Scott Nash

Creative Director

"Children's books, toys and animation are all sort of in my blood" says Scott Nash. "That's what my childhood was about." Inspired by everything from Uncle Wiggly and Raggedy Ann and Andy books to Underdog cartoons and graphic novels, Scott has made a distinguished career out of knowing how to find the best way to tell a story. At SNAP, he brings this considerable and diverse experience to each property. He says, “We look at each property or project and ask, 'How is it best conveyed to the world? By animation? As a toy? Is it a film or book?' ”

He is well placed to answer these questions. As a partner of the Boston design firm Corey McPherson Nash, Scott developed an expertise in branding and creative development for print and on-air media. He then co-founded Big Blue Dot, a sister company to CMN, to focus specifically on design for kids in the entertainment, consumer product, and publishing worlds.

While at Big Blue Dot, he created identities for Nickelodeon, PBS, ABC, Comedy Central, FX, and Corus Entertainment in Canada. His design clients included American Girl (Pleasant Company), Disney, Mattel, Microsoft, Milton Bradley, and the Boston Children's Museum.

He also developed and produced animated properties for Disney, Nickelodeon, and MTV as well as animated and live-action promo spots for Comedy Central, FX, and PBS.

Scott chooses projects carefully, focusing on work with integrity and depth. “We are not going for cheap laughs or the lowest common denominator,” he says. This emphasis on quality is evident in his books. An accomplished illustrator with a distinctive vibrant style, Scott has illustrated more than 30 children's books, including Saturday Night at the Dinosaur Stomp and The Bugliest Bug by Carol Diggory Shields, Over The Moon by Rachel Vail, Betsy Who Cried Wolf by Gail Carson Levine, Snow Day, Beach Day! and Rainy Day! by Patty Lakin, and the Flat Stanley series by Jeff Brown.

In 2004, Scott made his debut as author/illustrator with the publication of TUFF FLUFF, The Case of Duckie's Missing Brain. He is currently working on a novel titled Blue Jay the Pirate, to be published by Candlewick Press in 2008.

Scott has a grand vision for Blue Jay. As with other SNAP properties, he can see potential for the cocky pirate bird to cross boundaries and transcend markets. This vision is what makes Scott's work unique and successful. “I enjoy the diversity,” he says, “and I want to mix things up, to be involved in different things, to work with a variety of artists.”

His work as a designer and illustrator has been recognized by leading trade organizations and publications including The Academy for The Arts and Sciences (EMMY award), PROMAX, Broadcast Designers Association, American Institute of Graphic Arts, the Society of Illustrators, HOW, Communications Arts, Print, and Publishers Weekly Magazine.

He has lectured widely and taught at Boston University, Northeastern University, and The Art Institute of Boston, and he recently established the Illustration Department at the Maine College of Art. Scott is a graduate of the Swain School of Design and holds a Masters Degree from Cranbrook Academy of Art.

He lives with his wife, collage artist and illustrator Nancy Gibson-Nash, on Peaks Island off the coast of Portland, Maine.

Edward T. Paslawski

President

Ed Paslawski is the president of SNAP. His responsibilities include capital formation and providing executive leadership. With a 30-year career in structured finance, equity investing, executive management, and investment banking, it's a familiar role for him.

In addition to his role at Snap, Ed serves as Chairman of Hallowell International, LLC, Red Shield Environmental, LLC, RSE Pulp & Chemical, LLC, RSE Wind, LLC, RSE Pellet, LLC, RSE Oil & Gas, LLC, RSE Trading, LLC, RSE Energy Canada, inc., and RSE Technologies, LLC. RSE is a renewable energy and technology based business consortium that consists of 22 companies in the US, Canada and, coming soon, China. “It's a development business,” he says, “where we buy or start companies engaged in renewable energy, energy independence, and restoring quality manufacturing jobs in Northern New England, Quebec and Atlantic Canada. Often we find people who have ideas or intellectual property, and we help them get started and guide the business.”

He continues, “though SNAP is new, it's not a start-up. With our collective experience, there's 100 years of experience in four different disciplines - creative, finance, control, and marketing - coming together in this company.” SNAP is also about sustainability, creating employment in the creative economy, and building a business that will last. “Ten years from now,” he says, “we intend to be one of the mainstays of the media business. You're going to think of Warner Bros. You're going to think of Pixar. You're going to think of SNAP.”

He thinks of SNAP as personified in Tuff Fluff, the scrappy rabbit detective with an eye patch and an attitude. “That's us,” he says. “We're going to take on the media industry: a tough little bunny from Portland, Maine.”

