Creative Insights is an AdNews series investigating and uncovering the secrets of the creative side of advertising.
Christian Finucane: co-founder & creative partner at The Core Agency
How did you fall into the industry? Was it deliberate or a misstep?It was deliberate, but bloody hard. Growing up in the UK I remember seeing all these great ads and thinking that would be a fun thing to be involved in.
So, I went to art school and set about building a creative portfolio. In my last year of the course, I won a Gold Creative Circle award for a poster I wrote for the Ramblers’ Association. I remember thinking I’ll be in a job in no time. Wrong! A recession was biting hard, so it was next to impossible to get in the door.After 18 months of numerous 50 quid-a-week work placements, I finally landed a job in an agency. Looking back, that era toughened me up and gave me the thick skin you need to be a creative - and taught me that if you want something badly enough you’ll get it.What’s your secret sauce for commercial creativity?Keep it relevant but unexpected. I heard this from my first ECD 25 years ago and it’s never lost impact. (Just looking at this year’s Super Bowl ads it’s a benchmark many fall short of).
What’s the biggest hurdle now for creatives?
Time. When Jon Skinner (my creative partner and now agency partner) and I started out we would get two or three weeks to write a simple poster campaign. Now, even if our creatives did get that much time, there’s a stack of channels to take the idea into.Do you wear the black T-shirt uniform or are you nonconformist?I only conform to black Birkenstocks, these are the secret to any great creative thinking. If I can’t crack something I take it up a notch and put on my white Birkenstocks. If that fails I wear socks under them. My feet are size 14, so they really help with big thinking. My Birkis haven’t let me down yet.Can commercial creativity only take place in a room full of people in black-T-shirts?Like a good party, you need a mix of people from different backgrounds and perspectives to add some spark. If egos are left behind you’ll be amazed where ideas can come from.What was the latest campaign that you worked on that you really enjoyed?We picked up a couple of great new clients before Christmas and the pitch process was unusually enjoyable. So, I’m really looking forward to revealing that new creative here on AdNews.
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