Blending our knowledge and experience in television, publishing, music and film, IM&D has created our own unique brand of marketing and design services that are corporate in quality but cottage in philosophy, pricing and personability.
Working on a Saturday (Artist Credit: Ray Caesar)
We’re creepy and we’re kooky, mysterious and…oh wait, this is a BUSINESS bio. Guess I’ll write more business-y…maybe.
*ahem*
To be honest, that Addams Family theme is pretty perfect for Immortal Marketing and Design. If you’ve been browsing the site, you’ve probably noticed one resounding through-line: we like to create in the dark.
However, that doesn’t mean we can’t plan and execute incredible campaigns for potential clients who aren’t in darker genres. Every person involved with IM&D began as (or still are) MAINSTREAM creative professionals. We’re not in the business of trying to make someone into something they’re not. So if we’re a good fit for each other, we’ll draw on your strengths and do everything in our power to make you stand above the rest in your particular genre – dark, light, or anywhere in-between.
Immortal Marketing & Design is physically located in the central United States. But most of our creative family is based in Los Angeles, California. We’re comprised of Emmy, Telly, Davey and Pixie-Award winning filmmakers, graphic artists, video editors, motion graphics designers, photographers, jewelers, painters, set-designers, creature FX artists, musicians and actors. We also have one very important thing in common: We’re fringe professionals. We’ve got decades between us of corporate experience, which means we know the rules…how to work them to our advantage and how to effectively break them when necessary.
We’re also connected to film studios, broadcast networks, music agencies, genre-based websites, publishers, journalists and magazine publications. And that incredible community is only growing…
All of the above combined means IM&D is in a position to do high-quality work at cost-effective rates. We do not give clients a bunch of smoke-and-mirrors corporate-speak, nor do we throw a bunch of hidden “crap-charges” into our quotes and fees. If you want us to be your creative team, we will be upfront, fair and bullshit-free all the way. And once you’re our client, we consider you family, too. This means we expect confidentiality, respect and honesty return. It’s all about relationships and humanity with us, not just product and money.
Jeannine “NiNi” Burkart – CEO, Immortal Marketing &Design
I’m Jeannine Burkart, but everybody calls me by my stage name, NiNi (pronounced Nee-Nee). My online alter-ego is Jayda Steele – that photo up there of Batty Girl is me when I’m Jayda.
The beginning of my career in Creative Services is astoundingly similar to Peggy Olson’s from MAD MEN – without the raging chauvinism and office cigarette smoke, thank the ’90s. I began as receptionist at KOKI/KTFO. Within three months, I was promoted to the role of Creative Services Assistant – and the only female in that department… which is where being a tomboy came in very handy. (It’s also where I further refined my potty mouth).
From there, I quickly became On-Air Promotions Director, playing an influential part in launching the good ol’ UPN – United Paramount Network in our city. As a major geek, that was an exciting time, because we’d pretty much made our UPN network into a mini version of SyFy Channel (back when it was called Sci-Fi).
My three years at Tulsa’s FOX/UPN affiliates were among the best of my creative career to date. I learned a lot about strategic on-air promotions placement, event planning and contest creation, how to maximize air time and create theme weeks.
I also wrote copy, produced and trafficked promotional spots and kept a central vault of press kits and promotional materials safe and organized for the entire company. I also sang – yes, sang – a notorious commercial jingle for a bra company and contributed my operatic background to a song about our new late fringe lineup that included lyrics like, “Who would have thought so much T&A could really be on TV to stay?!” <–That was in reference to Pamela Anderson on BAYWATCH. As a huge hockey girl, another big highlight was launching the national promotions for live NHL hockey when it came to FOX Network.
Yes, local TV was so much fun! But after three years, I knew I needed to move on. In my mind, the natural progression of my career would be from a local broadcast affiliate to a national cable TV network. So that’s what I did.
The remaining decade-plus of my corporate entertainment career was at TV Guide Network / Lionsgate.
My true career highlight was being promoted to such a variety of departments, in which I learned more about the business than many of my own managers had. My positions included Advertising Coordinator, Marketing and Promotions Traffic Coordinator, Creative Services Writer-Producer, Multi-Platform Marketing Specialist, Voice-Over Talent and Strategic On-Air Promotions Director. I was also an official blogger at TVGuide.com.
In television alone, my work was distributed to over eighty million households and attached to multi-million dollar revenue buys from conventional advertisers such as Proctor and Gamble, Johnson and Johnson, Phillip Morris, Revlon, L’Oreal and Kraft.
Some of my highest profile projects included promoting The Big Five Networks’ new fall programming launches and sweeps events, The American Idol Franchise, as well as Red Carpet Events for AMPAS [The Oscars], ATAS [The Emmy's], The Hollywood Foreign Press Association [Golden Globes] and The Screen Actors Guild Awards. I was also lead producer on network promotions for new program launches, on-air re-branding and holiday “stunts” like TV marathons, graphic skins, snipes, IDs and TV trivia.
I finally left the world of corporate television so that I could broaden my horizons in print design, web design, social networking and email marketing. Thanks to the publishing industry, I was able to accomplish those goals very quickly. As a go-to freelance artist for More Than Publicity, I was influential in helping launch their own video production line. Additionally, my high-end, national-level knowledge and style in all forms of media has impressed editors, marketing teams and bestselling authors from major publishing houses like Penguin Putnam, Berkley, Avon, Harlequin and St. Martin’s Press. My book videos for the publishing industry have earned Telly Awards, Davey Awards and Pixie Awards.
Now that I’ve launched my own independent design and marketing company, I have had more creative freedom than I’d ever dreamed possible. Recently, I’ve begun venturing into the world of motion graphics and animation, which is quickly becoming a passion. Thanks to my best friends and favorite collaborators at Daywalt Fear Factory, on St. Patrick’s Weekend 2012, my work was seen by millions on SyFy Network. You can also hear my singing voice in G4 Tech TV’s Epictober Film Festival entry, KART DRIVER,, in the acclaimed horror series CAMERA OBSCURA, and in many short films now traveling the genre film festival circuit. My professional TV spots have also appeared on KTLA (The CW Los Angeles), KBCW (The CW Bay Area) and WGN (The CW Chicago) in the hit paranormal TV shows, SUPERNATURAL and THE VAMPIRE DIARIES.
And that, my fiends, is only THE BEGINNING!
Ultimately, my goal for this company is to blend my and my creative family’s collective knowledge of television, publishing, music and film to build our own unique brand of marketing and design services that are corporate in quality but cottage in philosophy, pricing and personability.
So far, we’re right on track… AND accepting new clients.