Ed previously served for 12 years as a Director and Chairman of CEI Ventures. He is also a former Director of the New England Canada Business Council and the Asia America Chamber of Commerce. Other past experience includes subordinated debt financing with Meridian Capital Corp SBIC and senior level positions in leveraged/structured finance for major US and international banks including Meridian Bank, Bank of Boston, BankNorth, National Bank of Canada, Industrial Bank of Japan, and ABN AMRO.

As an investment banker, Ed holds the NASD Series 62, 63, and 24 licenses. He has a BS in Accounting and Finance from Drexel University.

Ed is married and has three daughters. He lives in Durham, NH, where he uses the solitary pursuits of cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, rowing, hiking, and biking to do his best thinking.

Norm Archer

Producer

Norm Archer joined SNAP in 2005, bringing a history of project development, operations, and sales and marketing experience to the team. Working primarily in the technology services industry, Norm has led sales and marketing teams for two Connecticut startups, served as a consultant to Pfizer, and opened the Portsmouth, N.H. branch for TEKsystems. He currently owns Peregrine Logistics, a 3PL consulting firm headquartered in Kennebunkport, Maine.

The unique creative properties drew him to SNAP. “Sales is very tactical, strategic thinking, being in your left brain all day,” says Norm. “I was looking for something to balance that out. I've always wanted to be involved in something more dynamic.”

Norm sees himself as an idealist and is attracted to people who dream big. “Scott Nash has a very playful mind and has created a team of likeminded people. I instantly wanted to be a part of that world.”

As SNAP's lead producer, Norm sees his role as connecting ideas and people to tell a story. “Making movies begins and ends with storytelling. I may help the creative direction but ultimately my job is to make it happen.”

It's not surprising, then, that one of Norm's favorite children's books is Dr. Suess' “If I Ran the Zoo.” The hero, not satisfied with the ordinary animals in the zoo, searches to find more creative, original, and imaginative creatures.

Norm lives in Kennebunkport with his wife, two children, and a lazy black lab named Mulligan.

Jody Flynn

Corporate Development

Jody Flynn is responsible for investor relations, governmental liasion, and corporate development opportunities for SNAP. One of the many assets she brings to these tasks is her flair for finding, and having smart access to, the right people. It comes from a collection of experiences gathered over a diverse career.

Jody is in charge of marketing and government affairs for Red Shield Environmental and its affiliates and also for Hallowell International, LLC and Snap Productions, LLC. Jody is also a managing member of Red Shield Environmental, LLC and RSE Pulp & Chemical, LLC.

Prior to her current position, Jody worked as a Director of Business Development for Catapult Advisors, consulting with early stage companies and entrepreneurs, providing strategic planning and access to capital resources.

Earlier in her career, Jody founded an Occupational Healthcare Advisory Services company, providing healthcare consulting services in more than three states. Jody has also worked for 15 years as a national workplace healthcare consultant and expert witness.

Jody has since established a career in business development and investment banking, as President of Pentadoi Capital, which services businesses in the New England region. She works with other regional investment banking firms and has helped several New England companies successfully access capital.

She has been a longtime political fundraiser on the executive level, successfully chairing two national congressional campaigns and serving several regional campaigns. The skill set from this experience is the one she utilizes the most for SNAP, she says.

Potential investors, she says, need to be sophisticated ones who understand the risk and complexity of the entertainment and media market. “At RSE,” she says, “I deal in a lot of nuts and bolts. SNAP is my least tangible project, but the one I have the most fun with, and, I think, the one that will end up on top.”

The trick is to recognize the 'it' factor behind SNAP's creative genius, and to see the breadth and depth of the SNAP properties. “For me,” says Jody, “the 'it' factor comes to life the most in Blue Jay the Pirate.

One day I will be in the audience as Scott Nash accepts an Academy Award for best animated feature for Blue Jay. I am absolute in this knowledge.”

Jody, with her husband, Stephen, has her own built in focus group with a family of six. Marielle, Gabrielle, John, Ashley, Rob, and granddaughter, Haley live in Maine and Colorado. Jody loves biking and snowshoeing with her little dog, Tillie, on snowy mountain trails.

Ronald Popolizio

Chief Financial Officer

As the CFO of SNAP, Ron Popolizio is responsible for the company's financial oversight and internal finances. An investment banker and accountant, Ron has more than 20 years of progressive responsibility in financial management, treasury operations, acquisitions, internal controls, capital budgeting, zero based budgeting, S.E.C. reporting, cost accounting, annual and long-range plans, internal and external consulting, project management, cost reduction strategies, systems design/implementation, and general management for public and private companies.

The creative side of SNAP is a welcome change for Ron, who is more used to dealing with manufacturing and nuts and bolts projects. “It's totally different from what I'm used to,” he says. “That's what makes it more fun. When you work with someone like Scott Nash, who really uses his imagination and the other side of his brain, it forces me to as well.”

