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Team DIGO | 08/08/2019 | in
On this week’s episode of The A-List Podcast, host and DiMassimo Goldstein CCO, Tom Christmann is joined by Gerard Caputo. A celebrated creative with a career spanning more than two decades, Gerard Caputo is the Chief Creative Officer of BBH New York and an instructor at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn as well as being a notable name in advertising. Mr. Caputo has received a number of industry accolades including an Emmy award an ANDY, recognition at the Cannes Grand Prix and more!
After graduating from Boston University in 1996, Mr. Caputo began his career at Boston-based Mullen (now MullenLowe) and worked at a number of the industry’s top agencies such as BBDO and Ogilvy as a creative director before arriving at BBH, where he has assumed his current post for nearly 6 years.
Check out the latest episode of The A-List podcast here!:
Show Notes:
- [0:00-2:06] Intro.
- [3:01-7:55] Growing up in Little Falls, New Jersey.
- [10:52-14:00] Discovering photography in school and creative writing.
- [14:01- 18:35] Transitioning to advertising and becoming an intern at Mullen.
- [20:17-26:36] Building his book, ‘finding the fire’, and becoming an art director.
- [28:12-31:30] Emerging as a creative and moving on to Fallon, in Minneapolis.
- [32:18-34:01] Tips for young people who relocate to new cities.
- [34:30- 38:20] Being stubborn and pushing to make great ads.
- [40:14-44:00] On the rise of digital storytelling.
- [45:00-50:33] Leaving Fallon for BBDO and meeting Tom!
- [54:24 -1:00:23] Leaving BBDO and evading complacency.
- [1:01:12- 1:06:55] Moving to BBH and the challenges of being a senior level creative.
- [1:07:00-1:10:30] Outro.
“The A-List” is a podcast produced by DiMassimo Goldstein, an inspiring action agency, recorded at the Gramercy Post, and sponsored by the Adhouse Advertising School, New York’s newest, smallest, and hippest ad school. You can subscribe and rate the show on iTunes or listen along on SoundCloud. For updates on upcoming episodes and guests, be sure to like the A-List Podcast on Facebook and follow host Tom Christmann on Twitter
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Team DIGO | 08/01/2019 | in
On this week’s episode of The A-List Podcast, host and DiMassimo Goldstein CCO, Tom Christmann is joined by none other than, our chief and the founder of DiMassimo Goldstein, the most Inspiring Action agency in the world, Mark DiMassimo!
Okay, we can’t lie, we’re obviously excited about this episode. As chief, Mark has overseen the production a lot of great work in the advertising space over the past 23 years. However, Mark was not always the leader of an ad agency…
After a career as a young entrepreneur and musician, Mark DiMassimo began his second career at twenty-five years old in the direct marketing division of BBDO. There, Mark apprenticed to the Direct Marketing author, Ed Nash, and soaked in the atmosphere at a time when direct marketers were entrepreneurial, and brands where built through direct marketing.
As an account executive and without asking permission, Mark started writing ads for a client that had frustrated the creative department into mass creative block. Instead of being fired, he was invited into the creative department with the proviso, “But you won’t be able to tell us what to do anymore.” With time, he emerged as a pre-eminent creative with his career took off due to his track record of success.
Mark worked on choice assignments and launched major brands with the philosophy of exploiting the blind spots of fellow direct marketers by using brand insights to create integrated brand response advertising campaigns that dramatically out-performed more tactical work.
Mark led integrated creative departments and produced notable work at some of the best creative agencies in the world before founding his own in 1996. He founded DiMassimo Goldstein in the spirit of leading the charge for “a brand revolution among direct marketers and a direct revolution among brand marketers” as well as laying the groundwork for our practice of #InspiringAction.
On this episode, we follow Mark through his career and delve into his gritty origin story from start to finish.
You’re not going to want to miss this one. Listen here!
Show Notes:
[0:00-3:00] Intro.
[3:01-7:25] Mark talks about growing up in NJ and his early upbringing.
[7:26-9:29] Mark’s imagination and first forays into creativity as a profession.
