Condé Nast Entertainment Names Robert Semmer VP Of Video For ‘Vogue’

Former Vice and Fader video exec Robert Semmer has joined Condé Nast Entertainment’s (CNE) Vogue as its vice president of video.

Semmer most recently worked as senior vice president and head of content at Premier Music Group, which he joined in March 2018. Prior to Premier, he served as Fader’s creative director and head of content. And before that, Semmer helped get Vice’s digital video arm off the ground, serving as its senior video director.

In his new role, he’ll develop and produce new programming for Vogue’s digital slate. Previous series Vogue has rolled out include 73 Questions (which has 671 million lifetime views across platforms) and Beauty Secrets (441 million views).

In 2018, Vogue garnered 2 billion views across platforms, including 468 million views on its YouTube channel, where it has 5.4 million subscribers. CNE says YouTube viewers watched 358 million minutes of Vogue content last year, an increase of 348% over 2017.

One of the reasons Vogue went hunting for a seasoned video exec now is the viral fervor surrounding this year’s Met Gala

, said Sally Singer, Vogue’s creative director. “We look forward to working with [Semmer] to build on the record-breaking video performance we saw around the Met Gala, and to continue to bring our innovative programming slate to new audiences,” she said.

Vogue debuted a number of YouTube videos around this year’s Gala, including pre-show peeks at attending celebrities picking their dresses. Many of the videos picked up millions of views, including the one starring YouTuber Liza Koshy (which netted 5.8 million views), as well as those starring Kim Kardashian West (19 million), Kylie Jenner (11 million), and Bollywood star Deepika Padukone (8.7 million).

Semmer will work out of New York City and report to Croi McNamara, CNE’s senior vice president of programming.

Semmer’s video work has been recognized by organizations including Cannes Lions, South by Southwest Film Festival, The Webby Awards, and British educational charity Design and Art Direction.