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  • Kaitlin Gasenica Brand Communications Manager

    Kaitlin Gasenica

    Brand Communications Manager

    Work

    Kaitlin Gasenica is a member of the social media strategy team at BLITZ. She graduated from UCLA with honors and holds a Bachelor’s degree in International Economics and Classical Civilizations. As a recent college grad, she brings organization, wit and a long list of synonyms to the team. Specializing in research and community management, Kaitlin helps develop, implement and manage social media platforms for clients from strategic development to program execution. Before BLITZ, she worked her way through college saving every penny from her multiple jobs for tuition and shoes.

    Life

    Kaitlin was born in middle-of-no-where Idaho and grew up in the outdoors enjoying four different seasons of activities and an endless supply of potatoes.   After 18 years of small town simplicity, cold winters and starch overloads, Kaitlin moved to L.A. ready to devote her weekends to the beach and meet new people who hadn’t been in her kindergarten class. Although soccer has always been her athletic activity of choice she can be found shredding on her snowboard, camping with friends and running on the beach. A Bruin to the core, Kaitlin still regularly attends UCLA sporting events and when not chanting the eight-clap, she’s known for indulging in a giant bag of cotton candy. Despite her small stature, Kaitlin lives life by the motto “Go Big or Go Home” and never settles for less than the best.

  • Kelsy Rezansoff Brand Communications Manager

    Kelsy Rezansoff

    Brand Communications Manager

    Work

    Kelsy Rezansof is a recent graduate of Minnesota State University where she received a bachelor’s degree in public relations. Taking on the role of brand communications manager at BLITZ with a love for all things social media, Kelsy’s tasks include being the eyes and ears for the clients to keep them current on what’s happening in the social space around their brand. Before her California life, Kelsy worked through college and internships to save up money and work experience for her big city move.

    Life

    Kelsy grew up in Minnesota where the only seasons are winter and road construction. With a personality full of wit and sarcasm, Kelsy is a free spirit that had big-city dreams. After graduating from college, she packed up her life in suitcases and moved 2,000 miles from Small Town, U.S.A. to the much larger, and warmer, Los Angeles.  Whether she’s trying to route herself around L.A. at the movies, attending a concert, or letting her Canadian side show by watching a hockey game, it’s guaranteed she can have a good time with whatever she’s doing.  With her iPhone in her right hand and a cup of coffee in the left, she always aspires to dream big and change the world one fast-paced step at a time.

  • Kevin Wright Account Manager

    Kevin Wright

    Account Manager

    Work

    After receiving his bachelor's degree in Business Administration from the University of San Diego, Kevin returned North to land at bigMETHOD, a social media agency that joined BLITZ in 2011. At BLITZ, Kevin works in client services as an account manager with a focus on social communication programs. Working closely with his clients to ensure brand strategy is executed, Kevin takes his  “if you don’t touch or use it, get rid of it” mentality and runs an organized approach in implementing marketing programs centered on digital and social media.

    Life

    A true believer that “the summer is not a season, but a lifestyle,” Kevin finds pleasure in all things active. Raised in El Segundo, a small suburb of Los Angeles, he keeps his competitive edge through the sport of triathlon (swim + bike + run) or a slew of other activities such as surfing, volleyball or waterskiing.  With an uncanny inability to dance or even clap to the beat of a song, Kevin finds enjoyment in cooking and is always on the hunt for a good street taco or fresh ceviche. Staying true to his beach-side roots, he often compares life to fishing, doesn't mind sand in his sheets, and strives to one day sail the seas with no final destination in sight.

  • Kim McCann Project Manager

    Kim McCann

    Project Manager

    Work

    After a two-year stint as a production assistant on a sitcom, Kim decided to try her hand in the world of digital marketing. Fast forward five years and her client and vendor side producer experience includes movie websites for 20th Century Fox, media banner campaigns for SCE and Sony Play Station, e-commerce website redesigns and a Google Ocean Application for the Monterey Bay Aquarium. At BLITZ, Kim has worked as a project manager on Nike, Microsoft, Activision and Namco projects.

    Life

    Kim McCann was born and raised in a small New England town along the banks of the Connecticut River. After graduating from Ithaca College in upstate New York, she moved 3,000 miles to the considerably warmer and more populated Los Angeles. In her spare time, Kim enjoys snowboarding, hiking, biking, playing a gaggle of co-ed recreational sports, singing in the car at inappropriate volumes and crisscrossing the globe visiting friends and family.

  • Josh Esguia Creative Director

    Josh Esguia

    Creative Director

    Work

    As a general rule, Josh agrees that “no pleasure endures unseasoned by variety,” and in keeping with this principle began his creative career like most others in graphic design with a double engineering degree. Over the years he’s come to believe that creativity and technical ingenuity are both critical components of a successful modern agency, and he’s been lucky enough to find people who excel at both. Professionally, he’s enjoyed working with a wide range of clients and influencing project development from conception to completion. His daily activities are as eclectic as the brands he works with, ranging from hands-on and conceptual to managerial.

    Life

    Born and raised on the mean streets of Long Island, Josh Esguia spent most of his youth fishing in Manhasset Bay, stomping around outside like a dirty hippie, and learning to throw knives with fair precision (though not all at the same time). He’s relatively tall for his family (a genetic soup of Filipino, Turkish and Spanish) and was raised by parents who are far more interesting and prolific than he. When not busy reading whatever he can get his hands on or watching horror movies with his zombie-crazed wife, Josh enjoys playing the cello, eating strange and exotic foods, and visiting amoeba to feed his wildly-varied musical habit. The past 12 years in California have made him soft, weather-wise, and he makes it a point to wear shorts every Christmas to celebrate.

  • John Starr Art Director

    John Starr

    Art Director

    Work

    A self-taught designer, John Starr has been happily pushing pixels in one format or another for over 10 years. Continually striving for perfection within himself and for clients, John uses his years of experience to deliver solid design, a seasoned perspective and intelligent solutions.

    Life

    A California native, John was born in the Bay Area, raised in a central coast town that most people can’t find on a map (Santa Margarita), and now calls Los Angeles home, a place that everyone can find on a map. The son of a Marine, and the eldest of four boys, John can typically be found goofing off around the house with his wife, daughter and three cats.

    Little known facts:
    John once helped dig a swimming pool by hand. He can beat you at gin rummy every time.

  • Jack Schlinkert Multimedia Producer

    Jack Schlinkert

    Multimedia Producer

    Work

    Jack is the resident creative multimedia producer for all things social media at BLITZ. Which means he makes things that live on YouTube. He makes it happen with a camera in one hand, a BlackBerry® in the other, and a constant intake of caffeine. He shoots, edits, strategizes and conceptualizes. More importantly, he connects with people who are just as passionate about these things. He avoids marketing buzzwords.

    Jack recently graduated from the University of Southern California and immediately dove into the agency world at the social media shop bigMETHOD.

    Life

    Jack hails from the East Coast and spent time in Brooklyn and Connecticut as a kid. After visiting the Santa Monica beach at age 12, he decided he would like to live there. He finds it no coincidence that he now works at BLITZ. While at SC, he took up a rigorous course load that included music, photography, film, and entrepreneurship. He also attended class on occasion. He plays in bands, is an avid yachtsman, loves to cook, and rides his bike on the beach. But staying true to his New England roots, he keeps a set of golf clubs and a tie in the back of his Saab, "just in case."

  • Jarrett Quon Designer

    Jarrett Quon

    Designer

    Work

    Few people can say that their job is to draw all day.  At Blitz, Jarrett is a designer but is often called upon to illustrate new assets or quickly knock out storyboard ideas.  It's hard to believe that the high school classes that were considered to be the 'expendable' ones turn out to be the foundation of Jarrett's career.  Interests that were once hobbies in photography, traditional animation, painting and graphic novels are now useful tools in his creative toolbox at Blitz.

    Life

    Jarrett was born to a greaser dad and a cheerleader mom in San Diego and before you can say 'Grease Lightning!', he was wielding a pencil and folding cranes.  Creating has always been a big part of Jarrett's life.  At age eight, he taught himself to fold origami and can fold over 30 models by heart.  In high school, he learned photography and anatomy via Burne Hogarth in hopes of becoming a comic book artist.  At UCLA, he discovered design.  These days, when he's not designing for Blitz, Jarrett uses these skills to illustrate a graphic novel, participate in art shows and do film making with his friends.

