Founder Biography

Danielle Garnier

In over a decade in the public relations arena Danielle Garnier has developed a proven track record for not only breaking new product and concepts to the mass audience, but also insuring it reaches the widest possible spread of platforms available to the public.

Danielle worked in Chicago for Island Record’s founder and now member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Chris Blackwell’s Japanese animation leader, Manga Entertainment, Inc. She later got promoted to launch Blackwell’s audio/visual entertainment company Palm Pictures into the DVD marketplace.

When Manga made an acquisition that would prove to be one of the most groundbreaking of the 1990s, the animated film Ghost In The Shell by Japanese director Mamoru Oshii. Ghost In the Shell was an entirely different project, with a very serious and mature subject matter and utilizing animation techniques and technology that even such industry leaders as Disney and Warner Brothers were yet to employ.

Utilizing her experience at developing grassroots support through new and innovative media and marketing, Danielle Garnier built up the word-of-mouth on Ghost until it reached as many cities theatrically that it eventually became the first Japanese animated film to play in American movie theatres for as long as it did. If that isn’t enough, when the movie was released on VHS a year later, it shocked the industry by becoming the first Japanese animated movie to reach Billboard magazine and become the #1 best seller. Ancillary Ghost products, ranging anywhere from Japanese comic books (better known as manga), CD soundtracks, action figures and t-shirts would also become top-selling items thanks to Danielle Garnier’s perseverance in making this film widely known nationwide. As for the film itself, it has turned into a franchise with two additional movie sequels, a TV series that went for two seasons and is considered influential to such directors as The Wachowski Brothers (The Matrix) and James Cameron (Terminator, Titanic). Other films she publicized went on to become recognized by major entertainment industry leaders such as Madonna, Quentin Tarantino and Steven Spielberg.

In the meantime, while Danielle Garnier worked also for Palm, her ability to adapt to their ever-growing range of films would have her expand her reach to Canada, the United Kingdom, Jamaica and Continental Europe. At the same time, she would bring a number of other Japanese films to the Western world’s conscious. A recent example of this is the film Blood: The Last Vampire, which just made its debut as a TV series on Cartoon Network’s Adult Swim subsidiary.

In this world of media constantly reinventing itself and birthing new methods of delivery, getting ones message to the right market can truly be a challenging undertaking. This is particularly compounded when one has a new product and it requires not only finding the most efficient way of reaching one’s target, but then educating them.

That isn’t all, it can truly put a strain on the promotional budget.

Danielle Garnier states, “When it comes to a big company needing help breaking a new product, I can use my experience with crossing media to truly get the message out. It also helps when they are looking to push related products such as games, videos, toys and other licensed properties. For instance, when it comes to a theatrical release, it’s not just the movie, it’s all the other elements combined that interest the consumer to come out and see it.”

In her 14 years in the business, Danielle Garnier has managed to get her clients exposure ranging anywhere from the grassroots levels to media giants as large as Time Magazine and USA Today. She has worked in promoting all manner of entertainment-related products ranging from theatrical film releases to music and ancillary products such as games, comics and licensed apparel. Further, through these years of experience, she has developed some special skills unique even by business standards.

Danielle Garnier got her career in radio and retail promotions and marketing, while still a college student when she began working for IRS Records/MCA. During this time she promoted their musical acts such as Concrete Blonde and The Alarm to Midwest retail and radio outlets and later started her own company booking, publicizing and managing recording artists. She then managed and toured with dance music artist LaTour on Smash/Island Records in the early 1990s. Danielle Garnier studied Arts, Entertainment and Media Management at Columbia College Chicago and has a B.A. in Liberal Arts.