Director Grayson Whitehurst has officially joined the roster of Los York, formalizing his relationship with the global creative production studio. He had been working pretty much exclusively with Los York over the past year–including when he was selected for SHOOT’s 2021 New Directors Showcase.
Whitehurst has directed spots for brands including MasterCard, Purple, and IKEA. Additionally, he has directed the popular alternate reality game Spectacular Organic and screened his narrative film work at many Oscar-qualifying festivals around the globe.
Known for his darkly comedic takes, Whitehurst uses his sensibilities as an artist and storyteller to evoke dramatic, striking visuals and offbeat narrative arcs in his projects. Whitehurst described the tonal paradox of his style, sharing, “I think the power of having an unconventional sense of humor is that I’m able to find a laugh in a place where no one else would think to look. Also, I love taking an unusual narrative risk in the ad space. Ultimately, these spots are stories and I’m proud of the fact that everything I’ve directed looks like it came from me.”
Melina Osornio-Andrade, Los York’s managing director and partner, said, “We pride ourselves on producing culture-defining campaigns. He has a real knack for finding micro-moments, thoughts, and images that often get overlooked but they’re the secret ingredient to what makes his work ring true. Grayson’s as multifaceted and remarkably resourceful in the way he works–he fits right in with our company ethos at Los York and we’re honored to be in collaboration with him.”
Lawsuit Alleges That TikTok Was Aware Of Risks Its Platform Posed To Kids and Teens
TikTok was aware that its design features are detrimental to its young users and that publicly touted tools aimed at limiting kids' time on the site were largely ineffective, according to internal documents and communications exposed in a lawsuit filed by the state of Kentucky.
The details are among redacted portions of Kentucky's lawsuit that contains the internal communications and documents unearthed during a more than two year investigation into the company by various states across the country.
Kentucky's lawsuit was filed this week, alongside separate complaints brought forth by attorneys general in a dozen states as well as the District of Columbia. TikTok is also facing another lawsuit from the Department of Justice and is itself suing the Justice Department over a federal law that could ban it in the U.S. by mid-January.
The redacted information — which was inadvertently revealed by Kentucky's attorney general's office and first reported by Kentucky Public Radio — touches on a range of topics, most importantly the extent to which TikTok knew how much time young users were spending on the platform and how sincere it was when rolling out tools aimed at curbing excessive use.
Beyond TikTok use among minors, the complaint alleges the short-form video sharing app has prioritized "beautiful people" on its platform and has noted internally that some of the content-moderation metrics it has publicized are "largely misleading."
The unredacted complaint, which was seen by The Associated Press, was sealed by a Kentucky state judge on Wednesday after state officials filed an emergency motion to seal it.
When reached for comment, TikTok spokesperson Alex Haurek said: "It is highly irresponsible of the Associated Press to... Read More