“BJ doesn’t like the spotlight, but he deserves it,” said a co-worker. “So even though he didn’t want a bio, we’re doing it for him.”

“From practicing law to consulting, strategizing, ideating, and leading the way in Fortune 500 boardrooms, BJ is an unexpected, disruptive brilliance, but he would have never admitted that himself. He looks like a street artist who sold out, and thinks like a BCG consultant who didn’t. He sees what others don’t, formulates like no one can, and transforms businesses and brands like no one could imagine; it’s that simple.”

Carly got her start early, cutting her teeth in a technical high school graphics program and working with real clients before most people had picked a major. She built on that foundation at Taylor Design in Stamford, collaborating closely with a creative director across advertising, web, and print, then expanded her range at Berry Creative, where a small team meant doing a little bit of everything. Since graduating from the University of Hartford, she’s been designing at speed, leading one to two website projects a month, often turning loosely defined brands into fully realized identities along the way.

Carly’s approach is rooted in curiosity over convention. “Not everything has to feel so high-pressure,” she says. “When you leave room to experiment, things tend to fall into place.” That mindset shows up in her work; thoughtful, flexible, and never afraid to try something new if it leads to something better.

Outside the office, Carly’s creativity doesn’t exactly turn off. She’s known for throwing fully themed parties where every detail is dialed in, and she’s often baking custom cakes that look almost too good to eat (almost). And if there’s ever a lull in the action, don’t worry. She’s got a karaoke machine in her car, ready to fix that immediately. Because no one should ever more than a few minutes away from performing.

If ever a person and company were a partnership waiting to happen, it’s Rebel and James Dowd, our Chief Creative Officer.

“I feel like my brand has always been Rebel,” he says. “Once, at the top of a business card, I had the line, ‘I aim to misbehave.’ In fact, there’s a great quote by the late royal photographer Cecil Beaton that sort of sums up my philosophy: ‘Be daring, be different, be impractical, be anything that will assert integrity of purpose and imaginative vision against the play-it-safers, the creatures of the commonplace, the slaves of the ordinary.’”

Creative Manager Jon Feld has worked in content creation for more than 25 years and has experience developing and managing content marketing campaigns and strategies. He has mastered every level of the content creation process—from directing teams to editing drafts—and develops dynamic content for clients across a range of industries.

Despite his wealth of experience, Jon is always open to learning something new and enjoys working closely with his team members. He values diversity of skills on a team and strives to absorb all he can from coworkers with different backgrounds and perspectives.

Group Creative Director Justin Girard comes to Rebel with more than 10 years of marketing and design experience honed at several agencies.

Justin’s greatest accomplishment? “Making a career out of doodles and weird ideas,” he says.

But on a more serious note, he makes no secret about the passion he has for what he does or about his own expectations for his work. “Creating fulfills my inner purpose and I seek to push boundaries with my work,” he notes. “If you don’t break rules, don’t expect to break through.”

Senior Designer Kate Gore is not afraid to design outside the box. She lives by the motto “anything is possible in design; you just have to be willing to push the envelope.”

With more than seven years of marketing and design experience, Katelyn has worked within many verticals. Before joining Rebel, she worked with another Connecticut-based agency assisting in the creative execution of client websites, landing pages, email newsletters, and various digital marketing tactics. From healthcare to finance to senior living, she’s done it all.

Honing his expertise as a copywriter for several Boston and Connecticut agencies during the past decade, Associate Creative Director Kevin MacPhee’s calm, unflappable nature and staunch belief in core tenets are especially evident in his approach to punctuation.

“Don’t be alarmed,” he says. “I tend not to use exclamation points. I also believe pineapple is good on pizza, and I prefer not to use the Oxford comma. Both can get contentious.”

“I’m comfortable in the quiet moments where the thinking happens,” he adds. “Whether working alone or in a group setting, the thinking part of our job is the foundation for everything else. Good ideas and good writing start with good thinking.”

What makes Designer Kevin Skrocki a true Rebel? It just might be that his favorite quote comes from one of our favorite all-time rebels, Steve Jobs: “Don’t let the noise of others’ opinions drown out your inner voice.”

Kevin came to Rebel from a broadcast environment and most recently worked at NBC CT as a creative services intern.

What else makes Kevin a Rebel? “I look to find creative answers to solutions, I want to grow and learn, and I’m excited about new journeys and new tasks.”