[9:29-13:46] Mark’s super-dark childhood short story and learning how to express himself.
[13:47-16:11] Wayne Dyer’s ‘Erroneous Zones’ as a marketing inspiration.
[16:13 -20:23] SUNY Fredonia, majoring in music, and discovering the library.
[21:17-24:45] Transferring to Cornell and Industrial and Labor Relations.
[24:54-27:44] How he made the switch to communications and ultimately deciding on Advertising as a career path.
[25:00-32:30] BBDO Direct and Mark’s first job working on brand accounts in advertising.
[32:31-40:20] Mark discusses his first creative experiences as a copywriter and being challenged for the first time.
[40:42-49:00] Being laid off, freelancing, and getting copywriter positions.
[49:15-55:59] Mark on his rise through the ranks and deciding to start his very own agency.
[56:00-57:37] Outro.
“The A-List” is a podcast produced by DiMassimo Goldstein, an inspiring action agency, recorded at the Gramercy Post, and sponsored by the Adhouse Advertising School, New York’s newest, smallest, and hippest ad school. You can subscribe and rate the show on iTunes or listen along on SoundCloud. For updates on upcoming episodes and guests, be sure to like the A-List Podcast on Facebook and follow host Tom Christmann on Twitter.
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Team DIGO | 07/25/2019 | in
On this week’s episode of The A-List Podcast, host and DiMassimo Goldstein CCO Tom Christmann is joined by Steve Sandstrom, the Executive Creative Director of the Portland-based, strategy and design firm, Sandstrom Partners and a board member of the One Club for Creativity.
We are grateful to have Steve with us this season.
Steve is also one of the founding minds behind Tazo, a tea company that challenged consumer perceptions and spawned a litany of brands in its wake. Steve’s work with Tazo resulted in a number of accolades and recognition in major competitions for over a decade.
Steve has been instrumental in launching some of the most iconic brands of this decade and revitalizing many well known brands, most notably having worked on Converse, Nike, Coca-Cola, Miller Brewing, ESPN, Jordan, adidas, Levi Strauss, and more.
In this interview, Steve shares a bit with us about his journey, his upbringing in Portland, and the stories behind some of his most famous designs.
Tune in now to this episode of the A-List Podcast!
- [0:00-2:33] – Intro
- [2:34 – 7:40] How to pronounce ‘Oregon’ and Steve’s upbringing in Portland.
- [7:41- 9:52] Steve’s early inspirations and first exposure to art through his family.
- [9:52- 14:17] Learning design fundamentals in school and discovering graphic design in college.
- [14:18 – 17:33] Steve’s first design job as an illustrator and standing out in class.
- [17:34 – 21:00] for the love of drawing.
- [21:01 – 26:50] University of Oregon and developing a unique style at the Daily Emerald.
- [26:51 – 30:17] Deciding on commercial art and getting notable exposure for designing.
- [30:18 – 34:15] Starting a design career in advertising and advice to young artists
- [34:16 – 37:10] Turning a local radio station into a design opportunity.
- [37:11 – 46:33] Being picked up by Nike and working as a creative director.
- [46:34: 53:59] Starting Sandstrom Partners and discovering a design niche
- [54:00 – 1:03:40] Problem solving and favorite challenging projects
- [1:05:55 – 1:07:22] Outro
“The A-List” is a podcast produced by DiMassimo Goldstein, an inspiring action agency, recorded at the Gramercy Post, and sponsored by the Adhouse Advertising School, New York’s newest, smallest, and hippest ad school. You can subscribe and rate the show on iTunes or listen along on SoundCloud. For updates on upcoming episodes and guests, be sure to like the A-List Podcast on Facebook and follow host Tom Christmann on Twitter.
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Team DIGO | 07/18/2019 | in
On this week’s episode of The A-List Podcast, host and DiMassimo Goldstein CCO Tom Christmann is joined by Michael Bierut, current partner at Pentagram and former employee of the renowned Italian designer Massimo Vignelli. Michael has designed some of the most well-recognized logos in the world, including the Hillary Clinton campaign logo, the Saks Fifth Avenue bag, the Slack icon, and many more.
