whose work with visual effects translates well into his spot endeavors, appreciates their effort and sees much in the way of opportunity here.

His reel includes commercial work for Hyundai (‘Red Carpet’), Microstrategy (‘Eddie’s Plan’) and Aero Mexico (‘Mission’). It also features music videos including Scream by Michael and Janet Jackson, on which he served as visual effects supervisor.

Maxx has also taken on the Canadian representation duties of L.A.’s Cognito, run by Sherman’s longtime friend Alan Landau. Sherman, who, in the interest of keeping his company smaller rarely takes on other companies, expects all the directors on the Cognito roster to flourish here.

Canadian agencies now have easier access to directors Barry Young (whose clients include Dow and Blue Cross), Mike Wang (Polaroid, Budweiser), Carolyn Chen (Blue Cross, M.O.T.T.), Jim Edwards (Dodge, Mercedes), Nick Egan (Diet Coke, Micron), Scott Gillen (GMC, Audi) and Gary Weiss (Wendy’s, Jumbo Sports) via Maxx.

Whiteson, Armstrong and Gauley to Crush

According to Crush Inc. co-owner and president Gary Thomas, the shop has brought aboard David Whiteson, an expert on the Quantel Henry editing system for compositing and F/X. He joins from The Post Group, where he has spent more than four years. Thomas says Whiteson has good design sensibilities and looks for him to play a key role.

‘His motivations are to work at a place like ours that specializes in graphically based commercial work,’ says Thomas. ‘He is young, has a lot of talent and a great attitude.’

Crush also recently signed a Canadian representation agreement with New York-based inferno artist Susan Armstrong. Aside from being well versed in Discreet’s visual F/X system, Armstrong is reportedly also quite handy with Adobe After Effects and all Mac-based programs. Represented in the U.S. by Click 3X, she worked at Toronto’s TOPIX before moving to NYC, and has expressed a strong desire to continue working in Canada. Crush was eager to accommodate her.

‘She’s been able to do some interesting compositing and post work, but I think she found she wanted to explore more of the design side,’ Thomas says.

Crush’s other new addition is production manager Meredith Gauley. Gauley joins the shop from agency Leo Burnett, where she was an assistant producer.