  • Jessica Garrido Senior Art Director

    Jessica Garrido

    Senior Art Director

    Work

    As a little girl, odd ways to spend her childhood times pointed out a lot of who she is now. Like on Bank of America outings with her father, Jessica Garrido use to take home every bank slip and form she could grab, to only come home and redraw each layout line by line, AND even make improvements to the forms.  It was probably then when she realized she had a passion for this wonderful and magical discipline called design!  She then followed her passion to the California State University of Long Beach Art Department where she received her Bachelor of Fine Arts with an emphasis in Visual Communication.  For almost 10 years now Jessica has immersed herself in great creative outlets, ad agencies, and a broad spectrum of brands. She's had the privilege of working on such brands as Infiniti, Nissan, Nickelodeon, DreamWorks, Ubisoft, and Bethesda.  Her strong suites are concepting, art direction, designing, and making sure the project, from beginning to end, is the best that it could be.  She believes that a strong concept is the foundation of great design, and a great experience.  With that said, Jessica brings that passion and skill set to the talented team of BLITZ.

    Life

    Jessica was born in Los Angeles California to a fun loving, comical, spontaneous, sometimes bizarre, but always laughing family, with her identical twin sister, and one older sister. Outside of BLITZ she loves, hiking with her dog Lola (love of her life), dining at great restaurants, hanging with her friends and family, watching movies, baking, art stuff, and most of all traveling anywhere and everywhere she could afford.

  • John Shi Media Coordinator

    John Shi

    Media Coordinator

    Work

    John Shi, media coordinator, is a perfectionist when it comes to detail and having a thorough, original understanding of his work. Graduating from UCLA with a B.A. in Economics, he spent his last years of college as a marketing intern in the social media arena at bigMETHOD and currently resides as PR coordinator at BLITZ. In the past, he’s worked with people in the customer service arena and also spent some time in the insurance market. John’s equipped with a passion for providing the right direction for PR and advertising, and his goal is to make sure the services and products that clients have are promoted and carried out the most effective way.

    Life

    No stranger to new environments, John was raised in China but grew up mostly in Texas. While he appreciated the scorching temperatures and barren landscapes of the longhorn state, John knew he could eventually adjust to the wonderful climate and bustling nature of Los Angeles. He enjoys all things serene and scenic, including kayaking, visiting national parks and reserves with his friends. John also has an obsession with learning new things and often stays up late reading econ blogs and news articles.

  • Melissa Orr Account Director

    Melissa Orr

    Account Director

    Work

    Melissa Orr recently earned her M.B.A. in International Business from the Thunderbird School of Global Management and has a B.S. degree in Advertising from the University of Florida. She has over 12 years of account management experience working at ad agencies like McCann Erickson on Fortune 500 clients such as Microsoft and Safeway. She’s managed all types of global integrated marketing campaigns including television, radio, print, outdoor and all things digital. At BLITZ, Melissa works closely with her clients to deliver innovative marketing programs that positively change consumer’s perceptions and sell products.

    Life

    She’s originally from Atlanta, Georgia which means that she loves college football (go Gators!) but oddly enough doesn’t have a southern accent and has no idea how to make amazing fried chicken.  When not working she loves to travel to hot tropical locations, scuba dive and eat spicy foods. Currently, Melissa lives in Redondo Beach with her husband who’s a chef and her mini dachshund and basset hound.

  • Paul Hikiji Sr. Art Director

    Paul Hikiji

    Sr. Art Director

    Work

    Paul Hikiji can be a bit obsessive when it comes to design, a perfectionist who strives to achieve. He’s a graduate of Loyola Marymount University, who initially studied engineering, but found that design was his passion. With 11 years of experience, Paul has spent a majority of his career in Los Angeles with a brief stint in New York where he had the opportunity to work with some talented folks. But the cold weather got to him and he returned to California where he began his second tenure  at BLITZ that you could describe more as a return from a sabbatical. At BLITZ, Paul is responsible for art direction and design and an occasional exhibition of old-school dance moves.

    Life

    He grew up in Gardena, California, a suburb of Los Angeles. As a native of Southern California, Paul enjoys the warm climate and is a die-hard Lakers fan. Aside from that, Paul loves spending time with two particularly lovely ladies, his wonderful girlfriend, Teresa, who he loves to make dinner for and his dog Yuki, a yellow Labrador puppy who wreaks havoc at all times. When the dishes are done and Yuki has been walked, you can find Paul in front of his man-sized television playing “Call of Duty,” almost on a nightly basis. When not PWNing noobs (and pros alike), Paul likes hitting the hardwood for a pickup game or carving up snow-covered mountains.

  • Vanessa Hoy Sr. Project Manager

    Vanessa Hoy

    Sr. Project Manager

    Work

    Vanessa was introduced to project management while working in marketing for activePDF, and hasn’t looked back for one reason — she LOVES to organize! Vanessa has over five years of experience as a producer/project manager working with Trigger, a small boutique agency, Waat Media, a mobile content publisher, and at Schematic where she earned a Service Award and lead projects for Target, Microsoft, CLEAR and Logitech.  When she’s not researching the newest cloud organization tools and working on improving the process at BLITZ, she oversees production and planning cycles for several projects leading multidisciplinary teams and acting as the primary liaison for her clients.

    Life

    Born and raised in the suburbs of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Vanessa Hoy moved west after graduating with a B.A. in Economics from Allegheny College in 2003. When not working or reading up on industry happenings, she enjoys relaxing with her family and two dogs, seeing the latest flick, getting a few weekly workouts in so she can bake and enjoy desserts, traveling as much as she can and exploring cafés and shops in L.A.. As a Westside local, the rest of L.A.  is still on her list to check out.  Definitely a foodie, she loves trying new restaurants and cafés and is always in search of a perfect flaky croissant or cheese-filled pastry.

  • Vince Hannah Brand Communications Manager

    Vince Hannah

    Brand Communications Manager

    Work

    Having graduated from UCLA with a B.A. in History, Vince Hannah, an Orange County native, was not one to follow conventions. He deviated from the popular choices of becoming a teacher or going to law school in order to continue his work as a graphic designer, a role he took on at the beginning in high school. While his love for design remains strong, Vince wanted a better way to use his broad knowledge from spending countless hours on the Internet and his creative approach to solutions as a graphic designer. He joined BLITZ in 2011 where he works as a brand communications manager helping to connect brands directly to consumers.

    Life

    Fortunate to have been raised by an amazing family where bad jokes, sharp wit and sarcasm are hereditary, his childhood was characterized by a wild imagination. He’s been lucky enough to still possess it. These days Vince is on his never-ending quest to find the perfect taco in Los Angeles. He’s an avid fan of all things sports, any and all types of music, some classic home cooking and above all else, good times with good people.

  • Yosef Flomin Software Developer

    Yosef Flomin

    Software Developer

    Work

    Yosef Flomin, formerly from the USSR, and now independent country Moldavia, is a software developer at BLITZ. At BLITZ, Yosef’s primary focus is Flash development and architecture, but every opportunity is taken by him to learn new technologies and exploring how to push their limits. On his journey to the United States, Yosef has lived in Austria, Italy and Israel. In the states, he sought education in the arts of business development and computer science and his current profession will clearly declare computer science the winner. So what did he do with this knowledge? Yosef went on to bend Adobe Flash to his will, dabble with Microsoft Silverlight and Unity 3D, rock the Xbox and Kinect, and made the android and iphone his playground.

    Life

    Outside the workplace, he entertains his wife Chaya and son Eliyahu-David. As if that doesn’t take up all his time, Yosef enjoys studying, a good vodka or scotch, staying up as late as possible and dreams of one day convincing his wife to let him buy a chopper (not the one that flies).

    The California lotto says “Imagine what a buck can do.” But his personal take is “Imagine what a person can do.”