Senior Copywriter Kyle Wood’s childhood dream was to direct movies. Then again, his real-life childhood was pretty busy. From winning a Mickey Mouse card contest at age 9 and being a talented athlete (he attended “professional basketball camps”), to winning poetry awards in college, Kyle’s always lived and dreamed big.

His goal today? “To rise to the occasion, work with the best of the best, and prove to everyone that I’m a born Rebel,” he says.

When he’s not producing content at Rebel, you can find Kyle “reading; playing minigolf; going to the beach; visiting breweries, coffeehouses, and restaurants; and taking day trips to explore New England.” He also enjoys napping, going to concerts (he’s a big metal and emo fan), video gaming, and watching movies and TV.

It’s a good thing he had time to dream during childhood because adulthood is definitely keeping Kyle busy.

Senior Videographer and Editor Marc Manzi has worked in film and video production for 15 years. While he prefers working in post-production, he’s skilled in shooting, editing, motion graphics, photography, lighting, audio mixing, and more. When it comes to film; if you can name it, Marc has probably dabbled in it!

Marc’s passion for film and video production began in his freshman year of high school, and he has since overcome many challenges and obstacles to get where he is today. Though he identifies as a logical person, he’s not afraid to toss logic out the window to follow his passions—a trait that has served him well over the years.

Senior Designer Ryan Edgely’s mad talents and skills are manifested in each of his contributions to Rebel’s projects. He also enjoys life. A lot. He’s dedicated to a wide range of pursuits: Nature, fishing, Autumn, horror movies, breakfast, beer, firepits, soccer, and drawing.

“I enjoy drawing in my downtime,” he says. “Been doing it for as long as I can remember. Wish I did it more. A few of my favorite illustrators are Jason Edmiston (beautiful, realistic style), Lance Inkwell (funny cartoon style), and Sam Heimer (dark and twisted style).”

Director of video production Scott Serencha has more than 10 years of experience in marketing, technology, and web development services, overseeing account and project management for local and national clients.

At Rebel, he’s responsible for managing web design and development teams to provide high-quality, thorough technology solutions for clients, while keeping website and web application projects on-time and on-budget. Scott also schedules team resources and prioritizes tasks for web designers and developers.

Designer Tyler Ouellette’s background features a blend of graphic design and marketing experience. He’s designed an annual report for a national nonprofit and worked in the esports sector with sponsors. On the marketing side, he’s gained experience in both the education and wholesale sectors. “Having experience in both design and marketing gives me a broader perspective on projects, allowing me to approach them with insights from both fields,” he says.

Tyler’s personal direction has been a testament to unpredictability. “No matter what the world expected, I’ve always followed what felt right for me,” he asserts. “Growing up, everyone thought I’d go into math, science, or business, but when I said I wanted a creative career, they weren’t too thrilled. They thought it wasn’t a good fit or that I wouldn’t land a job. But I stuck with my passion and went all in. Now, looking back, I have no regrets. Life’s unpredictable and exciting — sometimes, all it takes is taking a chance and trying something new!”

Fun fact: Tyler says that, “No plastic water bottles are safe from me. I unconsciously hold them very tight, and by the time I’m done drinking, they look like they’ve been squeezed by a sasquatch.”

Art Director Veronika Zhikhareva (or V, as we call her) is a design superhero. At Rebel, she unleashes design powers to create aesthetic works of art, for both digital and print. Whether it be newsletters, brochures, websites, or social media content, there’s nothing Veronika can’t do.

What motivates V? Spite, mostly: “The only reason I even learned about graphic design as a career field is because my high school art teacher didn’t think I’d make it in a fine art school.”

Playfulness, craft, and a deeply human point of view drive Zeb’s work. Over the past decade, he’s built brands and told stories by scribbling in sketchbooks, connecting ideas, and magnifying the absurd whenever possible, bringing both strategy and soul to everything he touches. Before joining Rebellion Group, Zeb worked as a senior designer and freelance creative, collaborating with hospitality-driven design studios including Box 8 New Haven and Mucca Design.

“The older I get, the more I realize that the idea of growing up doesn’t really exist, and I’m thankful for that,” he says.

Zeb believes that taking life too seriously dims the human experience, and that staying silly—in work and in the world—is a quiet act of rebellion. His creative journey has been anything but linear, spanning drawing, painting, glass blowing, curating, archiving artwork, illustration, branding, and type design. Along the way, it’s taken him from NYC to the middle of nowhere (more than once), collaborating with talented people and having fun doing it.

And one last surprise: Zeb’s full name is Zebulon. Wild, indeed.