Rachel Harms Gets to Know Noah Wild
The director, who just signed with Untitled, has partnered with the company and agency MMB to help launch a new lifestyle brand for kids.
Rachel Harms and Untitled Pitch in
on the Launch of Noah Wild
The director and her production house partner with Boston agency
MMB on an innovative launch of a new consumer brand.
Director Rachel Harms is putting her background creating content for kids, along with her understanding of how to work with ad agencies and how to communicate the value of brands, to work on an innovative new project.
She's just signed with the L.A.-based media and production company Untitled, which is working with Harms, the Boston agency MMB and the entertainment lawyer Darin Chavez on the development and launch of a new lifestyle brand aimed at kids called Noah Wild. (For more on the brand, click here.) It will encompass both consumer products and entertainment and will carry a positive and uplifting message for children and their parents tied to caring for wildlife and the environment.
Harms is a four-time Emmy winner for her work on the seminal Children's Television Workshop program "Sesame Street," for which she's directed a total of 32 short films. She brings to Untitled a reputation for emotional and honest portrayals of stories about people. Among the brands she's worked for are Tide, ExxonMobil, Southwest Airlines, Magnavox, Dannon and Quaker, among others. Busy with TV commercial assignments in both the US and Europe, she's still connected with the program, for which she's currently developing several new projects.
Noah Wild is the creation of MMB founder Jamie Mambro and his partners, Fred Bertino, Jerry Cronin and art director Liz Albrecht. The brand includes apparel, accessories, animation, books and personal products. The character, Noah, is a kid who adores animals – as does Harms and all the players involved. Every purchase of a Noah Wild product provides an opportunity to make a financial contribution to one of six non-profit organizations dedicated to animal welfare. The brand's products are all organic and of high quality and include designs from Studio Number One, the design house of Shepard Fairey.
"I truly believe we have to start kids early on a path of empowerment," says Mambro about the thinking behind the initiative. "We all have to buy the necessities of life. So why not make our purchases count towards responsible living at the same time?"
Citing the biggest challenge in creating a brand like Noah – a peaceful character whose total mission is about love and making the world a better place – Mambro declares, "It's all in picking the right relationships. Every person that Jim Evans (Untitled's Founder and Executive Producer) has brought to the table has been remarkably talented, kind and uncommonly generous. I can't believe our latest good fortune in bringing Rachel Harms into the fold." Harms will be working to develop broadcast content as part of the Wild launch. Among the strategic partners who will be working with Noah Wild are Plant A Fish, Oceana, Amazon Conservation Association, Defenders of Wildlife, African Wildlife Foundation, and Hearts United For Animals.
Other agency creatives echo Mambro's admiration for Harms, who launched a filmmaking career after a decade as a professional dancer, choreographer and Artistic Director of the award winning Rachel Harms Dance Company.
"I just think there is a lot of personal experience and love that she brings to her work," says Christine Saldanha, Creative Director at Burrell Communications, for whom Harms has shot for Tide. "She's very strong in terms of how she sees her vision, and we collaborated on two beautiful spots, 'Wicker Basket' and 'Towel,' that have been award-winners. There's no question that she so outclassed our board."
"She's a great storyteller," says Helayne Spivak, CCO of Saatchi Health + Wellness, for whom Harms shot for One-a-Day and Aleve. "She's got a very good eye for physical and body language, I think partially because she was a dancer and a choreographer. She pays particular attention to all the nuances of what's going on in each scene and she adds a whole layer of physicality and delicacy that just works."
"With Rachel, you talk about what you're trying to accomplish and she listens," says David Greenberg, Creative Director at JWT in New York, for whom Harms directed a spot for Abilify. "Yes, every director listens to what you have to say and tries to deliver what you're looking for. But with Rachel, the walls truly come down. When you work with her you're both on the same team."
Untitled's Evans says he's delighted to be part of the Noah Wild launch and feels that Harms is perfectly suited to make a major contribution. "I'm crazy about Noah Wild and have been excited about the potential of this project from the moment I learned about it from Jamie Mambro and his team. I knew Rachel's sensitivity and enthusiasm would be a great asset to the brand. We're all thrilled that she's decided to make Untitled her new home, and I am looking forward
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