  • Zoe Gruenberg Director of Social Media Strategy

    Zoe Gruenberg

    Director of Social Media Strategy

    Work

    Zoe Gruenberg, director of Social Media Strategy, leads on research and strategic development for social communication programs implemented at BLITZ. After waking up one below-zero morning at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and realizing she no longer wanted to become an English professor, Zoe refocused her love for words and digital culture and moved to L.A. where she joined bigMETHOD (a social media agency that joined BLITZ in 2011). Since then she's spent her professional career dedicated to seamlessly understanding brand voice and the impact online communication can have on offline action. In the past few years, she's fueled the strategic development of social media programs for  clients in the entertainment, music, non-profit, and public sectors, including DreamWorks Animation SKG, Grace Potter, City of Hope, William Morris, NYC Department of Health, and Honda.

    Life

    From the first word on, Zoe has always asked why. Whether concrete or abstract, she's relentless in trying to find out what things actually mean. Raised in a family that emphasized being creative and always speaking your mind, Zoe understands people and real live conversation as the truest form of inspiration.  If she didn’t have trouble staying up past 10p.m., she could honestly say that she lives for those conversations that keep you up all night long.  That aside, nothing makes her smile like Planet Waves, a wine so light it’s basically see-through or the perfect (at least 5 -inch) heel.

  • Thanh Gip Sr. Designer

    Thanh Gip

    Sr. Designer

    Work

    At BLITZ, Thanh (also known as Tom, Thong, Thang, Than, Hee, or Jacob) gets down and dirty with the production.  Being the CCO (Chief Creative Optimizer) he hunts down those 300 dpi images buried inside a smart object, which is embedded inside another smart object, which again is hiding inside another smart object. You can say that Jacob's day to day consist of helping out anyone in need.

    Life

    Thanh was born on a frigid December morning in a state that constructed a skyway system which made it possible to live, eat, work, and shop without ever going outside. Suffering through a childhood without cable television, he was forced to make his own fun, and quickly turned to sports. When he stopped growing and all the other kids didn't, he immediately got into the arts.

    With an ambition to break the stereotype of Asians being bad drivers he decided to move to the City of Angels, but instantly found it's true, and instead developed a serious case of road rage. He can be best described as a left-handed, night owl, futbol playing, and art loving type of guy.

  • Sy Harris UX Lead

    Sy Harris

    UX Lead

    Work

    Sy Harris is presently a User Experience Lead at BLITZ, but a more fitting title would be jack-of-all-trades. In his day, he’s been a print designer,  carpenter, digital art director, photographer, marine biologist and underwater cameraman. He doesn’t hold a degree in anything digital but has been designing all of his life. He feels strongly that good user experience comes first from solid life experience, a good deal of experimentation, and the ability to recognize when something isn’t good enough and how to make it better.  Sy has had the distinct privilege of designing alongside the talented people at Marvel Comics, Sotheby’s Auction House, Esquire and Harper’s Magazine and now BLITZ.

    Life

    Sy has always been a maker inspired by the born habit of taking things apart, dissecting them, figuring out what makes them work, why they’re cool and how to make them better. By the age of 8, he had already created the “better” go-kart, the “better” drum kit, the “better” clock radio, the “better” Cabbage Patch doll and the “better” VCR. Due to parental disagreements over the word “better” and because parts were usually scavenged from things he didn’t own himself, Sy was often in trouble. But these talents have rewarded him in the end taking him from one interesting job, location and learning experience to the next. And he’s still learning. Having dived with manta rays and great white sharks, watched hijacked planes bomb the city he called home, braved the Minnesota winter for three years and witnessed the birth of his two children, he’s  finally beginning to see that the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.

  • Peter Brine Group Account Director

    Peter Brine

    Group Account Director

    Work

    Peter Brine is a group account director, the role he was born to play. He loves being a part-time cheerleader, strategist, project manager, creative, critic, tester and full-time client advocate.  He's not happy unless the client’s happy.

    Peter has over 15 years of digital marketing experience building programs, campaigns and services that drive businesses and delight customers. He started his career “pre-Internet,” sending interactive diskettes to users via snail mail and later built the first website for Nissan. Since then he’s held a variety of positions at agencies and on the client side across many categories including video games, automotive, financial and professional services, toys, consumer electronics and consumer packaged goods.

    Life

    Peter grew up in New England and slowly made his way south and west, picking up a B.A. degree from Georgetown and a law degree from the University of Georgia. He eventually ended up in L.A. and hasn’t left since.  When not at work, you can find him cooking at home with his wife, camping with his son's Cub Scout Pack or playing Assassin's Creed Revelations with his daughter.

  • Phil Kiczula PR Manager

    Phil Kiczula

    PR Manager

    Work

    In 2006 Phil founded a web start-up for dance training. Responsible for conceptualizing and executing marketing and PR, he gained an overwhelming respect and perspective for the science of brand development. In time, Phil adjusted his focus to integrating social into the marketing equation, helping execute PR campaigns for Oreo, Sharpie and Harley-Davidson at Weber Shandwick in Chicago.  He then returned to L.A. to lead PR outreach at bigMETHOD. He’s connected his clients with hundreds of influencers and media outlets, driving awareness and solidifying evangelists for the brands he represents. Phil continues building on those results as PR manager at BLITZ.

    Life

    He's a midwestern gentleman born in Chicago and raised in Red Wing, Minnesota. After graduating from the University of Minnesota, Phil relocated for the year-round, above-zero temperatures in Los Angeles. There he and his fiancé, Sara, enjoy exploring the world’s cuisine and routinely take stabs at recreating it in the kitchen.  Phil can find no better place to spend his free time than on a golf course. When stuck indoors he enjoys sports, both real and fantasy, and dabbles in home-improvement projects. In this brave new world, Phil holds onto "old school values." He believes that always being personable and dependable will breed success and enrich relationships – personal and business.

  • Renato Braga Sr. Art Director

    Renato Braga

    Sr. Art Director

    Work

    Renato Braga is a creative thinker, sr. art director and hands-on designer with over 10+ years of experience creating highly conceptual and innovative work in the digital space. Originally from Brazil, Renato provides to BLITZ a unique perspective as a result of his mix of cultures. With web design, motion graphics, video and physical installations, he artfully creates engaging experiences and believes in the balance of a structured process and intuitive creative ingenuity as powerful foundations for generating insightful ideas. From coding to design, every nuance is interesting and inspiring to him.

    Life

    With a birth certificate from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Renato is not only an avid surfer but also a passionate creative adventurer. From photography and physical multitouch installations, to being a drummer and MTV TOP 10 music video director, he’s constantly craving to find the next creative challenge. Throughout his career, Renato had found his inspirations on human interactions and life daily adventures which he leverages on his projects using the newest technologies and platforms to tell an unique story where technology meets human engagement seamlessly.

  • Rob Ferrante Sr. Program Manager

    Rob Ferrante

    Sr. Program Manager

    Work

    A founding member of the Atlanta Constitution’s online editorial staff, Rob helped launch the US’ 2nd online newspaper. Three years and one Summer Olympics later, Rob moved to LA to produce other websites. In 2004, Rob joined WhittmanHart as a Project Director where he headed up production efforts on SONY, HBO and Toyota. After producing the 1st online product development game ever Dewmocracy, Rob was promoted to Director of Production. Five years later, Rob joined BLITZ as a Sr. Program Manager in 2010. During his career Rob has work with clients as varied as Microsoft, Nestle, Disney and PomWonderful.  Rob loves learning something new every day at BLITZ whether it’s nuances of different gaming communities or that Porto’s has the best Cheesy Rolls in LA.

    Life

    Rob was born in in Da’ Bronx. At the age of 5 Rob’s family moved to the New Jersey. After 13 years in NJ, Rob moved to Atlanta to attend Emory University. After 2 years bouncing from major to major, Rob settled on a degree in Child Psychology so he could understand his childlike disposition. Interestingly enough, this degree has helped a great deal in managing adults. Married in 2008, when it was legal for him to do so in CA, Rob and his husband Tony like to hike, travel, rollerblade, read, watch TV and movies and eat, which has slowly but surely turned his six-packs into a keg. Rob is currently trying to excise the endless supply of useless knowledge taking up too much space in his head.

