News Briefs

Adcenter grad helps create Super Bowl commercial

A 1998 VCU Adcenter graduate helped create a 30-second commercial that debuted during this year’s Super Bowl.

Stacy Milrany, senior art director at Goodby, Silverstein & Partners in San Francisco, told the Richmond Times-Dispatch she spent many sleepless nights working on the Emerald Nuts commercial compared to previous projects.

“When you get a Super Bowl spot, it’s a lot of pressure,” she told the newspaper.

Milrany also said she had the most fun working on this particular commercial.

“The client challenged us to be different and bold and brave,” she told the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

The commercial used all of the letters in “Emerald Nuts” to create a sentence and a scene. Milrany said she expects the advertisement to boost sales. Last year, Emerald Nuts aired a commercial during the Super Bowl, and sales jumped 56 percent.

Last year’s Super Bowl commercials featured some VCU alumni behind the scenes as well.

Patrick McKay, a 2001 graduate of the Adcenter, worked on ads for Ameriquest created by DDB Los Angeles.

A 1993 graduate of the School of Mass Communications, Kevin Rugland helped create Olympus ads with the Martin Agency.

Man arrested for Fan District robberies

Richmond Police on Jan. 30 arrested a man in connection with robberies in the Fan District.

Richmond local Thomas Edward Wade II, 20, has been charged with two counts of robbery, two counts of using a firearm in commission of a felony, possession of a firearm while in possession of crack cocaine and possession of a firearm by a felon, according to the Richmond Times-Dispatch.

Additional charges include possession of cocaine with intent to distribute, carrying a concealed weapon, grand larceny, felony obstruction of justice and felony assault on a police officer.

Richmond Police said they are working with University Police in the investigation of other robberies that may be related.

– Compiled from the Richmond Times-Dispatch