Chemical’s Got New Chemistry

Chemical builds its creative alchemy with the addition of EP Jennifer Mersis and award-winning Creative Director Tony Smoller. Lead Flame Artist Dan Lorenzini and 3D Lead Matthew Stevens are also key members of the expanding company, known for visual effects creativity and collaboration with agencies and directors. 

 

Jennifer Mersis brings acute agency perspective and a wealth of experience to her Executive Producer role at Chemical. Throughout her career, Mersis has enjoyed successful producer tenures at David&Goliath, Traffic and Mullen, working on KIA, Mitsubishi, Ad Council and other national brand campaigns. 

 

“My agency experience allowed me to spend a lot of time working with visual effects companies, and I enjoy and appreciate the process of watching artists and creatives collaborate to bring concepts to life,” comments Mersis, who first collaborated with the Chemical team when she was at Mullen. “That, combined with the caliber of talent at Chemical, made this an opportunity to be a part of something great. I am excited to help shape the direction of the company and expand our creative reach.”

 

Creative Director Tony Smoller is formerly Founder/Creative Director of PublicVFX where he worked intimately with campaigns for Farmers Insurance (Dayton/Faris), Hyundai (Wes Anderson, Tim Godsil and Noam Murro) Lincoln (Lance Acord), Mercedes (Sean Thonson) and Nike (Stacy Wall). In addition to deep advertising experience, Smoller was a Creative Executive at Paramount Studios. 

 

“Tony is one of the rare VFX artists who has as strong a grasp on concept and story as he does with technical execution,” notes Mersis.

 

“My favorite working relationships are with creatives, whether director or agency, who understand the limits of photographic or generated images,” explains Smoller. “When the two approaches are melded properly, there really are no limits to what we’re all capable of creating today. That’s where I like to play.”

 

Lead flame artist Dan Lorenzini (The Mill, MPC, Prime Focus) and 3D Lead Matthew Stevens (Golden Square) are both UK transplants, bringing a sense of wry wit with their respective talents to Chemical.