  • Gilbert Cordial Sr. Designer

    Gilbert Cordial

    Sr. Designer

    Work

    Senior Designer Gilbert has always loved Legos. ®  In fact, it was while spending countless hours playing with these toy bricks that he realized his creativity and imagination would take him places. Rising out of his pile of Legos like a blocky phoenix, Gilbert would go on to eventually obtain his B.A. in Art at California State University Northridge. A graphic designer by trade, Gilbert has spent seven years honing his design skills at agencies like The Cannery and SapientNitro where he worked on Disney, DreamWorks®, the Ad Council, Toyota and Hawaiian Airlines. As a newly sworn in BLITiZen, Gilbert looks forward to complementing an already formidable creative team and assisting them in creating amazing work. He prides himself in being a very detail-oriented and versatile designer.

    Life

    When the native Angeleno isn’t pushing pixels, he enjoys spending quality time with family and friends, cheering on his beloved Lakers and Dodgers (both in the comfort of his living room and in the stands). He also enjoys blowing out his eardrums at concerts, strumming guitar chords, chowing down on awesome eats, anxiously awaiting Steve Job's next announcement, going on cinematic adventures, and staring at anything interestingly creative and artistic. Being a tech junkie, he eagerly awaits for the arrival of the Mattel hoverboard, self-lacing Nike shoes, and flying DeLoreans.

  • Jena Brown Art Director

    Jena Brown

    Art Director

    Work

    Jenafer (Jena) graduated from the University of Oregon with a B.A. degree in Journalism and Communications.  She fell in love with design during a magazine design course, suggested to her by her photography professor.  From there, she worked on teams designing the campus newspaper as well as the award-winning campus magazine, Flux.  After graduating, Jena moved to L.A. where she was thrown into the world of web when she began working as a graphic designer for bigMETHOD, a social media agency that joined BLITZ in 2011.  Jena’s passion for visual communication and all things “Internet” keep her inspired as the Art Director for Social Media at Blitz.

    Life

    Originally from Portland, Oregon, Jena grew up relishing the arts.  A performer at heart, she mimicked Janet Jackson’s '90s moves from age 4 and successfully landed the role of “Daffodil #3” in her school’s production of "Alice In Wonderland."  This led her to dance for the University of Oregon dance team as well as play the victim in a few D-List horror flicks.  She now enjoys keeping creative at home with any DIY project.  When she's not spray-painting an old table, or fashioning new hair accessories with her hot glue gun, she enjoys a cup of tea, telling you why the Oregon Ducks are the world’s #1 greatest college football team, and cuddling with her four-pound MinPin, Frankie.

  • Aviva Mohilner Brand Communications Manager

    Aviva Mohilner

    Brand Communications Manager

    Work

    Aviva comes to BLITZ with a B.A. degree in Communications from USC and a background in innovation, public relations and entertainment. Combined, they trained her to craft a compelling narrative, listen for what consumers really want, and watch the landscape for what’s next. This is the core of her role as a brand communications manager, and helps explain her obsession with the wild west world of social media. Prior to becoming a BLITiZen, Aviva could be found at bigMETHOD, ?What If! Innovation, Ruder Finn Public Relations, The Dr. Phil Show, MTV, and Hot Dog on a Stick, in reverse chronological order. She was also once on Beverly Hills 90210.

    Life

    Although a rare second-generation L.A. native, Aviva left her heart with the people, performances, and plates of NYC. She's also called San Francisco, London, and Costa Rica home. Wherever she is, you can count on her to make friends of strangers, want to taste your/their food, and be 15 minutes late (with the exception of meetings and calls). A perpetual seeker, she believes two things trump all other spiritual and personal development practices: the Golden Rule and gratitude. Among her nerdy obsessions are the History Channel, NPR, TED talks and the Sunday Times (NY, of course). Aviva also enjoys long walks on the beach and candlelit dinners, and is comfortable in sweats or an evening gown.

  • Courtney Tyler Finance and HR Coordinator

    Courtney Tyler

    Finance and HR Coordinator

    Work

    Courtney Tyler earned her Bachelor’s degree in Finance and Economics at Simmons College in Boston, Massachusetts. Upon graduation in 2008, she headed out West and never looked back! Originally working within the aerospace industry, she specialized in financial analysis as well as customer and vendor relations. As the finance coordinator at BLITZ, she has a wide array of responsibilities that include accounting, payroll administration, human resources and contract management. She thoroughly enjoys working with the bright and incredibly talented Blitizens!

    Life

    Courtney was born and raised in Southern Maryland. As a result, she has a serious love for fresh seafood, OLD BAY® Seasoning and lacrosse. She keeps herself busy with physical activities such as spinning, pilates and zumba. She also likes to cook and especially try out new, healthy recipes. You may find her at the Santa Monica Farmer’s Market most Sundays. She lives with a white cat named Kobi that eats with his paws,  loves olives and insists on her total attention as soon as she gets home.

  • Dave Williams Art Director

    Dave Williams

    Art Director

    Work

    Creative from a young age, Dave saw design as a natural fit for his preoccupation with pretty things. Introduced to typography and design fundamentals at Western Michigan University, he discovered a pursuit that’s sustained him creatively for 13 years. Starting out in print and advertising, he founded an internationally distributed magazine that required a website. He found that he was adept at thinking about design interactively, a pursuit he's been working on ever since.    As an art director at BLITZ, Dave is a hands-on creative, responsible for crafting the user experience, directing and interpreting brands to the world at large.

    Life

    A drifter at heart, Dave finds himself currently a resident of Santa Monica. He's called Detroit, Chicago and Tokyo home at different points but is currently looking forward to being a Southern California homeowner with his lovely wife, in debt up to their ears. An amateur bike mechanic, musician and earnest surfer, he strives for Aloha day to day.

  • Ben Philabaum Project & Resource Coordinator

    Ben Philabaum

    Project & Resource Coordinator

    Work

    Ben Philabaum is a recent marketing grad from Miami University. Shortly after graduation, he accepted an internship with BLITZ, packed his bags and moved from Ohio to California. After an exciting two months sleeping on his sister’s pull-out chair, working face to face with clients and coordinating a thumb war tournament, he was lucky enough to be brought on full time as a project and resource coordinator. Ben’s wide-ranging duties include: assisting project managers, updating the BLITZ website, creating executive reports, conducting biz dev research and playing video games.

    Life

    Ben is a junior Olympian in karate, a wicked skateboarder and an award-winning photographer. Originally from Ohio, he’s lived in Colorado, Luxembourg, and now L.A. He no longer crashes at his sister’s place but instead lives with his girlfriend in an apartment right next door. He’s obsessed with orange juice, despises olives and lives for Chipotle.  When not at work, he enjoys doing 'outdoorsy' things like hiking, ziplining and shopping at REI.

  • Chris McCall Sr. Art Director

    Chris McCall

    Sr. Art Director

    Work

    Chris loves brands. He has been fortunate enough to work closely with some great ones like Nike, Microsoft, EA and Sony. He’s been studying art, design, culture and our most beloved brands for over 20 years. He received his BFA in Art Studio at the University of California at Santa Barbara and soon after made design and advertising his creative focus. He specializes in creative concepting, art direction and highly crafted graphic/interactive design with a focus on emerging digital platforms.

    Life

    By his second birthday, Chris had moved from the north side of Chicago to a teepee in Jamaica to the hills of Los Angeles where he was raised by rock stars in the ’70s and ’80s. Despite being the product of a musical family and a long line of artists, he’s rebelliously crafted a career in the cold world of advertising. Although he honors his father by toiling in a notable band, he refuses to tour any farther than Japan and won’t give up his beloved day job no matter how vehemently he is advised to do so. Also keeping him stateside are his wife Jenn and his greatest creation, his son Tenz, who is the first of the BLITZ Baby Boom of 2010.

  • Chris Brinlee Jr. Jr. Designer

    Chris Brinlee Jr.

    Jr. Designer

    Work

    Chris Brinlee is a fresh-out-of-college graduate and is stoked to begin his career in such an exciting industry. While on a school trip to San Diego for the AAF National Student Advertising Competition he received a summer internship offer from BLITZ. Chris promptly flew back to Savannah, Georgia to graduate, then immediately drove back across the country to begin his career on the West Coast. After a fulfilling summer in L.A., the awesome people at BLITZ decided they liked Chris enough to keep him around and invited him to come aboard as a junior designer. As the youngest person in the creative department, he makes an effort to keep the office youthful, while soaking up knowledge from some of the best in the business.

