ECD Bildsten Leaves Fallon

NEW YORK Fallon executive creative director Bruce Bildsten has left the Minneapolis shop after nearly 21 years, an agency representative said today.

Bildsten, 47, had been ecd in the headquarters office of the Publicis Groupe shop for seven years, overseeing work for BMW, Porsche, Timex and PBS, among other accounts.

Bildsten said he had some "irons in the fire," but had not decided what his next step would be. He stepped down because he wanted to head an agency creative department, he said.

Last November, the shop named Paul Silburn executive creative director of its North American operations.

"I want to be a number one at an agency and with Paul there, even though I really like Paul and respect him, I can't," he said.

Bildsten helmed the successful BMW Films campaign, which won the inaugural Titanium Lion at the International Advertising Festival in Cannes, as well as two spots for PBS that won Emmys.

But the agency has taken some hits as of late. In June, BMW launched a review for creative chores on its $150 million account, ending its decade-long relationship with Fallon, and the shop shuttered its New York operations in July.

An agency representative said a search for Bildsten's successor was underway and a replacement would be named soon.