Tarek Sioufi is set to become chief strategy officer at Grey London, joining from Media.Monks. He will take on his new role as part of the agency’s core executive team in June, reporting to president and chief creative officer Laura Jordan Bambach and global chief strategy and data officer Jonathan Lee.
At Media.Monks, Sioufi spent two years working as global executive strategy director. During his time there, he was instrumental in building out the company’s global creative offering, working for clients including Toblerone (Mondelez), Adez (Coca-Cola), BrewDog, Netflix, Havaianas, RobinHood, Shure, WhatsApp (Meta) and more.
Prior to joining Media.Monks, Sioufi worked in senior roles at several high-profile creative agencies, including The Brooklyn Brothers, where he was chief strategy officer and head of strategy.
In the seven years he worked for The Brooklyn Brothers, he was involved in standout campaigns including “The new agenda” for The Financial Times, which called on leaders to drive progress in the boardroom and broader society, and “This is parenthood” for WaterWipes, which challenged the damaging ideals of perfect parenting.
He has also worked for agencies such as Wieden + Kennedy London and Fallon London, where he was strategy director, and as a sr. strategist for Sid Lee Amsterdam & Carat Global.
While at Wieden + Kennedy, Sioufi led the agency’s biggest account–Sainsbury’s–through the pandemic. During this time, the agency created the brand’s most talked about Christmas campaign, “Food is home. Home is Christmas.”
Sioufi is passionate about making the advertising industry more diverse and has been involved with Brixton Finishing School acting as a tutor and mentor for the past two years.
During his time at The Brooklyn Brothers, Sioufi also co-founded Night School, one of the first agency DE&I initiatives designed to attract more diverse talent into the creative industries. While he is no longer involved, that entity is now in its fourth year and works as a springboard for individuals from underrepresented ethnicities and backgrounds to get into full-time roles at agencies, marketing departments and production companies.
Comedic Director Roderick Fenske Joins Yard Dog TV For U.S. Spot Work
Roderick Fenske, the award-winning agency copywriter/creative director turned comedic director of commercials and films, has joined Yard Dog TV for U.S. representation.
Fenske--known for his idiosyncratic casting, stylish art direction, and blend of practical and digital effects--saw his newest commercial work, for Drink Weird Ice Tea, break earlier this month. His most recent short film, I’m Dead, You’re Welcome, starring JR Russell, Taissa Zveiter, Sandy Eels, and Julia Lorpriore, is making the rounds of film festivals now, having won Best Comedy Short at the Flagstaff International Film Festival last month.
Fenske, who started out in the business as a copywriter, is one of a select group of agency creatives to have found success in both New York and London, where his last post was as a creative director at TBWA there. “I owe so much of my career to Trevor Beattie [TBWA London chairman/creative director at the time], because he believed in me and started my career directing commercials,” said Fenske, citing work for Sony PlayStation, French Connection UK, and Channel 5.
Those spots led to an invitation to become a member of the visionary Swedish film collective known as ACNE. “I learned so much there working in a directing collective. With everybody talking about how to make stuff look stylish and cinematic it was like a film school for me,” Fenske explained. “Production design is so important because humor can be much more unexpected when you have an elevated look.”
Over the course of his career, Fenske’s work has received many international awards from shows including the Cannes Lions, British D&AD, and AICP. He moved from London to Los Angeles, and during this time he met Yard Dog... Read More