He is the president of Carlisle Financial Group, a financial advisory firm. He also serves as the CFO of Hallowell International, LLC, and is CFO of Red Shield Environmental, LLC, RSE Pulp & Chemical, RSE Pellet, RSE Oil & Gas, RSE Ballistics, and is the Treasurer of RSE Wind, and RSE Wind Montana. He has served as Executive Vice President, Director, and Chief Financial Officer of EDAC Technologies Corporation, a NASDAQ publicly traded company.

He sees SNAP as a boundless venture. “When these kinds of things take off, there's just no limit. All the concepts are so alive,” he says. SNAP's creative team has a great track record, he says, and looking to the future, he foresees a large merchandising operation surrounding the appealing SNAP characters like Tuff Fluff, the Uh-Ohs, Blue Jay the Pirate, and Urban Squirrel.

Ron holds the NASD Series 62, 63, 28 and 24 licenses. He is also a Certified Public Accountant (State of Connecticut, 1984) and serves on the Board of Directors for a number of different companies. He holds a BS in Accounting from Central Connecticut State University.

Ron lives in Unionville, CT, with his wife Karen and daughter Sarah, where he collects and restores old muscle cars. He's even got the first car he ever bought, a 1970 bright orange Dodge Challenger complete with a burnt orange interior and 8-track tape player.

Scott Whitehouse

Graphic Designer

Scott Whitehouse is SNAP's graphic designer, responsible for the look of SNAP's promotional and commercial products. That currently includes a wide range of material, from the blocky shape of the Uh-Ohs to the vibrant logo on the letterhead. “I pride myself in my range,” he says. “I have developed a style that's really an anti-style.” This allows him to adapt his skills and shift into different modes depending on a project's requirements.

Scott has worked as a freelance graphic designer since he graduated in 2003 from the Maine College of Art with a BFA in Graphic Design. His clients have included StrideRite, Hugger Mugger, L.L. Bean, Big Blue Dot and more. At Hugger Mugger, he worked on design and production of yoga gear for Teresa Otul Cummings, and was instrumental in starting the Hugger Mugger offshoot company SWAMI.

He has also worked with Scott Nash since 2003; the pair started an ongoing collaboration called Nash Metropolitan in 2004 to focus on design, illustration, branding and strategic positioning.

The youngest member of the SNAP team, Scott brings a contemporary perspective and close familiarity with popular culture to the drawing table. “When you're developing kids' properties,” he says, “ it's important to have another vantage point.”

That's helped him with creation and development of the Uh-Ohs. Parents can really get behind the underlining theme of safety education, he says, while kids will love the animation and characters. “I love the idea of creating something that is fun and interesting to kids, but also educational. If you can appeal to adults on one level and kids on another, you've really accomplished something.”

A native Mainer, Scott now lives, works, and plays music in Portland.

Nancy Gibson-Nash

Creative Development

Nancy’s background as a collage artist …bringing all kinds of eclectic and eccentric materials together to form a whole new work of art…certainly comes in handy at SNAP.

Comfortable researching and mixing media, she says “The hunt is half the fun …be it in the attic, antique store, on a storm swept beach or a side street in Italy…you just never know what you’ll find.” Her love for color and texture, humor in the unexpected, the story of objects forgotten, all works together to form her visual and storytelling talents.

Her freelance illustration career calls upon her talents to take an assignment, be it a fictional story, an article for kids, a poem or an essay on the derivation of baseball slang, and distill the words into compelling images to draw the reader in.

Growing up on Cape Cod and graduating from Connecticut College has nurtured her interest in writing and nature. She has honed her communication skills via many guises; her past workplace experience includes development officer for the non-profit environmental organization the Center for Plant Conservation, and mail order maven for the rubber stamp company Inkadinkado. Her bookish bent led her to be an assistant bookstore manager, and she also proudly held an administrative position at the Portland law firm Warren, Currier & Buchanan. At any given moment, she can find you a rare plant at a botanic garden and spell it in Latin, write a proposal, organize a conference and add you to the mailing list, type up a stack of documents and get ‘em out the door, and find that novel with the blue cover and the mermaid on the spine!

But the most fun work she can think of is to be at SNAP, helping to corral all the ideas that are galloping around the paddock here. Collaboration is the key, discovering and working with fine talent is a joy, and bringing ideas to life is nothing but a dream come true.

Nancy and Scott have been creative partners for over 25 years. "Working in the studio next to Scott is such a treat. " says Nancy. "You have to see his face when he is creating his characters…the laugh in his eyes that translates to his pen is just such a pleasure. SNAP is a welcome opportunity for us both to bring the creatures and characters we love into the lives of kids and adults alike."

Nancy lives on Peaks Island with Scott and their frisky pup, Zephyr, the new SNAP mascot.