Creative LIAisons Diary - Day 1

 

Unlike anything else

 

As you arrive in Las Vegas you are met with a familiar atmosphere of a busy metropolis, but as you look closer it is unlike anything else. The normally beige and soulless airport lounges come alive with the clicking and ringing of slot machines. The hotels become towns within themselves, and even as you walk down the street, you are constantly surrounded by plants that serenade you with Jack Johnson and James Blunt.   

 

It’s a fitting place for an awards show unlike any other.

 

Prestigious awards shows follow a tried and tested formula. Work is entered, judged and the winners then spend the weekend collecting their metal (or wood) and partying in the south of France.

 

In 2012 LIA decided to buck with this tradition, rather than making the whole awards show about the winners, they realised it was a great opportunity to give back to the creative community, especially the young creative community. Creative LIAisons was born, and with it a programme that would help nurture and inspire the next generation of CD’s, ECD’s and CCO’s. A four day programme consisting of talks from leaders in the industry, sitting in on judging of work and networking with other like minded creatives from around the world.

 

Arriving at day 1 there is a nervous excitement within the room, that nervousness was instantly dispelled as radio legend Ralph van Dijk took to the stage to introduce the programme and shamelessly plug his podcast Don’t Judge Me.

The first speaker of the day was Riccardo Wolff, who after being on the first Creative LIAisons programme had moved on to become ECD of Innocean Worldwide. It was a fascinating insight of how his experience of the programme helped to shape and develop his career.  

 

As we moved into the afternoon (or late night as my body clock was telling me), Matt McDonald gave an impassioned talk on selling ideas. You could hear the collective understanding as he spoke of great ideas not being bought, then shared some tips on how as an agency they set about changing that. The work they are producing is testament to that change in approach.

Day 1 has already offered decades worth of insights and inspiration, it’s been intense, but an experience unlike anything else.

Day 2

 

A sensory overload

As you walk through Vegas, there’s one thing that you can never seem to get past, and that is the all out assault on your senses. Even at 7am you are met with ringing of slot machines, the morning traffic and even more James Blunt.

 

First up for day 2 was Susan Credle, Global CCO of FCB. As younger creatives we are so often told to be nice to people, a fact reinforced so much that adorning the office walls of most creative agencies walls is Anthony Burrills ‘Work hard and be nice to people’ print.

Susan’s talk offered an insight into how to practically make that advice work. Drawing on her own experiences Susan talked of how transitioning from a creative to a CD meant having to adapt your approach to work. The characteristics that have defined you as an aspiring creative, tenacity & relentlessness would now have to be changed to a softer approach or risk being seen as tyrannical or an asshole (arsehole for us Brits).  After just over an hour, Susan had managed impart a treasure trove of advice and insights.

Following on from Susan we were transported from Vegas to Thailand. Leo Burnett offered us an insight into the culture of Thai advertising and why it has such a distinct tone. For years Thai ads have been at the forefront of humorous and outright weird work, from Sunsnacks fire farting ducks (watch it) to a fatty acid stopping traffic cop for Verena.

But what makes Thai advertising so distinct and unique? It turns out that the culture of the country is intrinsically tied to the work, Thai people are often perceived as happy, and so for years the work had reflected this. Over the past few years, political turmoil in the country has had a direct impact on the work. But now it’s making a comeback, this year has seen some utterly brilliant work coming back out of Thailand, one of the most notable being Friendshit, a 5 ½ minute film that breaks with all conventions and keeps you watching for every second. An insight into Thai advertising shows that you really must capture the culture of your audience, rather than talking to everybody, you must define your audience and talk to them in a language that they understand.

The final talk of the morning came in the form of audio (ironically). Tom Eymundson, Jill Kershaw and Ralph van Dijk opened up a panel discussion on the use of sound in branding and advertising. After a technical issue led to us spending 5 minutes listening to Kevin Spacey deliver the same line (he was back with a vengeance in this talk), we heard of the process of creating sound design. Often sound can be seen as very subjective, feedback from clients often becomes a personal preference, but the discussion helped understand the technical elements that can make informed decisions, thus creating technical and logical arguments for choices we make. 

