Design studio and creative agency Imaginary Forces has brought Matthew Barish aboard as chief operating officer. With over 12 years of experience in managing the four Ps–people, process, profit, and production–Barish is the first COO in the L.A.-based company’s 26-year history.
Barish believes in empowering talent and organizations to push beyond preconceived boundaries and breakthrough to new levels of delivery, growth, and expansion. “The greater good isn’t only the company, but the people. Imaginary Forces has strong creatives; it’s simply the culture. I’m looking forward to helping to promote every voice within the company – getting people happy about what they're doing and excited about their potential and growth at IF.”
Chip Houghton, managing director and co-founder of Imaginary Forces, said, “Today we see new, gigantic opportunities to connect and engage audiences. Matthew has joined the Forces as COO to lead, streamline, and execute the studio’s vision of what we believe is possible. I’m thrilled and grateful. This is one of those moments.”
Peter Frankfurt, executive creative director and co-founder, added, “Matthew has what it takes to help make Imaginary Forces the very best version of itself. It’s exciting to have him join the team at such an interesting moment in our story."
Prior to joining Imaginary Forces, Barish was sr. talent manager at R/GA for a year-long tenure. Before that he worked as a freelance project manager, talent recruiting, and resource manager for five-and-a-half years. Prior to that, Barish was operations manager at The Mill. He holds a B.A. in History from Columbia University and an M.B.A. from University of Oregon–Charles H. Lundquist College of Business.
Taylor Swift endorses Kamala Harris for president after debate ends
WASHINGTON (AP)--Taylor Swift, one of the music industry's biggest stars, endorsed Kamala Harris for president shortly after the debate ended on Tuesday night. "I think she is a steady-handed, gifted leader and I believe we can accomplish so much more in this country if we are led by calm and not chaos," Swift wrote in an Instagram post, which included a link to a voter registration website. Swift has a dedicated following among young women, a key demographic in the November election, and her latest tour has generated more than $1 billion in ticket sales. In a half hour, the post received more than 2.3 million likes. She included a picture of herself holding her cat Benjamin Button, and she signed the message "Childless Cat Lady." The remark is a reference to three-year-old comments made by JD Vance, Donald Trump's running mate, about women without children not having an equal stake in the country's future. Swift wrote that her endorsement was partially prompted by Trump's decision to post AI-generated pictures suggesting that she had endorsed him. One showed Swift dressed as Uncle Sam, and the text said "Taylor wants YOU to VOTE for DONALD TRUMP." Trump's posts "brought me to the conclusion that I need to be very transparent about my actual plans for this election as a voter," Swift wrote. She added that "I've done my research, and I've made my choice." The Trump campaign dismissed Swift's endorsement. "This is further evidence that the Democrat Party has unfortunately become a party of the wealthy elites," said spokesperson Karoline Leavitt. "There's many Swifties for Trump out there in America," she said, herself included. Swift's endorsement was not exactly a surprise. In 2020, she supported President Joe Biden, and she... Read More