We are so lucky to have Michael join us in our design series, as we interview some of the industry’s biggest and brightest.
For ten years Michael worked and learned from Vignelli Associates, before joining Pentagram as a partner in 1990. He has won hundreds of design awards and his work is represented in several permanent collections including: the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) and the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum in New York; the Library of Congress in Washington, DC; the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art (SFMOMA); the Denver Art Museum; the Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe Hamburg, Germany; and the Museum of Design, Zürich, Switzerland.
In this interview. he divulges how he turned his natural artistic inclination into a giant career in graphic design. Be sure to listen then check out his site https://designobserver.com/ for creative inspiration.
Show Notes:
- [0:00 – 1:56] Intro
- [1:57 – 4:27] Growing up in non-starstudded Ohio and discovering his drawing talents.
- [4:28 – 7:20] Serendipitously stumbling on the book “Aim High for a Career in Graphic Design / Art by S. Neil Fujita” at age 14 and starting art as a vocational trade.
- [7:21 – 12:10] The benefits of social ineptitude and the nerve to push yourself creatively.
- [12:10 – 17:57] The curse of ‘knowing the rules.’
- [17:58 – 26:16] For the love of rules and parameters.
- [26:17 – 28:16] Helvetica and 70’s font style at the University of Cincinnati
- [28:17 – 33:35] The magnetic pull to New York City and working with mastermind Massimo Vignelli.
- [33:36 – 36:10] The healthy side of a workaholic.
- [36:11 – 38:16] Wisdom gained from 10 years with Vignelli and the importance of compelling ideas.
- [38:17 – 43:08] Leaving Vignelli to become a partner at Pentagram in 1990.
- [43:09 – 48: ] Working on the top-secret Hillary Clinton campaign logo.
- [52:49 – 54:59] Outro
“The A-List” is a podcast produced by DiMassimo Goldstein, an inspiring action agency, recorded at the Gramercy Post, and sponsored by the Adhouse Advertising School, New York’s newest, smallest, and hippest ad school. You can subscribe and rate the show on iTunes or listen along on SoundCloud. For updates on upcoming episodes and guests, be sure to like the A-List Podcast on Facebook and follow host Tom Christmann on Twitter.
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Team DIGO | 07/11/2019 | in
On this week’s episode of The A-List Podcast, host and DiMassimo Goldstein CCO Tom Christmann is joined by Mike Lescarbeau, former President and Chief Creative Officer of Carmichael Lynch, and current CEO of Person, an HR consulting firm that helps companies create better workplaces through diversity, inclusion, and best hiring practices.
During the interview, Mike delves into his successful start in advertising and his natural transition towards helping companies develop positive work cultures. Mike has been awarded the American Advertising Federation’s 2014 MOSAIC Award for Diversity Achievement, and serves on the board of directors for The BrandLab, a Minneapolis-based consortium of over 40 companies working to bring more people of color into advertising and marketing.
Mike’s transition is an unusual one. In this interview he gives us invaluable advice about how to lean into people’s natural tendencies to create a higher retention rate and keep your people happy.
Sit back and take a listen to the most interesting interview you’ve ever heard about Human Resources.
Show Notes:
- [0:00 – 2:22] Intro
- [2:23 – 7:50] Writing 200 headlines with Tom McElligott and growing up in Minnesota
- [7:51– 18:14] The natural ease of writing copy and early advertising experiences
- [18:15 – 25:50] Moving from advertising to HR
- [25:51 – 31:25] How to make interviews safer spaces
- [31:26 – 37:42] Embracing Millennials and dealing with hard clients
- [37:43 – 50:10] Breaking down barriers with other people and being inclusive
- [50:11 –:] First steps in helping a company hire
- [58:18 – 1:00:07] Outro
“The A-List” is a podcast produced by DiMassimo Goldstein, an inspiring action agency, recorded at the Gramercy Post, and sponsored by the Adhouse Advertising School, New York’s newest, smallest, and hippest ad school. You can subscribe and rate the show on iTunes or listen along on SoundCloud. For updates on upcoming episodes and guests, be sure to like the A-List Podcast on Facebook and follow host Tom Christmann on Twitter.