The afternoon was taken over by Great Gun and their #6second workshop. With the way that media is now consumed we need to grab attention, and grab it quickly. Bearing this in mind we were asked to produce 6 second ads based on our very specific briefs (if you’ve never seen a set of 12 art directors hovering over a camera it’s truly a sight to behold).

The end results were varied but all remarkable and it offered a great way to reinforce how much you can get into a 6 second film when you think of it in a format of itself rather than a cut down.

With Day 2 coming to a close and most of the talks finishing up, its been another day of completely overloading me with life affirming learnings, Kevin Spacey and farting ducks. What comes next has a lot to top.

 

Sunsnack Ducks

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlCPcPC9zJs

Verena – Sure

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOSJ-Y8FIHM

Friendshit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ue4UoMHKzyM

 

Day 3

 

Don’t judge me

 

Entering work into awards shows you are always wondering what it takes to win. How important is the case study? Do results matter?  Is the idea simple enough? Day 3 was a chance to see behind the curtain, to sit and listen in as judges debate what work is worthy of some serious metal. 

 

Sitting in on the Non-Traditional jury was an eye opener, to stand out in the industry you need to do something seriously different; this category was full of that.

Led by Khai Tham Meng the jury worked their way through some of the best work in the world, and each entry was put to the test. Ideas that weren’t truly original were left behind, a line in a case film could help move an entry up or down and choosing the right category is crucial.

 

There were some stand out pieces of work that didn’t require much debate though. The Palau Pledge was one of those ideas that is so simple and pure that there isn’t much to argue against. A simple stamp, placed in a passport that makes people change their behaviour towards the environment and holds them responsible. Brilliant. C21 for the National Down Syndrome Society was another inspiring piece. How do you convince a set of lawmakers that people with Down Syndrome should be allowed to work? You let them experience what they can really do when given the chance. Both pieces flew through.

 

Others were debated more, the trend was becoming apparent. The more complex an idea, the more it was discussed. If the idea is not simple enough then it can open up so many more uncomfortable conversations.

 

Once all of the work was awarded, it was time for the big discussion. Which piece was worthy of the Grand Prix. One piece that stands out above all else. It was an intense discussion with arguments being made for many pieces.

 

Towards the end one topic was brought up that has been debated for the past few years, consumer work vs charity and NGO work. More and more ‘for good’ campaigns have been cleaning up at shows, most notably last year was Fearless Girl. A campaign that inspired millions through the simple use of a statue. But was this trend having a negative effect on the industry. As more and more brands are moving into the space of ‘for good’ campaigns it can be seen as people exploiting these forms of advertising to win awards. It was an intriguing debate about which direction the industry should head, when the results are out you will see which way this jury chose to go.

 

 

Day 4

 

Final correspondence

After sitting in on statue discussions it was going to be hard to top that experience. Up stepped Lara Logan. As a journalist and war correspondent Lara has seen just about everything there is to see. Her story is one of the most compelling and inspiring I have ever heard.

 

As she talked of her experience in Afghanistan and Iraq you could sense this was somebody whose outlook on life was different, she placed the truth as her central focus in life. No matter where that truth came from or where it would take her.

One night on 11th February 2011 that focus would take her to Tahrir Square, Egypt. The social media revolution had led to Hosni Mubarak's resignation from power, and with it a mass crowd gathered in the square. Lara travelled with her team to cover the story but what happened there that night would not only change the course of the political landscape, it would change the course of Lara’s life.

 

Halfway into covering the story, a mob of around 200 men had started to gather and surround Lara and her team. As her cameraman bent down to change his battery, they were set upon. Over the course of the next 25 minutes Lara was assaulted and raped. Pulling her limbs in multiple directions as if to rip them from her body, trying to physically rip her scalp from her head and all the while taking photographs of the event. In that moment something inside Lara changed, just as she was about to give up she realised that she couldn’t, for the sake of her children she would not accept that this was where her story ended. Just as the worst of humanity had appeared, so did the best. A group seeing the attack managed to help protect Lara, forming a human barrier between the mob and herself.

 

Her story is not just one of survival, but one of learning to look at life through a different lens. Lara shows us that you cannot control what happens to you in life. All you can do is take the experiences it throws at you, and use those to form who you are.

 

A fitting end to one of the most intense and inspiring weeks I have ever experienced.