Hogarth Worldwide, leading global advertising implementation agency, is thrilled to announce the acquisition of Coda, an established New York City-based VFX boutique, known for high-end CG, motion graphics and beauty retouching. The acquisition is a significant step in Hogarth’s ongoing cultivation of their creative talent base (recently including Audio Engineer Chris Afzal and Editor Vee Pinot), to broaden their capabilities and expertise in advertising production and adaptation.
Through their 16 years of independently servicing the advertising industry, Coda earned a renowned reputation, working on campaigns for brands such as L’Oréal, CoverGirl, Victoria’s Secret and Procter & Gamble. Now, the team of artists bring their specialization to Hogarth North America’s headquarters in Manhattan.
The corps of new talent is led by Coda Founder and Design Director Paul Agid, whose career started at pioneering VFX company R/GA, followed by residencies at Editel, Click 3X, and Blink Fx prior to opening Coda with Executive Producer Evan Sanyour. Also having held roles at Editel and Blink Fx, Sanyour rooted his career in advertising production at Grey New York before turning his focus to post-production. Rounding out the roster are Motion Design Director Mike Nutt and 3D Generalist Dmitry Grigorev.
"We’re excited to be part of expanding Hogarth’s creative capabilities in New York,” says Agid. “We’re joining a solid team that’s already in place, and will have the added ability to partner with other Hogarth VFX teams from around the globe.”
Hogarth’s new team will fall within Gramercy Park Studios—the creative services arm of Hogarth Worldwide—and will focus on executing project-driven creative work, coming from Hogarth’s own production pipeline, as well as from external agencies and brands in need of post-production services. “Clients who have worked with Coda for years will still see familiar faces, but now with so much more available to them, to make their projects the best they can be,” says Agid.
This continued expansion of Gramercy Park Studios’ video post-production talent comes on the heels of bringing on well-known New York-based audio engineer and sound designer Chris Afzal, and acclaimed editor Vee Pinot from GPS London, who collectively boast almost 40 years’ experience.
Afzal developed his career at J. Walter Thompson New York’s in-house post studio, springboarding him to industry-wide prominence when he moved to Charlex to design and lead their audio department, and, later, premier New York-based audio post house Sound Lounge. He’s developed relationships with some of the world's largest brands, including Under Armour, PlayStation, Cadillac and Tylenol, and his work has earned awards that most recently include the Cannes Lions Film Craft Grand Prix, three Gold Cannes Lions, an AMP Award for Outstanding Mix, and an International Fashion Film Award.
Pinot, with experience editing music videos, short and feature films, promos and, most significantly, commercial advertising, notably established and grew Gramercy Park Studios London (Hogarth’s first high-end post-production facility), before moving to GPS New York. Pinot’s advertising credits include the British Heart Foundation’s award-winning online content (directed by Hungry Man’s Wayne McClammy and James Gooding), and work with such brands as Chevrolet, Heinz, Pantene and Hugo Boss.
“We are very happy that Hogarth New York is attracting this level of creative talent,” says Mariusz Urbanczyk, Managing Director of Hogarth North America. “Each of these additions represents yet another step closer to what we want GPS New York to be famous for: Flawless execution and best-in-class talent, who are great to work with.”
