united future a wongdoody agency

… works and plays well with others.

The Web never sleeps. And we won't rest until we've helped our clients achieve their goals. When we do get some shut eye, we're dreaming of new, eye-opening ways to engage your audience. We've got a dream team of experts who live to innovate and love to collaborate. So, when we're on the job, you can rest easy.

Scott Holmes
Managing Partner / Interactive

Scott is Managing Partner and co-founder of United Future, the Interactive marketing and development division of WONGDOODY, specializing in experience design and application development for the Web, mobile & interactive television environments. Scott has spent the last 15 years focused on creating brand equity and digital innovation for clients such as; ABC, Alaska Airlines, Alpine Electronics, Evite.com, Holland America, Microsoft, T-Mobile, Yoostar and many others.

Prior to United Future, Scott was instrumental in developing Zentropy Partners, a McCann Erickson Worldgroup company, into a Top 10 interactive agency ranked by Adweek. Additionally, fostering and developing the broadband, mobile and interactive television divisions.

Scott is an active member of New Media Peer Group and the Brand Committee for the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (emmys.tv) and sits on the board of non-profit group Vitamin Angels.

Kris Matheney
Director Of Operations / Interactive

Kris brings 15 years of production management experience, including commercial, television, visual effects, music and online. Kris’s passion for interactive has grown steadily along with the advent of broadband, and her extensive production experience at agencies such as Deutsch, McCann Erickson and Creative Domain has allowed her the opportunity to build strong teams with amazingly talented people.

Kris' ability to lead complex projects has enabled successful results for clients including Warner Home Video, Coors Light, Red Lion Hotels, ABC/Disney, Coca-Cola and Sony Pictures Imageworks.

Kris has been involved with the AFI Digital Content Lab and the Producer’s Guild of America New Media Council, and believes the best experiences of the Web are still to come.

Chris Jacobs
Creative Director / Interactive

Chris has led creative teams in both the U.S. and Asia. His talents extend to broadcast design, packaging, industrial design, interaction design and, for the last 10 years, interactive design. Previous co-founder of Evit Caretni (Los Angeles) and Creative/Design Director for Lemon (Hong Kong) and Equus Interactive (Singapore), Chris has inspired creatives and designed for "anything behind glass."

Chris's client roster includes T-Mobile, SAP, Universal Music, Alpine Electronics, Holland America, British Airways, China Light and a publicly supported radio station in Santa Monica called KCRW.

He is a graduate of Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, CA, where he helped shape the very beginnings of the interactive curriculum.

Laura Porto Stockwell
Sr. Director / Digital Strategy

Laura Porto Stockwell is a digital media professional with more than 15 years of experience developing digital brand, content and social media strategies. As Senior Director Digital Strategy at United Future, Laura is responsible for developing and implementing digital marketing strategies that embrace innovative approaches to reaching consumers and increasing business effectiveness.

Prior to joining UNITED FUTURE, Laura was the VP, Digital Strategy + User Experience at Publicis in the West, and an Experience Director in the New York and Seattle offices of Razorfish.

Laura has worked with clients including T-Mobile, Conde Nast, Ford, Microsoft and Sony Music.

Laura speaks regularly at industry events and is a guest lecturer at the University of Washington’s Information School. She holds a Master of Arts in Media Studies with a concentration in social media from The New School in New York City and a Bachelor of Science in Journalism from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

What unites all of us at United Future is our belief in the democracy of good ideas - a belief that views every individual as a potential author of a great idea.

Jeremy Fisher
Director / Client Partnerships

Prior to joining United Future, Jeremy co-founded the Web-development firm Notchturner, where he developed and managed sites for several clients, including the New York Rangers, the Boston Bruins and K2 Corporation, and assisted United Future in several Web projects for Alaska Airlines and Bank of America.

Jeremy began his career with Digital Sherpas, a WONGDOODY offshoot and one of the first Web-development firms in Seattle. There, he helped build and manage the Web sites for the Seattle Mariners, the Tourism and Marketing Council for the state of Alaska, and radio stations KUBE-93 and KJR-AM.

Jeremy is a University of Washington graduate and holds a degree in Communications with an emphasis in New Media.

Kevin Duane
Sr. Associate / Technology

Kevin has been in the advertising and the technology business for over 12 years wearing hats of many shapes and sizes from Art Director, Studio Manager, IT director and Systems Administrator. Living and playing on the internet since his first 2,400 baud modem he has watched the internet grow, the world change and he loves being a part of it.

