MEET QUIRK

Meryl is the co-founder and CEO of Quirk Creative She was named one of the “32 Under 32” by San Francisco advertising pub, SFEgoist in 2015. Draper began her career in public relations at MSLGROUP, working with clientele including Cisco and Blackboard. She joined Ogilvy & Mather in Bangalore, India, where she oversaw IBM's advertising campaigns across 25+ global markets. Prior to founding Quirk, Draper built big data startup darling 6sense's brand from the ground up, helping secure $32 million in funding.

Gaelan directs video ad campaigns and creative strategy for our clients. Recently, he directed the live-action film, "Blood, Sand and Gold" (2017 theatrical release), which was shot in six countries around the world. He has directed and worked on campaigns for Walmart, Uber, Spotify, Western Union, Williams Sonoma and others. His work has received awards including REGGIE - National Consumer Campaign, IAC - Outstanding Online Video, and W3 - Integrated Campaign, to list a few.

Born in the bayou, Armani Barron is an acclaimed production and visual designer. From video to experiential, she has immersed herself in a variety of mediums. Some of her most notable projects as a production designer and art director include, SELFISH, a self-help pop up experience, Women Of The Now’s short film Scutly, and the comedic web series All American Sex Offender.

Emily is a Copywriter and New Jersey transplant. Emily began her career at mcgarrybowen New York where she worked on a range of clients like Audible, Burt’s Bees, Subway, Northrop Grumman, and Crayola. In 2017, she even got the honor of retiring a crayon color (RIP Dandelion), which earned her a Reggie Award. When she’s not dreaming up ads, Emily writes sketch comedy at the UCB Theater.

Sydney graduated from the University of Idaho with a degree in advertising. She wants everyone to know that “Idaho is not in the Midwest,” and that “it’s not the same as Iowa.” Whatever you say, Syd! The fast pace of advertising and her craving for challenges initially drew her to this career path. She’s passionate about video production and people, which is why she loves being a Senior Account Executive at Quirk. On the weekends, she enjoys moseying around Manhattan—Americano in hand—in hopes of “running into” John Mulaney.

Many (many!) years ago Lindsay had the option of starting her career in new business at a digital agency, or going back to school for a masters in photography. New business won out and in a tale of two cities, she’s led growth for leading agencies in Boston and New York. Lindsay's favorite New York moment is sunset at the Met with the (not so now!) secret tip to go hours just before closing to enjoy the best views of the work and from the rooftop. Lindsay daydreams of having a dog named Dumpling or Pudding — share your vote!

A San Francisco native and graduate of NYU, Evelyn began her career working in the fashion industry. First hired as an assistant, she worked her way up to becoming a producer where she discovered her love of being on set. Before landing at Quirk, Evelyn spent a year in Japan teaching English then eventually returned to New York to work in food media production. In her spare time she likes to experiment with vegan cooking and entertain the idea of adopting a dog.

Born in Guadalajara, Mexico (just like our sister agency), Chris currently lives in Brooklyn and has worked in the industry since graduating from Florida State University (capsule review: he majored in Marketing, Professional Sales, plus French, oh là là). Hot off the presses, Chris has been shortlisted for Campaign US, “Account Person of the Year”!

Chris combines keen attention to detail with genuine care for his clients. He started his career in B2B and managed the fully-integrated campaign for the debut of Spectrum Enterprise, upon the merger of Time Warner with Bright House Networks. After pivoting to consumer advertising, Chris has managed possibly every vertical. With his skills in the art of strategic and effective video advertising, he's increased engagement with Disney Princesses and converted users for Daily Harvest.

When he isn't at work, on set, or tending to his many house plants, you can probably find him at his local Bushwick bar fangirling over his favorite drag queen on stage (pre-COVID).

Wren leads the creative team and directs our video production from kickoff to final export. Some of the projects she’s led include Book of the Month, Nutrafol, Trade Coffee and TULA Skincare where the spots drove a 6x YoY increase for the brand. Business Insider named her a 2020 Rising Star of Madison Avenue for her leadership and ability to pivot. At the start of her career, Wren worked in the branding space, building many DTC wellness brands from the ground up. Her background in branding and her Communication Design degree from Parsons deeply inform her approach, and she loves bringing brands to life with video.

Queens native Annmarie Stec holds a BA in TV & Radio, and has worked hundreds of freelance production jobs across the country. She started her Quirk career as a Production Assistant, and steadily worked her way up to Producer thanks to her innate knack for making things run on time. An avid TV and movie watcher, she regularly beats the rest of the office at pop culture trivia. She speaks fluent Polish and is learning French.

Ariel has been a video editor in the advertising field in New York for the past 6 years. From real-estate, fashion, tech and pharmaceutical, to small business ads, her background in documentary journalism always permeates her work, making it a more authentic and relatable viewing experience. As a Spanish native with roots in both Israel and Argentina, Ariel has a unique understanding of the diverse audience she aims to inspire daily through her editing work.