CREATE NAMES JONATHAN GITLIN CEO AND EXPANDS GLOBAL CREATIVE LEADERSHIP

-Twenty-Year Company Veteran Takes The Helm As The Studio Expands Talent, Technology, And Global Operations To Address The Rapidly Changing Industry-

LOS ANGELES, May 29, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Create has named Jonathan Gitlin as Chief Executive Officer, succeeding founder David Stern who transitioned to Chairman after leading the organization for more than two decades. Stern will continue advising on long-term strategy as Chairman, while Gitlin assumes responsibility for day-to-day operations alongside the senior leadership team that has helped drive the company's growth across Los Angeles and London. 

"Jonathan embodies the values that define Create — creativity, strategic vision, and a deep commitment to our clients and team," said Chairman David Stern. "Over the past twenty years, he has helped shape the company's growth and direction alongside an exceptional, homegrown team that has supported one another for many years. Together, they are helping rebuild and redefine the business, and I'm confident Create will continue to set the standard for our industry."

In addition, EVP and Creative Executive, Suneil Beri will assume leadership of the Film/Series team to drive next-level creative innovation. Beri has been with the company for over 15 years and successfully built the London office into a key part of the company's international presence. 

Gitlin, a 20-year veteran of the company, joined Create as a design intern in 2006 and steadily advanced through the organization- from 3D Motion Designer to Creative Director of Design, then Partner, and most recently, President. His progression through nearly every level of the agency has given him a rare, firsthand perspective that few executives in entertainment marketing share, providing a uniquely comprehensive understanding of both the creative and operational sides of entertainment marketing. Gitlin has played a key role in shaping Create's growth across departments, and his career trajectory reflects the company's long-standing commitment to developing and retaining talent from within.

His appointment comes at a crucial moment in entertainment when theatrical, streaming, and gaming are all consolidating around fewer, bigger players. 

"Today's clients are looking for partners who are intuitively aligned with their business — teams that can anticipate needs before they're articulated and move seamlessly from insight to execution," said Gitlin. "At Create, we've built a culture around that kind of attentiveness: strategic, deeply collaborative, and designed to get to breakthrough ideas faster." 

Under Gitlin's leadership, Create is increasing their commitment across three core areas: prioritizing culture and talent, further integrating its creative services across every vertical and between its London and Los Angeles offices and investing in AI-native operations built for the next generation of entertainment marketing.

"Clients are looking for partners who can deliver best-in-class creative across every discipline and move at the pace each moment demands," said EVP and Creative Executive Suneil Beri. "Create's connected studios in Los Angeles and London are built to do exactly that, with the strategy behind the work understood as fluently as the craft itself." 

Create recently launched an expanded key art and creative strategy practice across Los Angeles and London. The practice gives clients a single connected team from first brief through global rollout. As part of this expansion, the company has hired Joey Samaniego as Creative Director, Head of Key Art, and Gerry Batson as Global Director, Creative Strategy.

Samaniego's recent credits include campaigns for The Bride!, The Mandalorian and Grogu, Sinners, and GOAT.

Batson joins the London office with campaign experience across Netflix, Amazon, and Apple, including The Boys, Gen V, and Ted Lasso.

Rather than implementing top-down AI mandates, Create developed its proprietary intelligence platform through structured training, collaborative learning, and employee-led problem-solving and experimentation. The approach has driven adoption from the inside out, making AI a native and well-integrated part of how the agency works rather than a layer on top of it.

"Our biggest investment isn't in technology. It's in the people harnessing it," Gitlin said. "Technology only matters if it empowers better thinking, increased collaboration, and most importantly stronger creative outcomes. We want Create to be a place where the next generation of entertainment creatives learns how to build the future of this business."

The announcement comes on the heels of 2026 Golden Trailer Awards where Create took home three of the prestigious awards and had 16 nominations spanning across theatrical, streaming, television, games and behind-the-scenes categories. Nominated campaigns include Sinners, Tron: Ares, Mountainhead, Only Murders in the Building, Lilo & Stitch, Netflix's War Machine, and Silent Hill f.

Beyond the client work, Create also invests in the broader trailer community through Ping It On (PIO), its annual industry ping pong tournament now in its fifth year. PIO was created to bring the entertainment marketing community together, drawing more than 500 attendees from 23 agencies last year, including trailer houses, creative shops, music houses, and vendors. It's a reflection of the same belief that shapes how Create operates internally: the work is stronger when the people are connected.

"I walked into this company as an intern twenty years ago," Gitlin said. "Leading it now feels less about the title and more about a responsibility to the people who built this organization with me. It's an honor to protect the culture and help guide the next generation who will define what it becomes."

ABOUT CREATE:
Create is an entertainment marketing studio operating across Los Angeles and London. Capabilities span creative strategy, key art, brand and design systems, creative content, live-action production, AV editorial, social, and experiential. Clients include theatrical studios, streamers, games, and live sports.

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SOURCE Create Advertising Group