The Den, a bicoastal independent boutique edit house, has hired Vic Palumbo as president/managing director. He brings a broad-based background to his new roost, including serving in key roles on the agency side such as an EP at Wieden+Kennedy in Portland, Ore., director of production at Fallon, Minneapolis, and partner/director of integrated production at Deutsch LA. For the latter he helped develop Steelhead, a leading standalone agency production studio. Palumbo most recently prior to joining The Den was the president of Film 47, a commercial and branded entertainment production company formed alongside director Peter Berg’s feature film company, Film 44, and non-scripted production company, Film 45.
Palumbo believes that the success of The Den despite the pandemic has been remarkable, but not surprising. “They were literally born during the pandemic,” he observed. “They aren’t trying to retrofit an old model into a new system–they are native to this environment, which is a superpower. As we come out of the pandemic and move forward, there’s incredible potential for The Den to get even stronger, hire even more quality talent, and do even bigger and better work.”
Trust, Palumbo noted, is the commodity in highest demand these days. “As you switch from being in person to working remotely, there’s an incredible amount of trust you need to have for the people on your team – specifically your editor – to create high caliber work.”
Reflecting on how the industry has changed over the past few years, Palumbo said, “This has been a very unprecedented moment in history. In regards to how things have changed in production, the bonds that the director, the agency producers and creatives create and foster with their editors and producers, are crucial to keep the focus on making the work the best it can be.”
Christjan Jordan, co-founder/editor of The Den, said, “Vic’s experience as a leader in our industry is virtually unparalleled. He brings tremendous skills and is such an asset to our team as well as our clients, and we look forward to charting new territory alongside him.”
“I’ve known Vic for a long time, and he has always been both a champion of great work and an incredible friend, colleague, and person,” said Rachel Seitel, co-founder of The Den. “We want to do things differently here at The Den, and build a new model that imagines a new paradigm for creative work. Vic’s vision and humanity are the exact right fit for the company we want to be.”
