The film and
commercial vet
will relocate
from Chicago,
where he was a
mainstay at
Filmworkers Club
(New York — 24 September 2018) Senior Colorist Fred Keller is heading home; the veteran post production artist, a mainstay of the color scene in Chicago for the past dozen years, is going back to New York as he sets out to build the color department at Click 3X, the renowned production and digital studio based here.
His appointment was announced today by Peter Corbett, Click 3X Founder and CEO.
Keller’s color credits are richly-hued and impressive. A Queens native and graduate
of Fordham, Keller spent a dozen years as a Senior Colorist at Filmworkers Club in Chicago, where he worked for every major agency in the Midwest, including Leo Burnett, DDB, FCB, Energy BBDO, Havas, Burrell, mcgarrybowen and others.
He started his career in New York, however, at the venerable color studio Manhattan Transfer, which later became Company 3. While there he not only graded commercials but also worked on longer-form projects including music videos, features and TV series such as Sex and The City and The Wire for HBO.
His current commercials reel includes spots for such brands as McDonald’s, State Farm, Coors, Walmart, Alfa Romeo, Capital One, Skittles and many others. To view his work, click here.
In addition to handling color grading, Keller will also partner at Click 3X with the renowned Flame Artist Victor Melton to offer clients an integrated color, finishing and retouching resource.
“Bringing in a talent of Fred’s stature is an important part of our plans for Click
3X,” says Corbett. “Our expanding our color capabilities meshes perfectly with our
relationship with our sister company Industrial Color Studios. They have a long legacy of doing high-end color correction for fashion, beauty and consumer brands, and that appreciation for the role of the color artist in the creative process is part of our corporate culture.
“Given this, it made sense for us to elevate the color work we’ve been doing, and
Fred’s eye, his aesthetic and his experience working with agencies, creative teams
and brands complements the ICS legacy nicely, as well as our own,” Corbett
continues. “They’ll provide the foundation for our color department as we move
forward.”
Keller says he was looking to return to New York, and the opportunity to not only
lead but help build a color department at Click 3X appealed to him greatly. “I’ve
been aware of them since my time in New York, and knew they were a well-respected
and highly regarded studio,” he says. “I was impressed when they became part of the
Industrial Color family; it told me they’re a progressive company adapting to
changes in the industry. When I asked around about them, the response I got from
friends and colleagues was overwhelmingly positive.”
Being part of ICS, Keller feels, means Click 3X will be a major player when it comes
to color: “With this legacy, you really need to be able to offer color work at the
highest levels,” he says. “I see color as playing a critically important role in
achieving a client’s vision. It’s about creating a visual language that incites the
viewer’s emotions, and I’m looking forward to working with creatives who want to
take an unconventional approach to exploring the look and feel of their projects.”
While Keller will be based in New York, he’ll be available to Click 3X clients via
the company’s expanded network of facilities located in Chicago, Los Angeles, Dallas
and Philadelphia. As for being back in Manhattan, he notes how the city and its post
production marketplace has changed, as has the color grading profession. “The ease
of access to color tools has made so many people think they can do color work,” he
observes. “But you really need an experienced color artist, working with a
supportive environment, to maintain the kind of quality clients, agencies and
audiences expect. It’s important to avoid that mentality that says something is
merely ‘good enough’ for digital or mobile.”
About Click 3X
Positioned at the intersection of content, advertising, and technology, Click3X creates engaging film, TV, web and branded content using various disciplines across multiple platforms. Its team of directors, photographers, artists, designers, animators, producers and developers is now part of CoCreativ, bringing a wealth of new resources, including shooting stages, to New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Dallas and Philadelphia.
Send your studio updates to Reel Chicago Editor Dan Patton, dan@reelchicago.com.