    Life

    Chris has been hit by a car (or four) and walked away. Most of his scars are from biking or skating. He used to be a collegiate cheerleader (yes, he can still do a backflip). In his spare time, he likes to shoot concerts and directs music videos for rock bands. In high school, he had political ambitions and declined an appointment from the U.S. Naval Academy, only to drop out of The George Washington University and transfer to an art school in Savannah, where it never got cold. At the Savannah College of Art and Design, Chris discovered that art direction could become a vehicle for all of his talents, passions and interests. Now he’s following his dreams in California and taking in all that L.A. has to offer.

  • Beth Erickson Senior Staff Accountant

    Beth Erickson

    Senior Staff Accountant

    Work

    Beth Erickson used her 15 years of experience in accounting and office management to develop into the senior level accountant that she is today.  Not your typical number cruncher, she values relationships and communication in business, while keeping her eye on the bottom line. Although Beth analyzes and presents all of the agency’s financial data, cash management is her primary responsibility. Enthusiasm and passion for the job keeps her engaged and always looking to improve processes. Recruited by the EVP of finance and operations, joining the BLITZ team was a welcome step in her career path that she didn’t seek out, but has proven to be a natural fit.

    Life

    Growing up in the San Fernando Valley, Beth was one of the original “Valley Girls.” She abused hair spray, shoulder pads and blue eyeliner until she honed in her personal style that she presents today. She’s passionate about fashion and styling, so you may hear a friendly compliment coming from her about something you’re wearing. Beth is a self-described homebody, but she also enjoys doing things outdoors, such as camping, hiking and biking. She spends her free time jogging, visiting with friends and family and living life to the fullest.  Beth has two beautiful dogs, Betsy and Maggie and a cat named Peaches.

  • Chad Brown Senior Software Developer

    Chad Brown

    Senior Software Developer

    Work

    Chad wrote his first computer program in 1984 on a Macintosh. In the years since then he has worn numerous hats in the world of technology, where there are many things he doesn't do, some things he won't do, but nothing he can't do. Today, Chad is part of the senior development team at BLITZ where he helps create remarkable digital experiences that showcase the latest Microsoft technologies.

    Life

    Chad is a passionate Technologist, Environmentalist, and Humanitarian who is into Waves, Software, Music, Macs, Catfish Kites, Design, Indonesia, Sticky Rice and Mangos.

  • Charles Erdman Experience Lead

    Charles Erdman

    Experience Lead

    Work

    At Blitz, Charles is responsible for helping craft user-focused digital experiences with any tool available: sculpey, cardboard, kitchen utensils- whatever’s on hand. Divining the needs of users requires self-less acts of white-boarding, improvisational story telling and questioning strangers about their motivations. All these activities are aimed at understanding how a digital tool’s interface and content deeply influence what people feel about a brand’s products or services.

    Charles has been working with great people and companies for the last 20 years in the field of communications- from Ogilvy & Mather to Razorfish. He began dabbling with web pages in 1994 when he co-wrote, designed and coded Central America’s first web-zine. He’s been smitten with design and technology ever since.

    Life

    Charles has a full plate. He likes it that way. With three kids who span two generations, one wife from his generation and three dogs from an unknown generation (do dog years come in such increments?), there is never NOT something to do. Charles has traveled to six of the world’s seven continents; dined with kings and queens; slept in dung-huts; tasted fear in the chill air of ancient mine shafts and fled the heavy footfall of charging elephants. He was raised in both the Rocky Mountains and on the Atlantic Ocean. He’s expecting more great things ahead of him.

  • Dino Petrone Sr. Flash Developer

    Dino Petrone

    Sr. Flash Developer

    Work

    Dino Petrone, a senior flash developer at BLITZ, has been making cutting- edge Flash applications, AIR apps, crazy cool microsites and basically anything experimental with Flash since 2002. Able to escape from the proverbial box, Dino specializes in finding quick and efficient solutions to the most complex problems. At BLITZ, Dino has worked on Adobe Youth Voices featuring the Black Eyed Peas, Guitar Hero¹s Smash Hits site and the Zoobles experiential site. Prior to BLITZ, Dino led teams at Sapient and EatDrink to architect, develop and implement scalable Flash applications and microsites.

    Life

    He spends his free time enjoying the company of his beautiful wife, Ashley, and his two little boys, Gabriel and Gavin.  He’s also training for a marathon.

    Dino received a Bachelor’s degree in Finance Real Estate and Business Law from California State University, Long Beach, and a Bachelor’s degree in Theology from Calvary Chapel Bible College .

    Speaking at FITC @max the last couple years...kinda fun.

  • David Ashe Project Manager

    David Ashe

    Project Manager

    Work

    David Ashe comes to BLITZ to help with the ever expanding responsibilities and opportunities with FX Networks. He’ll be running the general website management and maintenance. He comes with volumes of experience, being an interactive producer and manager at entertainment companies such as Sony, Disney, NBC, Electronic Arts and Spin Master. He’s also a huge fan of Archer, which may give some insight into what he thinks is (disturbingly) funny.

    Life

    David is a Los Angeles native — a UCLA alum — and resides in nearby Westchester with his wife and child (a daughter, 6). He’s a huge sports fan, following the Lakers, Chicago Cubs and the activity of his alma mater. When he’s not attending a sporting event (including his daughter’s soccer team) or watching sports on TV, David enjoys movies, books and exploring the latest interactive technology.

  • Erica Arnett Project Manager

    Erica Arnett

    Project Manager

    Work

    Erica Arnett was born and raised in Indiana (no, she didn’t live on a farm and don’t ask her if she’s milked a cow). After getting her bachelor’s degree in Communications at Purdue University and having a short-lived job at an advertising agency, she realized that she probably should have done something different during those four years so she returned to school at Indiana University. This time, she got a degree in New Media, and was excited to jump into the rapidly growing professional world of interactivity and multimedia as a project manager. Since then, she’s managed all kinds of projects such as DVD menus, websites, trailers and promos and at the risk of dating herself CD and DVD-ROMs. Her latest foray with BLITZ has her working on a variety of projects for Adobe and FX Networks, both clients that keep her on her toes.

    Life

    When not at work, Erica likes being outside and spending time with friends.  Walking, hiking, taking road trips (in the summer) and snowboarding and enjoying the rain (in the winter). Traveling is one of her favorite things, as well as filling her head with useless pop culture knowledge through TV shows and movies.

  • Alex Vejnoska User Experience Architect

    Alex Vejnoska

    User Experience Architect

    Work

    Alex Vejnoska is a longtime Internet aficionado, entering experience design through graduate studies in library and information science.. In his role as a user experience architect at BLITZ, he practices a blend of digital alchemy and experiential calculus, culminating in rich, rewarding and lasting experiences.  A graduate of USC and UCLA, Alex finds experience design to be fulfilling to practice, stimulating to talk about and impossible to describe to his parents.

    Life

    As a native Northern Californian, Angeleno status was thrust upon him after a decade of attending the southland’s sundry educational institutes. In his spare time, Alex enjoys his dogs, playing video games, creating novelty business cards, obsessing over Apple products, yelling at movie characters not to go in there, plotting get-rich-quick schemes, liking his own posts on Facebook and fretting over the San Francisco Giants on the Internet.

  • Amanda Burgess Sr. Project Manager

    Amanda Burgess

    Sr. Project Manager

    Work

    Amanda grew up in Idaho, but for some reason everyone in L.A. assumes this means Iowa. Potatoes, people, potatoes. After college, she moved to Southern California with the dream of working on big brands, with cutting edge technology and amazing people. So far the dream has come true. She has a passion for the industry and thrives off of its high-paced environment that challenges you daily to expand your mind and create plans to execute awesome ideas. That and the fact that she gets to create awesome spreadsheets in Excel.

    Life

    Outside of BLITZ, Amanda is an avid photographer, skydiver, SCUBA diver and    Girl Scout. (Yes, she can hook you up with some cookies.) Some weekends though, she really enjoys just a good movie and a comfy spot on the couch — oh, and some chocolate … lots of chocolate. Ooh … or some Nutella®! All  hobbies, interests and sweets aside, it’s lucky that Amanda’s in a committed relationship — otherwise she’d be one cat away from “Cat-lady-ville.”

