OK, so that is a deliberately provocative headline, because the answer is no … but let’s put that aside for a moment.
Following on from my post about what the ad industry needs to do to attract young creative talent, I point you to this.
Read it.
It’s absolutely fantastic.
But if he was in an ad agency would he have been encouraged to do it?
Well, if he worked for one of the scam-masters, maybe … but the likelihood is he wouldn’t because they don’t like doing things that actually require commitment to the cause.
And why would this happen – or not – as the case may be?
Well, apart from the fact most agencies would regard a 19 year old as a junior and should be shackled, rather than released … agencies still don’t regard ‘technologists’ as ‘real creatives’.
At best, they’re there to serve the creative department rather than be creative in a different way.
Or said another way, they are there to respond to the creative departments idea, rather than lead it.
And this is what fucks me off with this industry.
We say we are a ‘creative’, but in most cases, what we mean is ‘only the traditional creative department’ is creative.
Utter bullshit.
That’s not to say there aren’t incredibly talented people in creative departments who can do things few can. Of course there are and when I see them, I’m in utter awe of their brilliance. But by the same token, there are creative people outside of creative departments, and agencies as a whole, who can do things they can’t.
The ones who think in terms of solving problems rather than just advertising them.
Or think in terms of developing culture changing ideas rather than just making executions.
But as long as the industry regards – and wildly protects – creativity as something directly linked to art and/or copy, we’re going to lose more and more relevance. Worse, we’re going to alienate people who could push us to greater and more exciting places.
For an industry that talks about open minds and collaboration, we’re not very good at either.
I still hope we realise this before it’s too late.