Joseph Marchese has joined Los Angeles-based creator network Bent Pixels as executive vice president of creator strategy and business, after spending 12 years in senior roles at rival firm Studio71. The appointment underlines Bent Pixels' push to expand the services it offers creators and brands in the attention economy, with founder and CEO Mike Pusateri framing the hire as key to connecting brands with the right audiences through strategically aligned creators and content.

The move follows Bent Pixels' March acquisition of Sunny State Agency, a creator services firm that added scaled short-form distribution capabilities. Bent Pixels, founded in 2009, now represents more than 850 creators across YouTube, Snapchat, Facebook and Instagram, reporting 50.2 million monthly unique visitors and 1.2 billion minutes of content viewed on connected TV free streaming platforms. Marchese joined Studio71 in 2014, rising to executive vice president; that company has since been acquired by rival firm Fixated.