  • Eric Thompson Sr. Designer

    Eric Thompson

    Sr. Designer

    Work

    Eric is a designer who stumbled out of the back woods of the Colorado mountains and found himself in Los Angeles clutched to a Wacom tablet, and a coffee cup. Eric brings an appreciation for loud music in headphones, great solutions for tough projects, and the ability to make bad jokes on the fly. Known for coining the phrase “I can’t stand sitting”, Eric is also known for his dedication to good work.

    Life

    With his roots in central Colorado, Eric loves to be outdoors. Hiking, mountain biking, camping, and snowboarding quickly turned into surfing, going to concerts, navigating through traffic, and watching movies in the Forever Hollywood Cemetery during the summer.

    Little know facts about Eric : his initials are EAT, he doesnt do “books on tape”, and his high score in bowling is 256 at age 14.

  • Eric Chevalier Account Manager

    Eric Chevalier

    Account Manager

    Work

    Eric Chevalier manages ongoing strategy and execution for social media programs as an account manager at BLITZ. Our clients say dealing with Eric is like getting to eat ice cream for every meal without getting fat. As a media technology major, his second job out of college was a professional baseball contract before he went back to earn his M.B.A degree. Since then, he's been managing brands for MLB and NFL athletes, Hollywood film studios, ESPN and the Honda Motor Company to name a few.

    Life

    After a chilly childhood in Alaska, Eric decided he only wanted to live near cities that started with an S. Through Seattle, Salt Lake City, St. Louis and San Diego, two things remained constant: baseball and bodies of water. The baseball thing ended up paying off, earning him a scholarship to the University of Utah. The water thing still stands. These days you’ll find Eric riding his bike along the coast, strumming his guitar and surfing his favorite breaks from San Diego to L.A. His dislikes include litter and shoes. To combat these nefarious offenses, he runs a community clean up project called ZeroTrash.org and goes barefoot whenever possible.

  • Elizabeth Smith Account Manager

    Elizabeth Smith

    Account Manager

    Work

    A Boston College graduate, Elizabeth has traversed a zig-zag career path in all things creative. After a single college course in IP law sparked her interest in the ever-changing music industry, she sought out a job in new media at Universal Music Group where she remained for four years in various departments. She later landed at The Creative Group where she did recruiting for creative professionals in the design and marketing fields. By 2010, Elizabeth found the perfect fit at bigMETHOD handling client services.  Today, she continues this role at BLITZ, as an account manager, where she adds her special knack for problem solving through good old-fashioned communication.

    Life

    A native Angeleno and youngest of six children, Elizabeth is an avid foodie and lusts over blogs of recipes that she has high hopes of cooking. She has an uncanny ability to quote movies. A skill that was fostered by her brothers and promised would later prove valuable as a great icebreaker to any awkward conversation.  A Manhattan Beach resident, Elizabeth’s style is described as "yacht-y." As she dreams of relaxing starboard, she embraces the active outdoor lifestyle beach living affords her.  If she can't earn a mention in Judge Smails’ next boat christening, you can find her cruising on her bike and cooking with friends as Sinatra blares in the background.

  • Ivan Todorov Co-Founder & CEO

    Ivan Todorov

    Co-Founder & CEO

    Work

    Ivan drives the strategic vision and growth for BLITZ, evangelizing the promise of creating sustainable relationships between brands and consumers. As CEO he brings a unique blend of business acumen, technology prowess and high-level commitment to client relationships. Every day he works hard to ensure the agency delivers exceptional brand experiences (the work), exceptional client experiences and exceptional employee experiences. As a result, over the last three years BLITZ has grown nearly 200% in size and revenue and was recently named the 31st best place to work and 66th fastest growing company in Los Angeles. He has studied and speaks five languages, holds a B.A. in computer video imaging and has most recently completed the Berlin School of Creative Leadership Program at Cannes.

    Life

    Ivan was raised in the harsh conditions of Eastern Europe, at times without electricity and hot water. He spent his formative years in Tokyo, Japan, and at age fifteen he immigrated to Silicon Valley by himself with a little bit of money to pursue his dreams and become a serial entrepreneur. During the .com bubble he studied computer video imaging and multi-media development, interned at SGI (Silicon Graphics, Inc.) and worked full time at The Motion Factory (later acquired by AVID | SoftImage). And yes, he did this concurrently while starting his first company, eStudio. Today Ivan enjoys his five-year old daughter, traveling the world, creating original electronic music and racing fast cars.

  • Ken Martin Co-Founder & Chief Creative Officer

    Ken Martin

    Co-Founder & Chief Creative Officer

    Work

    From Ken’s first entrepreneurship endeavor —which he sold at age 18 — to the roller coaster of ‘90s Silicon Valley, VCs, IPOs and .coms, Ken has always jumped in head first to overcome seemingly impossible challenges in the most creative, effective and magically unexpected ways. As CCO and Co-Founder of BLITZ, Ken nurtures a world-class team that works everyday to drive the industry forward and deliver creative ideas that help brands sprint past their competition. Ken has worked on major brand initiatives and garnered numerous awards for brands such as Adobe, Activision, Nike, Disney, GE, Google and Warner Bros. For all the dirty details, check his LinkedIn profile page below.

    Life

    Born in California’s Central Valley to a family of speedway-racing, mad-inventing, ‘80s computer hackers, Ken grew up building, creating, racing and blowing things up. From eccentric science fair competitions to garage band performances Ken has spent his life creating, questioning and testing the boundaries of what’s possible. With his love of art and computers, digital experiences became the lovechild of everything he gravitated toward. Married to his high school sweetheart (she just didn’t know it back then), he and his wife are busy parents to their four kids, three amazing boys and baby girl.

  • Greg Morrell EVP, Client Services

    Greg Morrell

    EVP, Client Services

    Work

    Greg Morrell is the executive vice president of Client Services and Strategy. He and his team of account directors work closely with our clients to make sure our work delivers real business impact. His passion is partnering with  clients to bring new products and services to market, and his goal is to maintain long-term and mutually profitable relationships as a result of our work. Greg has over 15 years of digital marketing and product innovation experience. Prior to BLITZ, Greg was senior vice president of Client Services at iCrossing, Inc. He graduated Magna Cum Laude from Bowdoin College.

    Life

    Greg grew up in the mountains of Utah, skiing, hiking, backpacking and mountain biking. Now living in So Cal with his wife and two kids, he continues to enjoy these outdoor activities as well as car racing.

  • Dean Shalit CFO/COO

    Dean Shalit

    CFO/COO

    Work

    At BLITZ, the culture is to hire the Hungry, Humble, and Smart. Dean claims, if he is going to fail at any of those attributes, it would be the humble part. Dean provides strategic guidance and business navigation advice for the company. He represents the third pillar along side of strong creative/user experience and technical practices that provide the stable foundation on which BLITZ is has built its success. And while Dean is tasked with keeping BLITZ financially on course, he always makes time to help employees who seek his advice. This father of four boys certainly gets no relief from having to solve complex interpersonal and tribal conflict issues.

    Life

    Dean was raised in New Jersey so his clock is set to east coast time and he weaves through LA traffic like a true New Yorker. Instead of going into construction or waste management, as did 95% of his graduating class, Dean decided to stay in school. As the business spirit was strong in him, Dean moved on to study finance in college and then to law school where he honed his craft as a WMD of business management who covers all aspects of legal, financial, and operational issues. He has some great stories that he loves to tell, and is a bunch of laughs…with some periodic groans. So, all in all he gives himself a pass on the not being humble thing.

  • Tim Richards SVP, Experience & Strategy

    Tim Richards

    SVP, Experience & Strategy

    Work

    At BLITZ, he leads Experience and Strategy — a group of experienced designers, researchers, analysts and strategists. Their work shapes clients’ brand positioning, communication strategy, experience designs, social planning and content approaches — all based on a mix of consumer insights and the courage needed to take a creative leap. Tim practices a mix of executive jazzercise and conference room kung fu. He’s a mixed media idea artist — whiteboards, sticky pads, sketch books and windows. He believes that good brands can make happy people, and happy people can make a better brand, efficiency in marketing, communicating specifically to populations based on powerful cultural connections and basic human motivations. Tim has been in the business for over 10 years – and has successfully developed experience strategy for brands like Intel, Disney, Naked Juice, HALO, Call of Duty and the NFL.

