Ad creatives have to be willing to get fired for an idea if they believe in it, according to director Spike Jonze, speaking at Cannes Lions this week.
Talking to SapientNitro global creative director Gaston Legorburu, at the Meet the Disruptors event, Cannes Lion 2014, the director of ‘Her’ and ‘Being John Malkovich’ said the medium doesn’t matter, art or creative, as long as you believe in the story you are telling and out yourself into it “honestly and authentically.”
Focusing on the intersection of technology and story, the session with Jonze explored how businesses can re-imagine the way to communicate with the consumer to create worlds, ‘not ads’.
Jonze has made many TV commercials, including “Crazy Legs” for Levi’s. “Hello Tomorrow” for Adidas. “Lamp” for Ikea won the Film Grand Prix in 2003.
But Jonze said that creatives need to have courage and passion for their ideas
“As creatives, it’s a hard thing to push, to make something you’re truly excited about, especially if you’ve written 100 different concepts and they keep getting shot down,” he said. “If there’s any clients in the room, be willing to get fired over a good idea. That’s what the world needs. It’s easy for me to say. I don’t have to pay your mortgage. But it’s about finding people who aren’t scared.”
Making the film Where the Wild Things Are, was an example of that where Jonze said he faced the problem that the studio” had to either fire me or let me make the movie I wanted” because his vision wasn’t exactly the “family movie” they had in mind.
Jonze finished up by answering a question from the audience on how his approach differs between filmmaking and advertising.
“In one way it stays identical … every project started with a feeling. It can be a movie, a short or a commercial but I have to think ‘this excites me and gives me that buzz’. It can be funny or heartbreaking but it always starts with that feeling,” he said.
View highlights of his interview plus other talks from day two of the festival here: