Independent creative company Mother has elevated Jed Cohen to co-executive creative director of the Los Angeles office, alongside creative partner and co-ecd Simon Bruyn, who was promoted to the role in 2021.
The Mother LA creative team. L-r: Romain Naegelen, managing director; Erin Goodsell, head of production; Jed Cohen, ecd; Jesse Unger, head of strategy; Simon Bruyn, ecd; Megan Sul, casting director.
Cohen and Bruyn will lead creative across the agency’s roster of clients, including Sonic, Postmates, Peloton, Ceria (via Mother Ventures), and a confidential new global client run out of Mother in LA. The two will report to Joe Staples, CCO of Mother in the USA.
“Under Jed and Simon’s creative leadership, the L.A. office has the ability to do world-class creative work for our clients and our own brands,” said Staples in a statement. “The way they collaborate internally—and with Mother’s family of companies—is a clear sign of their vision to build the next generation of creative company, and to deliver on our mission of ‘Making our Children Proud.’”
Cohen, originally from South Africa, joined Mother in March 2022 from TBWA\Media Arts Lab, where he worked solely with Apple. In 2021, he was nominated for an Emmy for the Apple work and was also named to Adweek’s Creative 100 in 2021 alongside then creative partner Jeremy Wirth. Before that, he was a creative director at 72andSunny, where he created award-winning work for Sonos, Call of Duty, Coors Light, ESPN, Carl’s Jr. and National Geographic.
An accomplished filmmaker outside of the office, Cohen co-wrote the short film Teddy Bear, which was featured in the 2022 Tribeca Film Festival. Throughout his career, his work has been recognized by Cannes Lions, D&AD, Clios, One Show, Andy’s and Webbys.
“The very first job I ever interviewed for was at Mother. I didn’t get it. So, I spent the rest of my career just being jealous of this company’s weird, perfect combination of creativity, entrepreneurship and values,” said Cohen in a statement, adding that he now gets to replace that jealousy with general “stokedness” for the opportunity to help lead Mother in LA grow.
Mother’s next generation of leadership is helping the company grow on the West Coast, which also includes Mother Design. Mother in LA has added five new clients, including oral care brand Quip, since January 2022 when the agency returned to in-person working. The company recently moved into a new office in the West Adams neighborhood.