    Life

    Tim was born in Vegas to a jazz guitarist and a dancer choreographer. In fact, he grew up to be a musician himself – picking up a nasty soccer habit, a bit of Mandarin, and an insatiable curiosity for how the universe works along the way. Tim’s a proud father of 3 boys, an electronic producer, a fan of latin jazz...and, thus, a very busy husband. He’s passionate about the movement of information and trends from sub-cultures to popular cultures – and he has found a way to make that part of his job.

  • Tamer Kattan Head of Strategy

    Tamer Kattan

    Head of Strategy

    Work

    As BLITZ’s Head of Strategy, Tamer Kattan combines a passion for social psychology with over 15 years of strategic planning experience which he honed at global agencies like TBWA\Chiat\Day, Young & Rubicam, BBDO and Leo Burnett.  Along the way, he’s developed his own uniquely unorthodox process that pushes way beyond just uncovering insights to focus on uncovering the deep, human truths that make those insights inspirational.  Tamer and his group collaborate side by side with BLITZ’s creative teams to ensure that planning and execution are always perfectly aligned and that creative impacts business objectives.  Because strategy at BLITZ is more than just a discipline, it’s the way we solve problems.

    Life

    Tamer has been making TV commercials since he was 7 years old and is as smitten with the advertising world today as the day he started. He discovered early on that comedy has the singular power to cut through the short, cluttered attention spans of modern consumers, which led him to pursue a deeper understanding of the psychology of humor through academic study.  This passion, in turn, led to a career as a stand-up comedian.  After living in nine countries over the past 15 years, Tamer has found a home in Silver Lake and at BLITZ, but continues to headline world-renowned comedy venues like The Hollywood Improv, The Comedy Store and The Laugh Factory weekly.

  • Derek van den Bosch VP, Delivery

    Derek van den Bosch

    VP, Delivery

    Work

    Derek van den Bosch is the BLITZ vice president of Delivery. In this role, he walks around with a velvet glove in one hand and a baseball bat in the other. Metaphorically of course. Most of the time. He makes sure BLITZ gets it done, and gets it done right. Every time. Before BLITZ, Derek spent almost eight years working for TBWA/CHIAT/DAY as director of Digital Production – Prior to that he worked at Wieden + Kennedy and Razorfish in Amsterdam. Going back even further, we find him spending time in the dot com boom in So Cal, earning his stripes and learning how it feels to work all night getting a site live.

    Life

    All this Amsterdam work is not a coincidence. The “van den Bosch” name may have given it away – Derek was born and raised in the Netherlands, the land of tulips, windmills and great design. Having made Los Angeles his permanent home, Derek can be found hiking the nearby trails with his dog Buster, enjoying the L.A. restaurant scene with his wife and friends or scouring the local wine country for that amazing bottle. He’s passionate about great work, great advertising, great digital, social media, new media, combining digital and physical real-world spaces, and he’s especially passionate about bringing out the best in the people he works with.

  • Kia Zokaei Group Director, Production

    Kia Zokaei

    Group Director, Production

    Work

    Kia Zokaei is the Group Director, Production at BLITZ. He’s to his teams what a conductor is to an orchestra, both ensuring synergy between the disciplines and the work as well as guiding the cadence of the effort. Prior to BLITZ, Kia worked with Crispin Porter + Bogusky, HUGE Inc., Digitaria Interactive, technology research at USC’s Institute for Creative Technologies and founded a production company. Kia has experience producing across a variety of interactive and multimedia projects for clients such as Microsoft, Fox/FX, CBS, NBC, Mattel, CODA Automotive, Old Navy, USC’s Institute for Creative Technologies and the Army. Kia holds a Bachelor of Science degree in eBusiness and is pursuing his M.B.A. Kia is also a certified Project Management Professional as well as a Certified Scrum Master.

    Group Director, Production

    Life

    Kia has lived and traveled to many beautiful countries and now calls sunny L.A. his home. He lives and breathes interactive media, is an early adopter, shamelessly follows technology trends and has a thing for infographics. He’s always been fascinated with the art of technology. As a jack-of-all-trades, he’s dabbled in programming and design, naturally gravitating to a creative producer role. He’s a gamer (frequently outperforming Bobbie Boucher on Call of Duty), a snowboarder, a rookie mountain biker, and the only spectator sport he remotely cares about watching is the World Cup.

  • John Furnari VP, Social and Digital Media

    John Furnari

    VP, Social and Digital Media

    Work

    John leads the team responsible for strategic planning and execution across social communication, paid media and analytics. He previously co-founded bigMETHOD, a social media agency that joined BLITZ in 2011. John believes in brand strategy centered on delivering information individuals actually want to receive…and post, share, rehash or remix. It started with a passion project, cold calling his favorite local band Grace Potter & the Nocturnals to propose connecting with bloggers who covered similar artists. Early epiphanies laid the foundation for the approach implemented by BLITZ today. Over the years John has architected programs for Honda, City of Hope, Harley-Davidson, and the Disney Music.

    Life

    Raised by math teachers and the brother of a finance genius, it was natural John left college bent of being a club DJ.  Fortunately the Internet got in the way.  His vinyl collection still grows, but more often you’ll find him biking at Venice Beach, developing iterations of family pasta recipes, and figuring out which solid color T-shirt looks best with a Yankees hat.  Known to mumble, travel barefoot through offices, and pontificate about the value of making important decisions based on coin tosses.  He appreciates a lot of things in life, but whether it’s music, food, cinema, liquor, cities, or people, the defining characteristic John measures anything by is #soul.

  • Greg Cargill VP, Client Services and Social Media Services

    Greg Cargill

    VP, Client Services and Social Media Services

    Work

    At the ripe age of nineteen, Greg's life shifted dramatically as he began his education at the University of Southern California while simultaneously cutting his teeth in the Interscope Records New Media Department. He spent the next eight years at the center of the new music industry with a focus on developing awareness for celebrities, brands, and products through strategic digital partnerships. His time in the industry served as a living education in the world of online consumer engagement. That work laid the foundation for Greg’s contribution in founding bigMETHOD in 2008, a social media agency that joined BLITZ in 2011. As VP of Client Services and Social Media at BLITZ, Greg leads on business development and client connections for marketing programs centered on digital and social media.

    Life

    As an unwavering minimalist Greg has spent a lifetime obsessing to find the simplest solution to every question. If you are looking for an opinion, he’ll be happy to share one over an extended discussion that only ends because you agree with him or have heard enough. If you are trying to find the Greg that existed before work became life try asking him to go for a run, hike, or swim - those things have historically been able to distract Professional Greg long enough to see the boy still trapped inside. Oh, and even thought he likes a broad variety of music he listens almost exclusively to metal.

  • Leila Amirsadeghi Sr. Director, Business Development

    Leila Amirsadeghi

    Sr. Director, Business Development

    Work

    Upon graduation from City University Business School in London, she began her career in banking. But her entrepreneurial and creative side quickly took over and propelled Leila into the marketing and interactive worlds where she’s been playing since 1999. Today, Leila is the senior director, business development, and a member of the executive team. Her colleagues say she’s to business development at BLITZ to what Audrey Hepburn was to the screen. Leila is very passionate about her craft, her clients, and the brands with which she connects.  And, after meeting with Leila, you will be too.

    Life

    Leila loves life and has done a lot of living it.  Whether it's leading the Rangers at Burning Man or jetting off to different cities to reconnect with the endless masses of friends, Leila lives to the max. She was born in Tehran, but her parents quickly realized it was no place to raise a family. So, off to London they went to infuse this ball of energy with the most engaging, endearing and entertaining English accent. Feeling the need to further spread her wings, Leila hopped on a plane and made her way to the United States.

    In her downtime, Leila loves music and enjoys dancing and spending time with good people.

  • Andrea Amaro Experience Planner

    Andrea Amaro

    Experience Planner

    Work

    Andrea attended Columbia University, in New York, where she double majored in ancient mediterranean history and developmental psychology. Fresh off the Chinatown bus (and after being steadily employed from the age of 13 as a shoe saleswoman, nanny, person who blows bubbles at naked babies as they have their photos taken on white backdrops, afterschool teacher, bartender and senior citizen art class model), she landed a job at BLITZ as the office manager/ receptionist. Five years, five titles, three office locations, two-time tracking systems and one hell of a time later, Andrea is one of the many examples of success and growth at BLITZ where she now serves as an Experience Planner.

