Big Block Opens Design Division

Santa Monica, CA -- Big Block has opened Big Block Design Group (BBDG), a newly created internal division focused on design-oriented storytelling and creative ideation for commercials, interactive, branded content and broadcast design. BBDG will take creative ownership of Big Block productions, imprinting a high level of design sophistication and strategic thinking from concept and live action direction through production and delivery.

Spearheading BBDG are creative directors Shaun Collings, who was formerly at Elastic and Blind, and Curtis Doss, formerly at BIGSTAR. Under their creative leadership, BBDG will infuse a design sensibility into all steps of Big Block’s production process. Collings and Doss bring years of experience in the integration of design and motion graphics into a broader strategic vision for commercial, broadcast design and interactive projects. Collings and Doss were recently co-creative directors on Big Block’s interactive design and animation demo for Ford Credit out of Team Detroit.

Scott Benson, President at Big Block, said, “We have been actively searching for the right design team to add to our roster of talent for quite some time and are excited to have found the perfect fit. This will allow Big Block to further broaden the services we can provide our clients while maintaining the signature boutique feel we have created.”

Collings has been at Big Block over the past year, serving as co-director and lead designer on Ford “Custom Cars,” a whimsical motion graphics-intensive commercial narrated by Tina Fey for agency TBWA\Toronto. He was also creative director and live action director of the brand launch campaign for True Car out of DW+H, Santa Monica, and Nissan’s award-winning and attention-grabbing live watershow “Cat and Mouse,” featuring a holographic Nissan Altima out of TBWA\Toronto, as well as the designer of an animated heart logo for Audi out of BBH London.

Earlier Collings served as creative director and art director at production and design companies Prologue, Elastic, Blind and Shilo, where he led a variety of projects from commercials, main titles and graphics for brands like HP, Honda, Sony, Nike, HBO, Pepsi and Lexus. Getting a taste of live action at Elastic he went on to assist directors and began learning the craft of directing.

In addition to his stint as creative director at BIGSTAR, Doss was also art director at production company Shilo on commercials for Nike, EA, Sony and Lexus and broadcast design projects for A&E, Bio, HBO, TNT and the Travel Channel. He began his career as an art director at DC Shoes, where he focused on branding DC’s Surf and Snowboard divisions and helped build the company’s video department, DC Films. Doss was Big Block’s creative director on a series of technical online and retailer vignettes for Sealy Posturepedic, a package that serves as an adjunct to a new commercial campaign for Sealy. For that spot, directed by Annabel Jankel for Arcana Academy, Big Block provided a full complement of services: pre-viz, VFX supervision, CG, design, DI color grading and Flame finish.

Collings said, “With Big Block’s growth over the past year, I feel we've evolved into a multifaceted production team that can tackle any creative challenge with an arsenal of talent and solutions. I feel fortunate to be a part of this team and look forward to the horizon ahead.”

“I am excited to be working with Shaun and the entire Big Block team,” said Doss. “I feel that our distinctive approach and thinking, combined with Big Block’s expertise in photographic and CG production, will be a truly great platform for creative growth and exploration.”

Kenny Solomon, Managing Director at Big Block, said, “We are lucky to have not one, but two, fabulous creative directors in Shaun Collings and Curtis Doss to lead the creative charge for BBDG.”

Big Block recently signed director and cinematographer Gavin Bowden, known for his stunning integration of live action storytelling and VFX. With talented directors and designers under its representation banner, Big Block provides the ultimate in end-to-end services for multimedia campaigns and branded content to meet the full spectrum of its clients’ creative challenges.

Source: Big Block