Prior to United Future Kevin was IT Director at Kirshenbaum Bond & Partners (NY), a senior system¹s engineer for the Three18, the largest Apple consultancy in Los Angeles and for New York based Warren/Kremer/CMP Advertising. He uploaded his first website in 1998 and currently oversees the main web systems for United Future and its clients.

Kevin received his Bachelor of Arts from Boston University

Erik Kellener
Sr. Director, Chief Technical Officer,

As a past client of United Future, Erik has joined the team as the Chief Technical Officer and the Sr. Director focusing on technical strategy, architecture, and interactive systems.

Erik has spent the past 16 years in online; building teams around Digital Media, e-Transactions and Social Media. He has built and led technology divisions for a wide range of digital consumer brands including Evite, Ticketmaster, DreamWorks, Times-Mirror, and Warner Brothers.

Erik received his masters in Computer Science, specializing in HCI from California State University, Northridge and has been published through journals in Human Factors and in Digital Media. Additionally, he serves on the board for a number of Los Angeles based start-ups such as SaveFans.com, MitraIT.com

Pawel Sasik
Sr. Associate / Quality Assurance

Over 10 years ago, after a successful career as an attorney, Pawel transitioned to a career in software quality assurance. Since then, he has gained experience in client management and in product development.

Pawel has managed large quality assurance and development teams across the various countries. Most recently, Pawel successfully managed the launch of a high traffic interactive "movie-oke" web based entertainment system for United Future.

A graduate of Loyola Law School Los Angeles and an active member of the California Bar, Pawel also holds degrees in Music and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from the University of Southern California.

Fluent in Polish and currently studying Korean, Pawel spends his spare time writing screenplays and dabbling in the fine arts.

Shane Coppess
Sr. Associate / Technology

Shane Coppess joined UNITED FUTURE as a senior associate, technology from FOX Interactive and has more than 10 years of experience as a systems administrator.

His experience includes managing information technology, system and network administration, application development and project management. Most recently, Coppess was part of a team of five system administrators maintaining more than 750 Linux servers spread across four datacenters, supporting sites for FOX Sports, Fox Sports Fantasy, Rotten Tomatoes, AskMen and GameSpy. Previously, Coppess was the senior information technology systems technician for the Department of Health and Welfare in Boise, Idaho.

Shane has recevied his Bachelor of Arts from California State Univeristy, Northridge. When he is not tied to a computer, Shane is on long distance cycling excursions. Averaging about 500 miles a week during the summer, if he could harness the wind, it would generate enough electricity to power all the laptops in his house!

Thomas Heo
Manager / User Experience

Thomas started his interactive career as a front-end developer in 1997 but soon realized he enjoyed having input into projects at not only the tactical level, but also the strategic and holistic level. His natural curiosities of things lead him to the “whys” and the “why nots”, wanting to understand the needs and motivations of users.

As the user experience advocate, Thomas is responsible for piecing together business requirements, aligning them with user needs, and helping to translate those with technology. Thomas views his role as identifying the pieces of the puzzle and figuring out how those pieces all fit together best.

Thomas has worked at several agencies with Fortune 500 clients such as Pacific Gas & Electric, Disney Parks & Resorts, Sony Electronics, American Honda, Toyota, Nissan, Infiniti, and Universal Pictures.

Michelle Asp
Sr. Developer / Creative

Michelle has more than ten years' experience in the design and development of new media solutions for a diverse clientele with particular emphasis on the entertainment industry. As the owner and operator of a boutique interactive agency in Los Angeles, she created cutting-edge websites and animated presentations for such clients as legendary songwriter Diane Warren, acclaimed documentary filmmaker Nick Broomfield, FOX Family Channel and the Edward R. Pressman Film Corporation.

Since joining the team at United Future, Michelle has served as lead designer on several high traffic websites and spearheaded the creative Flash development behind successful initiatives for clients in the high end luxury hospitality sector.

A graduate of the University of Southern California in broadcast journalism, Michelle's creative and technical approach is informed by her eclectic professional background as a motion graphics designer, television producer, digital illustrator and comic book colorist.

DeAngelo Lampkin
Sr. Associate / Technology

After successful stints at the UCLA Medical Center and at I.A.Corporation's Gifts.com, D'Angelo brings nearly 10 years of cross industry software development experience to United Future 's technology team.

D'Angelo began his programming life by developing tools that helped scientists in their endeavors to discover protein-based therapeutics at Protogene Laboratories and at Xencor. He soon branched into several other industries, including several fun start-ups where he attempted to create the next great car-based computer and revolutionize the asset visibility industry.

