Alkemy X Craig Brasen Leah Garner | STASH MAGAZINE

ALKEMY X EXPANDS NEW YORK STUDIO ADDING EDITOR CRAIG BRASEN, EP LEAH GARNER ORSINI

From the release:

New York & Philadelphia — (January 25, 2016) — Alkemy X continues to add to its growing roster of talent with the signing of Editor Craig Brasen. Brasen comes to Alkemy X from Go Robot where he spent nine years working on projects for well-known brands such as T. Rowe Price, UPS, NASCAR, AT&T, Pedigree and IBM. Alkemy X also welcomed Executive Producer Leah Garner Orsini to the company.

“I like having Directors, VFX Artists, Senior Colorists, original content and branded entertainment experts all under one roof,” says Brasen. ”It makes for a stronger team, and enables us to deliver really big things for our clients.” https://www.alkemy-x/craig-brasen

“Craig is an invigorating addition to our New York studio,” notes Alkemy X Managing Director Nick Litwinko. “He is an incredible talent who innately understands the demands of our clients, and that knowledge informs his work every day. Leah is a powerhouse of an EP and has been instrumental in streamlining our VFX production capabilities and creating efficiencies while not compromising any of the quality that is expected of our brand. Expanding with talents such as Craig and Leah has emboldened the company to continue on it’s current path of tremendous growth,” he adds. “The quality of work coming in and out of our studios is exceptional and we’re thrilled to welcome them both to our team.”

“I feel a great vibe here,” explains Garner Orsini. “Everyone here is very personable and loves what they do, which is always refreshing to be part of.” An experienced industry veteran, Leah has worked in visual effects and live-action production for 10 years. Her career has included stints at MTV in New York; Sugar Film Productions and Reel FX in Dallas; and Zoic Studios in Los Angeles. After moving to New York in 2012, she started at Method working on “Kill Your Darlings,” which was picked up at Sundance; and then spent two years at Framestore before joining Alkemy X, overseeing the company’s VFX projects.

For the VFX team at Alkemy X, 2015 was a busy year: “We just wrapped up ‘The Leftovers’ Season 2 for HBO before the holidays,” details Ed Mendez, VFX Supervisor for Alkemy X. “Our VFX crew is currently working on ‘Outcast,’ a new series based on the comic book by Robert Kirkman airing on Cinemax in 2016; and ‘The Family’ Season 1 for ABC. We are about to start working on ‘Power’ Season 3 for Starz, and an independent film called ‘Mercy.’ Our team is psyched to be working on such cool shows including Golden Globe winner ‘Mr. Robot,’ and we all look forward to what 2016 will bring.”

“I’m very excited about all the high-profile projects we’ve been able to work on the VFX side for our diverse business,” agrees Bob Lowery, VP Business Development for Alkemy X. “The type of work and amount of projects that we have access to has grown over the past year, which is a great thing to see after all the hard work from our team.”

“We had an exciting fall for promo campaigns as well,” adds Alkemy X EP of Promo & Commercials, Susie Shuttleworth. “Syfy approached us to help promote their Upfront 2015. With that success, we were asked to partner with them for the entire integrated marketing campaign for ‘Sharknado 3.’ Brands included Benefit cosmetics, Jack links and hotels.com along with co-channel help from NBC’s ‘The Today Show.’

“Coming off the launch of the ‘Sharknado 3’ integrated campaign,” Shuttleworth continues, “we moved into a series of projects for MTV Networks. First up was the launch campaign for Nickelodeon ‘HALO Awards’ with Nick Cannon. Next, it was all Halloween to celebrate the launch of ‘The Splat,’ the brand-new programming block dedicated to airing original Nickelodeon content. We re-created the beloved Nick or Treat stunt for Halloween. We brought the old-school set back to life and cast a new host to play multiple spooky characters and guide viewers through the game via a live phone call – just like the Nick or Treat of your youth! Alkemy X also created Halloween-themed content to support the stunt, turning classics like ‘Hey Dude,’ ‘Rugrats’ and ‘Hey Arnold’ into horror movie trailers and playing up all the classic ‘Are You Afraid Of the Dark’ moments that traumatized a generation.”

Sara Iversen has also joined Alkemy X’s New York City team as VP of Business Development. Iversen, former Head of Sales/Executive Producer at BANG Music + Audio Post, brings her quick wit, knowledge of agency demands and creative spirit with her to Alkemy X. These talents have already been key in expanding the company’s client list. “I’m excited to be here, because I know Alkemy X has endless creative resources that will allow me to offer our clients so many expanded services,” she concludes.

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