    In addition to being an Experience Planner, Andrea is also responsible for managing BLITZ’s city-renowned band, “The BLITiZen Kane Experience,” which swept the ThinkLA AdJam 2010 Battle of the Agency Bands.

    Life

    Outside of the office, Andrea spends time cooking, cleaning up after her four (three were unplanned) cats in her beautiful home in Highland Park with her fiancée Noah, and playing music with one of her many, many bands (Check us out at facebook.com/thefresas ... hey, we’re in advertising here!).

  • Laura Toneman Director, Project Management

    Laura Toneman

    Director, Project Management

    Work

    Laura Toneman has a bachelor’s degree in television production and a master’s in marketing/public relations, and has brought brand goals to life over the air and online for more than 15 years. Currently serving as director of Project Management, she’s been a part of the BLITZ family since 2006, ensuring that the clients’ goals are defined and achieved with the highest level of service. Consistent communication and timely delivery are her acumens, but stand-out products are what really move her. Prior to coming to BLITZ, Laura produced broadcast spots, news segments, programming blocks, viewing guides, newsletters, websites and widgets for Warner Brothers, Channel One Network and PBS/NPR.

    Life

    Laura grew up in West Palm Beach, Florida enjoying the year-round sunshine, surf and sand as a high-energy cheerleader and show choir soprano. In constant motion, her college years in Washington D.C. were coupled with travel as often as possible, spending a summer in Southern England and visiting more than seven countries in three years. Drawn, still, to the beach but following her call to the wild world of media production, Laura made L.A. her permanent home over 12 years ago. She enjoys a good restaurant, music, dancing, good people and engaging conversation. Travel and learning still move her. She welcomed her first baby boy in July and now spends her free time with her husband and little one enjoying the Southern California parks, doing yoga, trying new recipes of her own and entertaining friends at home.

  • Eric Perez Group Creative Director

    Eric Perez

    Group Creative Director

    Work

    Eric Perez, aka “Pep,” is responsible for the operation of the BLITZ Creative Department and ultimately accountable for all the solutions it develops. As GCD, Pep gets to direct a highly skilled group of multidisciplinary creative professionals who range from animators, designers and copywriters to 3D artists, art directors and photographers. Pep leverages 20+ years of creative experience and his vast knowledge of print, animation and interactive design help him to guide the teams to, as he puts it, “Realize, in a highly visceral way, the promise that BLITZ makes in its strategy and vision work.” Eric has held several creative leadership positions in his career in which he has served as associate creative director for an Adweek  Top 50 Interactive Agency and led teams in the launching of a number notable franchises, including HarryPotter.com and PiratesoftheCaribbean.com. Through Eric’s leadership, those respective agencies garnered awards from several prestigious groups, including the One Show, CLIO, Communication Arts Award of Excellence, Webby, Key Art and the Addy Awards. Pep relishes the opportunity to create and empower multidiscipline teams to craft engaging and useful digital ecosystems that surpass both client and consumer expectations.

    Life

    When not relishing, Pep enjoys finding the best chili verde with his wife in any town they happen to find themselves. He also engages in epic Lego® battles with his two sons, and discussing the merits of graphic novels vs. classic American literature with his daughter. Pep’s also been known to teach old dogs new tricks, particularly pit bull terriers.

  • Noah Gedrich Sr. Director, Technology

    Noah Gedrich

    Sr. Director, Technology

    Work

    Noah Gedrich is responsible for BLITZ’s technical vision and implementation for the agency’s compelling brand experiences across server-side development, advanced user-interfaces, interactive integration, and multiple user touchpoints and devices. Noah’s experience is backed by a number of awards for his technical expertise, including several Clio, One Show, SXSW Awards and an Award of Excellence from the Communication Arts Interactive Annual. Noah is highly regarded as an expert in Microsoft Silverlight and sought after as a speaker on the state of interactive marketing and the technologies that drive BLITZ’s groundbreaking campaigns.

    Life

    Noah was born and raised just outside of New York City, in the town of Irvington, New York. He received his bachelor’s degree from Wesleyan University. Once a classical violinist, Noah has played in many prestigious concert halls, including Carnegie Hall, Alice Tully and the Kennedy Center. He continues playing music with BLITZ’s band “Blitizen Kane” and the side project he shares with his fiancé, “Couches for Bears.” He lives with said fiancé and their innumerable cats in the wilds North-East Los Angeles. As a well-rounded nerd, he enjoys debating the classics; “Star Wars” vs. “Star Trek, ” Italian vs. French cooking, bourbon vs. rye and Microsoft vs. just about anybody.

  • Chris Morabito Director, Experience Design

    Chris Morabito

    Director, Experience Design

    Work

    As the Director of Experience Design at BLITZ, Chris leads a UX team passionately dedicated to creating lasting, durable connections between people and brands. He is responsible for all aspects of the UX practice at BLITZ, including account thought leadership, strategic planning and day-to-day operations.

    Chris has worked in the fields of design and user experience for more than a dozen years. His roster of current and past clients is countless and spans nearly every business vertical and media channel. Over the years his work has been recognized with Webby’s, Addy’s, IMA’s, SXSW HiveAwards, and Communication Arts features. His visual work has shown at the REDCAT Theater at the Walt Disney Concert Hall, the Walker Arts Center in Minneapolis, and several smaller galleries throughout Los Angeles.

    In addition to his responsibilities at BLITZ, Chris is an adjunct professor in the graduate Media Design Program at Art Center in Pasadena. He holds a BA in Philosophy from UCLA and an MFA in Graphic Design from CalArts.

    Life

    Born into a family of Italian emigres, professional magicians, motorcycle dare devils, and amateur genealogists, Chris is a part-time eccentric and full-time 80’s hair metal enthusiast. A proud L.A. native, he lives in a cottage in the hills above the city.

  • Michael Hsu Senior Director, Information Technology

    Michael Hsu

    Senior Director, Information Technology

    Work

    Michael Hsu is the Senior Director of Information Technology at BLITZ.  As the Senior Director with 7 years’ experience under his belt, his mission is to provide the BLITiZen community and clients with extraordinary service by listening and understand their needs.  Michael is highly proactive, constantly searching for inefficient workflows and figuring out how to make them more streamlined with information technology.

    Having been at BLITZ for 6 years, he has contributed to many internal projects such as decreasing the deployment time of staging sites, migrating to industry-standard business intelligence tools, streamlining resource and time tracking, and building a scalable and agile network infrastructure.  At the end of the day, Michael is constantly striving to exceed expectations and maximize business value delivered by technology.

    Life

    Outside of BLITZ, Michael enjoys reading about new technologies, answering questions on automotive and technology forums, spinning up new instances on RackSpace, and tinkering with new gadgets.  He is completely envious of people who are into cryptography, packet decoding, and algo trading.

  • Alan Arner Strategic Advisor

    Alan Arner

    Strategic Advisor

    Work

    Alan Arner is a strategic advisor to BLITZ taking on special projects as necessary and working with BLITZ’s senior management to achieve their goals and objectives. Alan was the chief operating officer and president of BLITZ for two years and helped achieve stability at a crucial time in the BLITZ evolution. Alan’s prior experience includes over 35 years experience in Operations, Product Development, Sales, Marketing and Customer Support. This includes managing company-wide operations for ea Consulting, a $17M consulting, services and operations firm in the western region for American Management Systems, a $1.7B consulting and services firm. He received  his B.S. degree in Mathematics from Fordham University in New York City.

    Life

    Alan was born and raised in New York City and has lived in worldwide locations that include London, Paris and various cities in the United States. Alan, his wife, Carol and three children, Brandon, Jayson and Sean live in Northern California. He enjoys mountain and road biking, skiing, golf, tennis and fast cars.

Life @ BLITZ

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Stalk Us

We love food. And shopping. And movies and books. Since much of the "BLITiZen culture" comes from where we've been and what we bring back, here's a list of where we were this week.

If you insist on being that creepy stalker type, here are a number of our favorite haunts.

Wanna play with us? See our open positions.