Raised in the very football centric Tuscaloosa, Alabama, DeAngelo graduated from the University of Alabama with a major in Microbiology and minor in Computer Science.

Donald Ngo
Sr. Associate / Quality Assurance

Donald brings over five years experience with software test automation. He has been involved in all aspects software engineering from requirements gathering, software development, quality assurance to release management. He has a passion for engineering automated test solutions and prior to coming to United Future he was the automation test architect for the complex Child Support Enforcement system for the State of California. His most recent tenure was at Legal Research Network – Los Angeles, where he developed performance testing and automated functional testing frameworks.

Donald graduated from the University of California, Davis with honors with bachelor's degrees in both Computer and Electrical Engineering.

In his free time Donald likes to snowboard, collect coins, invest and ride his beach cruiser.

Joshua Coffman
Sr. Associate / Technology

Joshua Coffman specializes in every aspect of the web that is not named "graphic design". While he operates primarily as a developer of websites and web applications, he has also deployed and managed large display campaigns for Proctor & Gamble, has executed comprehensive search engine marketing campaigns in the hospitality and retail sectors and has administered web servers on the cloud.

Joshua loves open source technology, micro-transactions, and utilizing web services to create profitable, compelling applications.

Joshua received his B.S. from Purdue University.

Michael Sherman
Associate / Technology

An invaluable member of the technology team at United Future, Michael draws experience from all aspects of the web development process. He has worked on projects ranging from developing custom Content Management Systems for LAMP environments to building user interfaces that are cross-browser compatible. His expertise in AJAX and front-end web design allows him to bring interactive Web 2.0 experiences to his users.

A sneak peak into Micheal's mind is provided by his cubicle which is covered in post-it notes and "Picasso-esq" drawings.

Micheal is a music graduate from the University of California at Berkeley

Mick McCarthy
Associate / Creative

An avid Surfer and guitar player, Mick indulged in a career of rock and roll before he was inspired to study design. Fueled by a belief that the internet would change the world, Mick transitioned from rock-star to interactive designer.

Mick's portfolio includes a diverse client list such as Lexus, ABC, Harlem Globetrotters, Epson, MTVu, Monster.com. Quiksilver USA, RVCA, Geffen Records and Gibson Guitars among others.

When not surfing the web or the Pacific Ocean, Mick donates his time to environmental and humanitarian community efforts within the surf community for the Surfrider Foundation. He is the founder of the "Surfers United Recovery Foundation", a non-profit organization dedicated to introducing at-risk youths to healthier lifestyle alternatives.

Karim Torki
Software Quality Manager

Charged with developing and implementing software testing strategies, procedures and standards for all of United Future’s interactive, broadcast and technology projects, Karim Torki serves as a strategic member of the agency’s team.

Before joining United Future in 2009, Torki served as a senior lead in SQA and test engineering for Magellan GPS at Resourcexperts. While there, Torki managed a seven-member SQA team, and established work processes and systems for the testing of new global positioning features and products.

A graduate of California State University at Long Beach, Calif., Torki has a bachelor’s degree in computer science. He is also fluent in French, German, Arabic and Spanish, and is a certified scuba diver.

Ramon Tapales
Associate Director / Creative

Ramon-Gabriel Tapales has been practicing graphic design since 1999. Ramon began his career in print media, marketing collateral and brand identity. Steadily migrating toward the Web, Ramon developed a keen understanding of modern Web standards, usability and accessibility. He integrates a user-centric approach with thoughtful design sensibility.

Ramon's work spans Fortune 1,000 companies including T-Mobile, SAP, Alaska Airlines, The Irvine Company, Atlantic Trust, Citigroup and Merrill Lynch.

Ramon’s work has been recognized in PRINT magazine. A graduate of Pratt Institute, Ramon was a first-place winner of Pratt’s National Talent Search Scholarship.

Lorenzo Gonzalez
Sr. Developer

During his 12 years in software engineering, Lorenzo has gone from low-level device drivers and color management algorithms, to the architecture and implementation of dozens of industrial strength business intelligence systems & high availability web services.

Before leaving Detroit in 2005, his clients included General Motors, Daimler-Chrysler, Ford Motor Co., Mitsubishi Motors, and automotive marketing analysis firm R.L. Polk & Co.

Since arriving in California, Lorenzo has built web applications for Movielink LLC and The Daily Journal. In his free time, Lorenzo enjoys rock climbing, triathlon/adventure racing, motorcycling and paragliding.