Click 3X, a digital commercial studio, has added award-winning effects veteran Glen Bennett to their Los Angeles team. Bennett, who has worked in video and digital effects since 1986, was a pioneer in the use of Discreet Logic's Flame* software, winning a Monitor Award for Best Special Effects in 1995 for the Guinness "Enigma" spot directed by Michael Hausseman. He received the 1998 MVPA Award for Best Visual FX for his work on 311's music video "Transistor" directed by Jay Papke. Click 3X VP, executive producer Phyllis Nix said, "What can I say?

DIC Entertainment has raised Michael Maliani to the new position of chief creative officer. His responsibilities will be heading up the creative aspects of the business such as design, development and approval of programming, advertising and consumer products. Maliani will be leaving his role as senior vice president of development, where he oversaw artists, producers and directors on DIC productions. As an executive producer on DIC programming he has won two Emmys, a CableACE award, a Humanitas Prize and two Environmental Media Awards.

Class-Key Chew-Po has signed 3D animation director David Foss. The director has worked with Class-Key in the past on projects for Columbia Tri-Star, Nickelodeon and San Diego's Wildlife Park's Festival of Lights promotion. In the past he has worked for such studios as Optimus, Hgun Labs and Runandgun. Foss' personal work has toured with festivals around the world. His film 47 HURTZ was screened as part of Resfest and his short HORNED GRANDMA is part of Spike and Mike's Sick and Twisted Festival.

Richard Wolpart, former CEO of Checkout.com, has been brought onto RealNetworks' staff as a strategic adviser on digital music distribution and wireless communications. Wolpert will split his time between RealNetworks and consulting for his 10-year-old investment company, Chance Investments. From 1996-98, he served as president of Disney Online.

DIC Entertainment has named Melissa Bomes executive vice president of worldwide consumer products. Bomes will oversee the growth of the division, including such areas as licensing and merchandising, promotions and retail marketing. Bomes recently served as VP of business development at estyle.com and before that was an executive at Walt Disney working in strategic alliances and business development for its retail stores.

Icebox.com has announced that Strauss Zelnick has joined the company's board of directors. Until his recent resignation, Zelnick served as president and CEO of Bertelsmann AG's music company BMG Entertainment. He also serves as non-executive chairman of broadband application service provider On2.

Continuing the revamping of its finance division, Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE) has announced three top-level finance appointments. Peter Halt was appointed senior VP and chief financial officer of Sony Pictures Digital Entertainment, which was formed last spring. Previously he served as VP finance and corporate controller at SPE. Filling Halt's old role will be Mark Rudolph, who is currently VP finance at Sony Pictures Imageworks. Simon Baker was named VP finance and corporate treasurer at SPE. Prior to Sony, Baker was the VP of finance at Fox Entertainment Group.

Disney's Buena Vista has promoted Jason Reed to senior VP of the motion picture group and Bob Chapek and Dennis Maguire to presidents of home entertainment domestic and international respectively. Reed will now be the third in command at Buena Vista Motion Picture Group, under president Nina Jacobson and exec VP Mark Vahradian. Previously, Reed served as VP of production for the last 5 1/2 years. As president of Buena Vista Home Entertainment's domestic division, Chapek will oversee all areas of domestic distribution for Walt Disney, Touchstone, Miramax and Dimension.

Film Roman has promoted Uriel Sigala to the position of chief technology officer. In his new post, he will be responsible for modernizing the company's technology so that it can be more efficient and cost-effective. Sigala is a five-year veteran of Film Roman as the head of the technology division, in which he helped establish Film Roman's entertainment Website Level13.net. Currently, he is spearheading the design and implementation of the forthcoming www.filmroman.com Website.

Saban International, the distribution division of Fox Family Worldwide, has promoted Julie Wineberg to senior VP of international sales and management, Tony Howe to VP of international business and legal affairs and Maria Torregrosa to VP of sales. Wineberg will increase her work with international Fox Kids channels while continuing to oversee all aspects of the division's day-to-day television sales administration. Previously, she served as VP of international sales management. Howe will continue negotiating and spearheading co-productions and distribution deals across all media worldwide.