Breaking In

In case you missed it, check out some of Tony Davidson’s work here.

WS: What do you think is a good way for people to improve? How would
you suggest that people get better?

TD: The way you learn is by being surrounded by interesting
things and better people. Go to venues, go to galleries, be inspired,
surround yourself. Just be curious about stuff and soak up other
creative influences around you. It’s part of your day job when you
actually get one: to get inspired. And it’s not about copying. It’s about
being influenced. Andy Warhol was influenced by [advertising]…the
artists are influenced by us, we’re influenced by them, and we’re both
influenced by culture.

Second, and most importantly: See people that are better than you. Get
surrounded by people who are better than you. You have amazing access
in this industry, I think, to good creative people who have come through
the same process. So go and see them. If you like them when you go and
see them, keep coming back and seeing them without annoying them
too much. Kim and I, in all honesty, managed to get somewhere only
because we’ve been surrounded throughout our careers by good people.
We went to Leagas Delaney and saw Tim Delaney. He’s a fantastic writer.
He forced us to write a lot more. We had Dave Dye, Paul Belford—they
challenged our art direction. And then we went to BBH where we had
John Hegarty for the first year before he went off to America. And he
was incredibly helpful on Levi’s.

I would also encourage you not to only see people in advertising
agencies. It is important that you have aspirations, I think, beyond that.
You might know an architect who is really interesting. You might do
some ideas with him or products or whatever it is. The great thing is
now the solution doesn’t have to be a press ad or a radio commercial. I
think you can open your mind up and go, “Here is the business problem,”
because that’s what a client really brings in or should do. And you can
solve it in any way. So if you got 5,000 cars sitting in a field, the answer
doesn’t have to be, “Oh, stick a press ad in local press saying we’ve got
5,000 cars.” You might think of an event. You might think of something,
some really clever, smart way that is relevant to that brand tonally, to
clear that field. And that’s where I get excited. When I see people who
are actually taking business problems and thinking about clever ways of
solving them.

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Tony Davidson is Partner and Executive Creative Director of Wieden+Kennedy London.

Honda – “Everything”

Honda – “Jump”

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If you missed yesterday’s post, take a look at some of Ji Lee’s work.

WS: What do you look for in a student book? And what impresses you?

JL: I receive lots of emails with students’ portfolios. From both students
and recruiters. So, for me, the first thing I look at in a portfolio is how a
student organizes his or her work. Good navigation and ease of use are
very important. No matter how great their work is, if I am lost in their
website, if I have to take a few extra seconds to find something, then the
person already lost me. This is also an indication of how well the person
knows how to communicate his or her message. So, if I’m lost in the
navigation, that tells me this person doesn’t know how to use the web to
communicate his own message. Lots of people these days use Cargo or
Index Exhibit and they work well.

WS: Can you explain “Cargo” and “Index Exhibit”?

JL: They are portfolio website templates. They’re probably the most
widely used templates for designers and people in advertising. The great
thing about them is that people can customize the way they want their
sites to look and they don’t have to know PHP or coding. It’s a really easy
way of showing your work.

WS: Okay.

JL: And then, once I am navigating the website easily, obviously I’ll be
looking for the quality of the work. And the work has to be well presented.
Is it well photographed? Is it well designed? Is it well written? Is it concise
and does it communicate the idea quickly? So there are a few steps even
before the work; packaging an idea is as important, if not even more
important, than the idea itself.

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Ji Lee is a Creative Director at Facebook, and formerly at Google Creative Lab. He is known not only for his fantastic advertising and design work, but also for his many independent projects. The first one to be picked up widely in the media was “The Bubble Project.” Ji pasted over 50,000 bubble stickers on top of ads on the streets of New York and invited the public to write on them.

All-In-One Card Stamp

“Univers Revolved” – 3D Typeface

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In case you missed it, check out some of Ari’s work here.

[Interviewed at Crispin Porter + Bogusky, Miami]

AM: …I want to be surprised and entertained when I look at your book. First, I want to know that you know how to engage an audience. After that, I want to see that you have a good understanding of the people you are trying to reach. If the book has both of those things, then yeah, I’m impressed. You’ve managed to get my attention, and at the same time, demonstrate just how insightful you can be. You’ll probably be getting a phone call. But then, if your clever, insightful book is also a well-crafted one, you’ll have this creative director at your doorstep on his knees, begging you to come work with him.

WS: How important is finish? If ideas are the most important thing, can
sketches be enough? Do you look at actual books anymore, or is it all
websites?

