DALLAS --
Republic has elevated Brian Hwang to an equity partner in its production division, Republic Productions. Hwang will continue in his role as executive producer, and utilize his new position as partner to streamline decision-making as he leads the growth of the studio’s directorial roster, technical offerings and client base.
“Four years ago, we brought Brian on with the precise directive of building a production department from the ground up. That is exactly what he has done and we couldn’t be more impressed by his success in such a short period of time,” said Chris Gipson, founding partner of Republic Productions (launched in 2019), and its parent company, Republic (established in 2013), alongside founding partners Carrie Callaway and Keith James.”
A seasoned veteran, Hwang brings over two decades of production, postproduction and agency experience to his new ownership role, having spent 10 of those years at McCann New York. After moving to Texas in 2016 and growing roots in the Dallas ad community, Hwang was added to the team in early 2019, to help Republic launch its production arm, initially under the name Threaded Pictures. The division was later rebranded under the Republic banner in January of last year as Republic Productions.
“I couldn’t be more proud of the production shop that the Republic partners and I have developed in just four short years,” said Hwang. “I credit their support and leadership for allowing me to execute our shared vision of a diverse and talented roster of directors capable of working on projects of all shapes and sizes, both in the U.S. and internationally.”
Republic Productions’ roster consists of directors Josh Blaylock, TG Herrington, April Kirby, Amos David McKay, Chad Ostrom, Ben Tedesco and Taylor Washington. Of his new elevated role, Hwang added, “I’m driven now more than ever to work on our next phase to take Republic Productions to another level.”
Hwang also serves as president of AICP Southwest and as the Southwest regional director for the AICP National Board, titles which he has held since late 2018 and which keeps him current with industry issues and challenges. During the pandemic lockdown and subsequent easing of restrictions, Hwang’s coordination with state and local governments helped the area’s commercial production move forward and rebound quickly. Recently, he chaired the first in-person AICP Awards National Tour Dallas Show in three years, held at the Perot Museum last November, and continues to use his leadership position to strengthen the production industry in the Southwest region.
Tags:AICP SouthwestBrian HwangChris GipsonRepublic Productions
Monday, August 5, 2024
In recent years the movie industry has gone through the streaming revolution, the pandemic, labor strikes and "Barbenheimer." But after countless upheavals in Hollywood, you're still more than twice as likely to see male speaking characters in theatrical releases than you are female ones.
Just 32% of speaking characters in the top 100 movies at the box office in 2023 were women or girls, according to the University of Southern California's Annenberg Inclusion Initiative annual report released Monday. That's very nearly the same percentage as when Stacy L. Smith first began the study in 2007. Then, it was 30% of speaking characters.
The gender imbalance was pronounced in other areas, too. Just 30% of leading roles in the top films were women or girls, a huge decrease of 14% from 2022 and roughly the same figure as in 2010. Only 11% of films were gender balanced, with girls or women in 45-54.9% of speaking roles.
"No matter how you examine the data, 2023 was not the 'Year of the Woman.' We continue to report the same trends for girls and women on screen, year in and year out," Smith said in a statement. "It is clear that there is either a dismissal of women as an audience for more than one or two films per year, a refusal to find ways to create meaningful change, or both.
"If the industry wants to survive its current moment, it must examine its failure to employ half the population on screen," added Smith.
"Barbie" may have been the No. 1 film at the box office last year, but, as has historically been the case, a few prominent releases don't by themselves move the needle against persistent trends.
The USC study doesn't analyze what Hollywood makes, just what's most widely watched in theaters. That leaves out a wide swath of... Read More
