LEADERS OF THE NEW: Craig Brandon

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Name: Craig Brandon

Career Path: Art Direction.

Education: Graphic Design 05-07 Creative Advertising 08-09

Advertising Experience: Design Internship at Smack Design (Winter 07) Advertising Internship at Soda&Tonic Advertising (Summer 09)

One Thing About You: I have four first names, Craig Normand Drew Brandon.

Contact: 416.791.0705 / cbrandon36@hotmail.com

Full interview after the break!


When did you know that advertising was for you?

I trace my roots to this industry back to a couple things. One, my “big present” one year for Christmas was a giant box of art supplies (which made me a very happy child). Two, my elementary school graduation ceremony presented me with the first ever art award. They felt the need to give this to me based on my level of enthusiasm for arts and crafts time (they also gave me the Science Award, and I’m far short of being a scientist!).

However, I would have never known that Advertising and Design was a career option had it not been for my cousin Adam who looked over my shoulder and said “you know you could be getting paid for that stuff” one day while I was screwing around on Microsoft Paint.


Do you think you could have pursued a career in advertising with just your Graphic Design experience?

I have friends that are currently trying to do that with little success, very talented friends. So not saying that it is impossible to succeed with just the graphic design background, but I would do school the exact same way if I had to do it all over again. At the end of the day having both Graphic Design and Creative Advertising makes me more well rounded and polished as an AD.


Describe your creative process. How do you brainstorm? How do you keep track of ideas? How do you know when one of your ideas is good? What do you do when you're creatively stumped?

Creative process-
Well, I feel every brief creates a unique problem. Therefore, every brief needs a new angle and therefore new creative process.

Brainstorming-
Ideally I have someone to bounce ideas off of. Whether I have someone or not, I generally try and get to the most basic idea and then add a twist of originality to it.
I don’t like using traditional ways of brainstorming like creating an idea web.

Keeping Track-
This varies from the traditional notepad, to a napkin, sometimes even the palm of my hand. I occasionally find myself trying to just remember the idea, like when it comes to me via laying in bed at 3:00 a.m. (I’m trying to break this habit because a lot of ideas have died in this process.) The best and most unique way I’ve ever kept track of an idea is drawing on the shower wall using the steam and glass as my canvas.

Good Idea/ Bad Idea-
This is subjective but I base an ideas effectiveness on the waiting game because if I can look at an idea a week or two later and still like it I generally don’t care what other people think of it. Someone will always hate an idea, but there is always someone who likes it.

Creative Slump-
The best way I have to get out of a creative slump is by looking at it in a new angle. A trick I find myself using a lot is trying to place the product at the centre of a joke where as I am the bully poking fun at it. This trick creates as unique of an idea as the product is. If you have a truly unique product this trick is almost always a winner.


How did you go from being a student to being an intern at Soda & Tonic Advertising?

That was a fun process, one day I’m stressing to find an internship the next I get an email from David Barbuto, a teacher of CAB, basically telling me that he would like to have me as his intern. I jumped at the opportunity and have been having a blast there since. I got the email around week 5/6 of semester 4 of CAB.


Describe a day in the life of Craig Brandon at Soda & Tonic.

I have a nice schedule, 9:30 - 5:30. On a day to day basis I hardly ever know what project I will be working on next. Sometimes its an ad campaign, sometimes its a design project. Regardless of what it is I am generally busy during my time at work. When I’m not and I have down time, I spend time doing spec ads that we later try to set up a meeting and pitch.


What have you learned so far from your experience at Soda & Tonic?

I’d say as a creative person, you never stop learning. I’ve learned new ways to approach things, I’ve learned how to handle client demands, I’ve learned that what a client and what your boss asks for are two very different things. Overall I’ve learned that I made the right decision by joining this industry.


Outside of advertising, how else do you express your creativity?

I constantly keep a notebook on me to scribble art into half of which has nothing to do with advertising. I like to draw/ illustrate on my computer whenever I get some spare time. But I would say my biggest creative hobby outside of design and advertising would be the 2 novels that I have on the go. Both of these novels are being co-written with people more polished in the ways of grammar. They both are fiction based stories, think Peter Pan, or Alice in Wonderland style writing.


Where do you want to be in 5 years?

I want to be as high up on the work latter as possible, at a well known industry. I don’t know the industry process well enough to properly estimate whether I’ll be a senior AD, a CD, a partner in a firm, or whether I’ll still be a Junior AD. I do know that the first 5 years of my career will be an uphill battle and I need to work as hard as possible to get wherever it is I will end up.


What do you do for fun?

Outside of work I spend a lot of time watching sports, mainly football and hockey. I like to roller blade, write, hang out with friends, rock climb, swim/diving.


E-Elevator Pitch: Sell yourself in 140 characters or less.

Passion in a career means you’d work for free. I currently do.

If you're an advertising student or are just starting out in the business and would like to be featured on Leaders of the New, send me an email at jettlandicho@gmail.com