AM: Back in the day, I remember spending hundreds of dollars on
thick laminations and felt backings, so as not to scratch the laminations,
for each one of the ads in my book. Today, such an expense is highly
unadvisable, given the opportunities you have to present yourself digitally.
Online portfolios and PDFs are faster, more efficient, and cheaper to
produce and send. Your student work won’t stay in your book forever, so
don’t bother with the fancy portfolio case. There’s no need to spend all
that money on packaging. Spend it on important things like food, rent, and
finding out Gerry Graf’s home address.

As for your ideas, well, that’s another story. The care and thoughtfulness
you put into executing your work matters. Every ad is an opportunity to
show your love for your craft. And no, it doesn’t mean I won’t take your
book seriously if it’s made out of cocktail napkins. I’ll probably look at
that one too. But it does help to know you take your work seriously. Well-
crafted writing and art direction say a ton about your talent and work
ethic. And to be honest, nobody has ever sent me a book made from
napkins.

WS: How important is copy? Do you need to see long-copy ads?

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Ari Merkin is Chief Brand Officer at Ten, Ft. Lauderdale and former Executive Creative Director at Crispin Porter + Bogusky, Miami.

Ikea – “Lamp”

Truth – “Body Bags”

Starbucks – “Glen”

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Take a look at some great TV from Goodby Silverstein & Partners.

WS: What do you look for in a student book? And what impresses you?

JG: I look for things that no one I know, even myself, would ever come
up with. If your solution is something that your friends or family might
come up with, throw it away.

WS: How important is finish? If ideas are the most important thing, can
sketches be enough? Do you look at physical books anymore, or is it all
websites?

JG: I look mostly at digital books these days, but that doesn’t mean
there wouldn’t be a notable place for a portfolio put together with Skil
Saw, Dremel tool, and black masking tape.

Finish isn’t important to me because I can imagine what the thing might
be like. But the majority of creative directors care about finish, I think.
They see it as a demonstration of taste and hand skills.

WS: How important is writing? Do you need to see long copy?

JG: How important is writing? Really? It’s the way we communicate and
organize ideas. Even if you’re writing with pictures, you’re writing.

I like to see some long copy because I believe that people who can write
longer-form stuff are better at writing short form too. They know what to
take out.

WS: What do you think of showing work that is not advertising?

JG: I love it. Much better than showing that Bagel Bites retail thing that
never quite got produced.

WS: Do you have any other advice for a student or junior trying to get
into the business?

JG: Try to look at the world through the eyes of a busy creative director
who doesn’t really care who you are. As David Ogilvy said, “When selling
fire extinguishers, open with fire.”

But first, enjoy a few great spots from Goodby, Silverstein & Partners.

Saturn – “Sheet Metal”

Got Milk? – “Aaron Burr”

Got Milk? – “Birthday”

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If you missed the last post, check out some Tony Granger TV spots here.

TG: …The people who succeed are naturally inquisitive. They hang onto their childlike enthusiasm about the business. They have an instinctive feel for innovation and an innate comfort with technology.

I think it’s also important, if you’re a student, to thoroughly dissect the
media landscape today and know what’s happening—who’s doing what,
which agencies are the best, what kind of work is getting the accolades,
what people are buzzing about on blogs. Schools can teach you a lot, but
you’ve got to have a natural passion for the work and lots of motivation.

WS: Some people say the idea is the most important thing. That’s the only
thing they care about. Where does craft fit in? Are they both important? Is it
enough to have the big ideas, or do you also have to have the craft as well?

TG: Both are important, absolutely. But you have to be careful about
what you think craft means. People often think craft means “beauty.”
But it’s really about having the talent to create something completely
appropriate to the idea. Is it right to use 16mm film, or more appropriate
to shoot with a hand-held? Does the work call for elaborate typography,
or are you going to spray words on a wall? So you have to have both lots
of knowledge and great instincts. Craft is the window to an idea, not the
wallpaper around it.

WS: It seems like it is getting harder and harder to get into the business.
What does it take to stand out at that level?

TG: You need to be enthusiastic. Passionate. Your work needs to be
brilliant. But maybe the most important thing, really, is to have a wide-
eyed enthusiasm about our business. That’s what’s going to make the
difference.

WS: Is it important to have a mentor, and if so, how can a student hook
up with someone who’s already in the business?

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Here are a few videos to set the mood.

Crest

Folgers

Land Rover

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