EXCLUSIVE: Gersh SVP and Head of Global Corp Comms Matt Andrée Wiltens is heading to DDA to become their new SVP, U.S. Entertainment & Strategy. In addition, DDA has hired Ryan Smith as Director, U.S./Domestic Film & Series.
As part of Wiltens’ move, Gersh will also be making the transition to DDA as a client where the exec will continue covering all corporate comms and events for the talent agency.
Both Wiltens and Smith will work from DDA’s Los Angeles office.
In his new role, Wiltens will work closely with the DDA partners to continue to build out the film and entertainment verticals as well as identifying and building additional areas of the business in the U.S.
Wiltens counts two decades working in-house at studios, production companies, and agencies across communications, film PR, awards, brand building and marketing. He joined Gersh two years ago. Prior to Gersh, Wiltens spent five years at Amblin Partners, where, as VP of Marketing and Communications, he led award-winning campaigns for 1917, The Fabelmans, Green Book, and West Side Story, collaborating closely with Steven Spielberg, Sam Mendes, and leading distributors. Following his time at Amblin, Andrée Wiltens worked in-house with Oscar–nominated filmmaker Michael Mann on Ferrari. He began his career at Paramount, where he spent ten years working across PR and marketing – both international as well as global brand strategy.
Smith spent close to a decade running point and working on campaigns at R&C and PMK, across Apple TV, Lionsgate, Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, Angel Studios, AGBO, CJ 4DPLEX and more, as well as supporting talent publicity and executive visibility campaigns. Smith will lead the U.S. film and series team in Los Angeles and work directly as a counterpart to Katie Conklin and team in NYC.
Smith started his career at Allied Global Marketing, working on regional publicity and promotions campaigns, and then later joined Click Communications where he supported film and home entertainment campaigns for studios such as Walt Disney Studios, Universal Studios, Sony Pictures, 20th Century Fox, Lionsgate, and Dreamworks.
“Matt brings a rare combination of creative vision, operational expertise, and extensive industry connections, establishing him as a trusted advisor to some of the industry’s highest profile executives and creatives,” said DDA LA based partner Dana Archer on behalf of the Board. “Ryan is a highly respected and connected film and television publicist, whose leadership and passion for storytelling will shine at DDA. Both are accomplished professionals with a passion for movies, who will integrate seamlessly into our company culture as we continue our expansion in the US.”
