Tool of North America has added director Na Frenette to its content roster. She will help the company continue to concept, create and execute notable ad projects for brands and ad agencies.
Hailing from Seoul, South Korea, Frenette began her career as a documentarian reporting on social issues in Korea. In years since, she has brought her cinematic style to experiential art exhibits like Detroit’s Flower House and some of the biggest names in automotive, including Ford, Chevrolet, and GM. In her work, Frenette integrates her experience in the Korean, Canadian and American production industries to construct emotive, human-centric campaigns. Her approach focuses on structure and mood to build relatable characters that showcase the emotional heart of a story. Prior to joining Tool, Frenette was with Hello Future.
Nancy Hacohen, managing director at Tool, said of Frenette “Her global perspective, compelling use of character development and striking visual style will be an asset to clients as they aim to capture consumer attention in an increasingly crowded media environment. Tool has always thrived on amplifying diverse voices and connecting top directorial talent with brands and agencies, and we know that Na will help our team continue to uphold these high standards.”
Frenette related, “Tool is known for bringing some of the industry’s most celebrated stories to life, and I’m excited to help the team continue its legacy, Everyone at Tool has welcomed my style and voice and I’m stoked to jump in and collaborate with the team.”
Jennifer Kent On Why Her Feature Directing Debut, “The Babadook,” Continues To Haunt Us
"The Babadook," when it was released 10 years ago, didn't seem to portend a cultural sensation.
It was the first film by a little-known Australian filmmaker, Jennifer Kent. It had that strange name. On opening weekend, it played in two theaters.
But with time, the long shadows of "The Babadook" continued to envelop moviegoers. Its rerelease this weekend in theaters, a decade later, is less of a reminder of a sleeper 2014 indie hit than it is a chance to revisit a horror milestone that continues to cast a dark spell.
Not many small-budget, first-feature films can be fairly said to have shifted cinema but Kent's directorial debut may be one of them. It was at the nexus of that much-debated term "elevated horror." But regardless of that label, it helped kicked off a wave of challenging, filmmaker-driven genre movies like "It Follows," "Get Out" and "Hereditary."
Kent, 55, has watched all of this — and those many "Babadook" memes — unfold over the years with a mix of elation and confusion. Her film was inspired in part by the death of her father, and its horror elements likewise arise out of the suppression of emotions. A single mother (Essie Davis) is struggling with raising her young son (Noah Wiseman) years after the tragic death of her husband. A figure from a pop-up children's book begins to appear. As things grow more intense, his name is drawn out in three chilling syllables — "Bah-Bah-Doooook" — an incantation of unprocessed grief.
Kent recently spoke from her native Australia to reflect on the origins and continuing life of "The Babadook."
Q: Given that you didn't set out to in any way "change" horror, how have you regarded the unique afterlife of "The... Read More