Timing is Everything: How to Maximize Your PR
Moderated by Lewis Kay, COO/EVP of PMK*BNC PR and Marketing, this session will provide insights into the most appropriate and strategic time to enlist the expertise of a publicist. Whether you are an individual performer, filmmaker, musician or work for a fledgling brand, leading PR executives and social media experts will offer a variety of perspectives on the best time to engage an individual or team to help take your brand to the next level.
Presenters
As Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Lewis Kay oversees the day to day operations of the Entertainment division of the influential entertainment communications, marketing and consulting agency PMK*BNC. During his 15-year tenure since arriving at BNC in 1997, Kay has actively helped to build the agency’s Media Relations area into the robust practice it is today. He also currently supervises the agency’s Television, Special Events, Lifestyle, Talent and Corporate Entertainment divisions.
Kay is known for his unrivaled expertise in creating and executing strategic multi-platform communications campaigns for entertainment clients as well as the agency’s major corporate brand clients looking to tap into the important entertainment and pop culture media. Kay has been instrumental in the implementation of numerous high profile PR campaigns including projects for the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, AFI, Target and Maxim Magazine.
In addition, Kay continues to work with some of the industry’s brightest television and film stars including Jimmy Kimmel, Amy Poehler, Will Arnett, Zooey Deschanel, Louis CK, Tracy Morgan, Chris D’Elia, Joel McHale, Sarah Silverman and Paul Scheer, among others.
Michelle Hooper is currently EVP Marketing at Fox Searchlight Pictures. During her time at Fox Searchlight, she has worked on such marketing and awards campaigns as THE TREE OF LIFE, THE DESCENDANTS, BLACK SWAN, SLUMDOG MILLIONAIRE, JUNO and LITTLE MISS SUNSHINE. Since Hooper joined Fox Searchlight, the company has won 17 Academy Awards, 24 Independent Spirit Awards and earned their 4 highest grossing films in the history of Searchlight. This year, upcoming releases include “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” directed by John Madden and starring Dame Judi Dench, Dame Maggie Smith, Tom Wilkinson, Bill Nighy and Dev Patel, Sundance & SXSW favorite “Sound of My Voice” directed by Zal Batmanglij and starring Brit Marling, Christopher Denham and Nicole Vicius, “He Loves Me” from the directors of “Little Miss Sunshine” Jonathan Dayton & Valerie Faris and starring Paul Dano, Zoe Kazan, Annette Bening, Chris Messina, Elliott Gould and Antonio Banderas, a new thriller “The East” also directed by Zal Batmanglij and starring Brit Marling, Alexander Skarsgård, Ellen Page and Patricia Clarkson and “Stoker” from acclaimed director Chan-Park Wook starring Mia Wasikowska, Matthew Goode and Nicole Kidman. In addition, at this year’s Sundance Film Festival the company acquired “Beasts of The Southern Wild” the 2012 Grand Jury Prize Winner and “The Surrogate” the 2012 Audience Award Winner, both are slated for release this year.
Prior to joining Fox Searchlight in 2006, Ms. Hooper spent four years at Fox Broadcasting where she was the Vice President of Entertainment Publicity. While at Fox Broadcasting, Hooper spearheaded the implementation of national publicity campaigns for multiple series’ such as “American Idol,” “24,” “Arrested Development,” “Family Guy” and “The Simpsons.” Prior to joining Fox, Hooper was Director, Entertainment Communications at CBS Entertainment in New York where she was part of the team that launched and created the publicity campaign for “Survivor.” Hooper shared the Publicist Guild of America’s prestigious Maxwell Weinberg Showmanship Award for her work on the reality series.
Indie PR is one of the leading independent film public relations companies in the U.S. Our expertise in handling quality, low budget films at film festivals and theatrical release has ended up with award winning results for many of our clients.
Whether it's this years SxSW winning films "Natural Selection" and "Weekend" or this years Sundance Film Festival winner "Circumstance", last years South by Southwest Grand Jury winner "Marwencol", last years Toronto Film Festival Winner "Incendies", the previous Sundance Film Festival winner "Grown Up Movie Star" or previous SxSW Audience winner (and Spirit Award nominee) "That Evening Sun", our films have gained international press attention and acclaim.
We are proud to have been a part of successful campaigns for the recent Sundance Film Festival hits "Buried" with Ryan Reynolds,"Flypaper" with Patrick Dempsey, "Amreeka" (Independent Spirit Award Nominee),"La Misma Luna" "The Taqwacores" and many others.
We have also represented numerous recent acclaimed SxSW documentaries including; "Hit So Hard" "Crawford,' "The Ostrich Testimonies," "Citizen Architect","Pelada" and many more.
Christian Muirhead is head of Corporate Communications for WME. In his position, Muirhead serves as the talent and literary agency’s chief communications strategist, handling media relations, internal communication, advertising, and events for all of WME’s divisions and offices.
As a specialist in entertainment trade and business press, Muirhead has secured corporate and client profiles in such publications as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Los Angeles Times, Forbes, Fortune, Vanity Fair, The Hollywood Reporter and Variety.
Muirhead also oversees WME’s philanthropic initiatives, including the launch of an annual all-company volunteer day and the adoption of Foster Elementary School in Compton, California. In one year, WME helped transform the school’s campus, resources and overall academic performance.
Muirhead was previously the head of Corporate Communications for the William Morris Agency. At WMA, he handled all corporate press for the agency, including coverage of its 2009 merger with Endeavor which resulted in the creation of WME.
Prior to joining the William Morris Agency in 2004, Muirhead worked in international publicity and marketing at Warner Bros. Pictures, helping to launch campaigns for such films as “Harry Potter,” “Matrix Reloaded,” “Ocean’s Eleven” and “Mystic River.”
Muirhead graduated from Boston University with a Bachelor’s Degree in International Relations.
Monday, March 12
