Chief Creative Officer
BBH NY
1) I think some of the biggest developments we’ve seen are around the consolidation of big agencies and a turn to more independent creative shops. Famous, legacy agency names going away and with that the bloated infrastructures and dysfunction. There continues to be a push for more diverse perspectives from all genders, races, cultures, and disciplines contributing to how ideas are created, enriched and delivered, which actually reflects our society today.
2) We have rallied around the core of what we do best – creating world-class creative ideas that help our clients win in the market. There’s a lot of pressure to be everything to everyone and for BBH it was time to lean in harder on what we are great at and match ourselves with the clients that need and appreciate it. The pressure for brands to connect with consumers bomarded with thousands of marketing messages every day means we need to help connect them to the idea in many different ways and constantly strive for new methods to do that. We still have the expertise to deliver in multiple outputs across a very fragmented media landscape but it starts with an insightful, creatively potent idea at the center.
3) Our “Play Fearlessly” film for PlayStation, “Freedom to Fuck” campaign for Planned Parenthood of NYC, the Survivornet.com website design, “War of the Floor” activation for PlayStation and our data-driven “Seamless Awards” campaign for Seamless.
4) I have no way of predicting the future but I’m hoping to see more creatively driven agencies become more appreciated and, in turn, make the changes necessary to become more relevant to clients’ needs. I’m hoping to see more inspiring work from a storytelling perspective that connects emotionally with the viewer, who not only is a consumer but happens to be a human being. There’s so much garbage out there. I would like to see the negativity and fear mongering press headlines go away.
5) Staying true to who we are, more unity, speed, simplicity, and empathy. Maybe fewer carbs.
Rom-Com Mainstay Hugh Grant Shifts To The Dark Side and He’s Never Been Happier
After some difficulties connecting to a Zoom, Hugh Grant eventually opts to just phone instead.
"Sorry about that," he apologizes. "Tech hell." Grant is no lover of technology. Smart phones, for example, he calls the "devil's tinderbox."
"I think they're killing us. I hate them," he says. "I go on long holidays from them, three or four days at at time. Marvelous."
Hell, and our proximity to it, is a not unrelated topic to Grant's new film, "Heretic." In it, two young Mormon missionaries (Chloe East, Sophie Thatcher) come knocking on a door they'll soon regret visiting. They're welcomed in by Mr. Reed (Grant), an initially charming man who tests their faith in theological debate, and then, in much worse things.
After decades in romantic comedies, Grant has spent the last few years playing narcissists, weirdos and murders, often to the greatest acclaim of his career. But in "Heretic," a horror thriller from A24, Grant's turn to the dark side reaches a new extreme. The actor who once charmingly stammered in "Four Weddings and a Funeral" and who danced to the Pointer Sisters in "Love Actually" is now doing heinous things to young people in a basement.
"It was a challenge," Grant says. "I think human beings need challenges. It makes your beer taste better in the evening if you've climbed a mountain. He was just so wonderfully (expletive)-up."
"Heretic," which opens in theaters Friday, is directed by Scott Beck and Bryan Woods, co-writers of "A Quiet Place." In Grant's hands, Mr. Reed is a divinely good baddie — a scholarly creep whose wry monologues pull from a wide range of references, including, fittingly, Radiohead's "Creep."
In an interview, Grant spoke about these and other facets of his character, his journey... Read More