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Team DIGO | 06/27/2019 | in
Doing just enough, just isn’t enough
On this week’s episode of The A-List Podcast, host and DiMassimo Goldstein CCO Tom Christmann is joined by Nick Law, previous Chief Creative Officer at Publicis, who made the recent leap to become a Marketing Executive at Apple. Yes, that Apple company.
Nick’s unique integration of design, storytelling, and technology give him a unique perspective in the advertising industry. He observes behavior to create brands and believes big ideas can come after the product’s medium.
Before Publicis, Nick worked at R/GA for 17 years, where he helped expand the company up from 100 to 2,000 employees.
Nick has twice been named in the Creativity 50 list and is a force to learn from. We were very lucky to have him on The A-List Podcast. Make sure you tune in below!
Show Notes:
- [0:00 – 2:10] Intro
- [2:11 – 2:20] Growing up in Sydney, the benefits of a “feral” upbringing, avoiding school & enjoying art
- [4:46 – 8:18] Drawing, discovering graphic design, getting into art school
- [8:19 – 11:06] First jobs and how to become a master
- [11:07 – 12:54] Are big ideas that important?
- [12:55 – 15:16] The importance of not taking the first job you land, the difficulty of unlearning bad habits
- [15:17 – 21:58] Taking a gap year, starting at Pentagram and moving in advertising in 1988, moving to New York in 1994, entering the dot com boom and the internet
- [21:58 – 27:40] The “strange delicious isolation” before the internet and the unavoidable future of it
- [27:41 – 42:40] How creatives can use the newest tools and executing ideas at the speed of thought
- [42:40 – 1:05] Observe behavior before building a brand, the power of storytelling, technology connectivity
- [1:06 – 1:03:24] Outro
“The A-List” is a podcast produced by DiMassimo Goldstein, an inspiring action agency, recorded at the Gramercy Post, and sponsored by the Adhouse Advertising School, New York’s newest, smallest, and hippest ad school. You can subscribe and rate the show on iTunes or listen along on SoundCloud. For updates on upcoming episodes and guests, be sure to like the A-List Podcast on Facebook and follow host Tom Christmann on Twitter.
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Team DIGO | 06/20/2019 | in
On this week’s episode of The A-List Podcast, host and DiMassimo Goldstein CCO Tom Christmann is joined by Karl Lieberman, Executive Creative Director and Creative Head at Wieden + Kennedy New York.
I don’t always launch campaigns that generate thousands of memes for years to come, but when I do, it’s awesome. Remember Dos Equis’s The Most Interesting Man in the World campaign? Of course you do. Well, that was Karl. He co-created that iconic campaign and many more.
Raised in New Jersey by an artist mother and a doctor father, Karl’s creativity and ambition was nurtured early on. However, it wasn’t until visiting his sister at work at her digital marketing office in D.C, did he learn about the world of advertising.
After studying fine arts at the University of Delaware, Karl got an internship at Mother London, where he learned his portfolio sucked, got an art partner, and learned to write from an honest place.
Karl has worked at several big-name agencies including Gyro, Mother, and Wieden + Kennedy, where he’s helped create famous work for huge clients, including Bud Light, Dos Equis, ESPN, Yoplait, Velveeta and more.
