After a review, Avis has hired Leo Burnett as its U.S. creative agency. McCann was the incumbent on the account. Avis Budget Group devoted nearly $30 million in domestic measured media to market the Avis brand between January and November 2011.

After a three-year run, San Francisco-based agency Pereira & O’Dell and the University of Phoenix are parting ways. The University of Phoenix spent $156 million in domestic measured media between January and November 2011.

Henkel Consumer Goods has shifted creative duties for its laundry and home-care brands, including Purex, Renuzit and Soft Scrub, to Pereira & O’Dell. Purex was previously handled by Energy BBDO. U.S. measured media spending for the brands was a combined total of nearly $30 million in 2010.

Agency Creative/ Producers

Ogilvy & Mather has hired Lee Newman, managing director at Wieden & Kennedy, Amsterdam, as its president.

David Rolfe is slated to join BBDO New York in March as its director of integrated production, reporting to David Lubars, BBDO’s chairman and chief creative officer. Rolfe comes over from CP&B, Boulder where he held the same title. CP&B does not plan to name a new director of integrated production. Instead the agency will name a director of video production in the next few weeks.

Ari Merkin, executive creative director at CP&B Miami, is also leaving the company. Merkin will still be connected to CP&B parent MDC Partners in a consulting relationship.

Deutsch LA has appointed Jerome Austria as EVP, group digital creative director for Volkswagen. Austria, who has been working for the agency on a freelance basis since 2011, was the creative behind the ‘The Bark Side,’ VW’s online teaser for this year’s Super Bowl spot through the agency. Prior to joining Deutsch, Austria was co-executive director of Wieden+Kennedy NY.

Energy BBDO has appointed Giovanni Settesoldi and Luissandro Del Gobbo as senior vice presidents, creative directors. The duo joins Energy BBDO after spending four years at Grey Paris as creative directors.

The Martin Agency has promoted Joe Alexander to executive creative director.

CP&B has promoted Mike Danko to associate creative director and Kate Hildebrant to executive producer.

DNA Seattle has hired Pete Hughes and Lianne Onart as associate creative directors.

Aude Gandon, the Paris-based L’Oréal worldwide account director at McCann Erickson, is leaving to join Publicis Worldwide.

Art director/designer Mark Beacock has left Lean Mean Fighting Machine to set up a new creative agency Turned Out Nice Again. He is joined in the new agency by partners Sam Willard and Tom Bur.

Directors/Production

Rabbit has signed comedy director Bobby Farrelly for his first-ever commercial representation.

Futuristic Films has signed documentary director Daniel Junge to its roster.

Green Dot Films has signed director Robert Jitzmark, who comes to the LA-based company from Hungry Man.

Accomplice has signed director Otis to its roster.

ONE at Optimus has added director Brian Johnson to their roster.

Robin Fryday has joined Nonfiction Unlimited for representation for spots and documentaries.

Caviar is opening a London office in a joint venture with UK-based Pulse Films, adding to the production company’s existing offices in Amsterdam, Brussels, Los Angeles and Paris. The move will make Caviar’s roster of directors available to the UK market. Sadie Ward at Pulse Films will act as head of sales for Caviar’s London office.

Motion Theory has announced that it has rebranded and will now operate as MTh.

The Sweet Shop has extended production services into Bangkok, Thailand, adding Claire Davidson to its executive team to lead the company in the South East Asian market.

Misc.

Droga5 has received several million dollars in backing from prominent investors who are trying to help the agency expand while retaining its independence. The investment was led by a private group headed by investor Henry Silverman and media mogul Bob Pittman, and is understood to be between $5 million and $10 million. The funds will be used primarily to expand the agency’s New York office, and to help Droga5 open its doors in a new market, most probably London.

Publicis Groupe has completed a share buyback to end its decade-long partnership with Japanese ad giant Dentsu. The Paris-based holding company bought a block of 18 million of its own shares from Dentsu for $848.5 million.

A year after exiting the top post at Y&R, Hamish McLennan joined News Corp., as executive VP, Office of the Chairman – a job created to help the embattled company forge ties with global brands.

Upcoming Events

February 9 – 19 Berlin International Film Festival (Berlin, Germany)

March 9 – 18 SXSW (Austin, Texas)

March 21 – British Arrows Awards (London, UK)