During the interview, Karl offers insights about coming of age in the business, being true to himself, and making it big. Listen in for the whole scoop
- [0:00 – 2:55] Intro
- [2:56 – 7:42] Having an artistic childhood in New Jersey with a painter mother and a doctor father
- [7:43 – 13:00] Exposure to the advertising world, learning jobs don’t have to stuck, pursuing art at The University of Delaware
- [14:30 – 25:29] Interning at Mother London, getting a portfolio invention, partnering with art director Brandon Henderson and landing first jobs
- [25:29 – 30:05] Working with hero Jeff Kling (Miller High Life) in the creative department, writing a basketball blog, connecting the dots between writing and writing ads
- [30:05 – 37:35] Writing Dos Equis’s The Most Interesting Man in the World campaign
- [38:40 – 39:57] Working harder post Dos Equi’s campaign
- [39:58 – 52:40] From Gyro to Mother then eventually Wieden + Kennedy, and the importance of briefs
- [39:58 – 55:45] Defining “good ideas,” the future of advertising, and the power of the internet
- [55:45 – 59:16] Droga5 Superbowl spots Walking Dead and Game of Thrones
- [59:16 – 1:00:38] Outro
“The A-List” is a podcast produced by DiMassimo Goldstein, an inspiring action agency, recorded at the Gramercy Post, and sponsored by the Adhouse Advertising School, New York’s newest, smallest, and hippest ad school. You can subscribe and rate the show on iTunes or listen along on SoundCloud. For updates on upcoming episodes and guests, be sure to like the A-List Podcast on Facebook and follow host Tom Christmann on Twitter.
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Team DIGO | 06/13/2019 | in
On this week’s episode of The A-List Podcast, host and DiMassimo Goldstein CCO Tom Christmann is joined by Paula Scher, the absolutely iconic graphic designer, painter and art educator.
Quite frankly, Paula Scher is a legend. The “Paul McCartney of design,” if you will. One of the most influential graphic designers in the world, with work so ubiquitous you don’t even know you know, but seriously, you know it.
After a decade as an Art Director designing album covers in the 70’s and 80’s (that iconic Boston spaceship cover was her) she became a partner at Pentagram in 1991. Yes, that’s 28 years. In that time she’s created world famous posters, logos, paintings, album covers, architectural designs and more.
Her work is featured in permanent exhibits around the world, including the Museum of Modern Art and the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum in New York, the Museum für Gestaltung Zürich, and the Bibliothèque nationale de France, the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris and more. She was the first woman to receive the Type Directors Club Medal in 2006, served as the president of the Alliance Graphique Internationale (AGI) from 2009-2012, and in 1998 was named to the Art Directors Club Hall of Fame. She’s currently featured on the Netflix documentary series Abstract: The Art of Design.
Despite her incredible success, she’s still a proponent of trying new things, embracing failure, and admitting she still “doesn’t know.” Tune in for some serious wisdom.
Show Notes:
- [0:00 – 1:30] Intro
- [1:31 – 2:31] How drawing became a respite from family disputes
- [2:32 – 3:59] Getting inspiration from beatnik counter-culture at the Corcoran School of Art in D.C. and using artistic inclination to make social connections in teen suburbia
- [3:59 – 5:33] Linking her talent to the field of graphic design
- [5: 34– 6:56] Embracing time and failure as the greatest teachers, “For me, finding what I’m good at is an ever-evolving playing field.”
- [6:57 – 8:13] The importance of pissing off the older generations. “To discover something you have to make errors. Discoveries look weird when they’re new. Then someone comes along and does it better. Discoveries may not be recognized, but they’re necessary.”
- [8:14 – 19:42] The no-formula formula for rule breaking. “Be a brat, break the norm,” and how Helvetica became a symbol of corporate culture and the Vietnam War.
- [8:14 – 23: 20] The benefits of smoking cigarettes in a cubicle with your boss
- [23: 20 – 27:01] Becoming an Art Director at Atlantic Records and designing iconic album covers
- [27:01 – 29: 02] Being “dead serious” about designing album covers, moving into freelance work, magazines, running a design firm, then finally joining Pentagram
- [29: 02 – 32:34] The benefits of learning through failure, what she’s most proud of, being unable to pick favorites, and always moving on to the next piece
- [32:35 – 35: 04] Teaching clients “how to see” and the benefit of taking the time to explain ideas
- [35: 05 — 36: 49] Working at Pentagram for 28 years and their unique shared work structure
- [36: 50 – 44:40] Advice for young designers, how time constraints have changed the industry’s portfolio review system, and the consequences of large tech companies on creativity
“The A-List” is a podcast produced by DiMassimo Goldstein, an inspiring action agency, recorded at the Gramercy Post, and sponsored by the Adhouse Advertising School, New York’s newest, smallest, and hippest ad school. You can subscribe and rate the show on iTunes or listen along on SoundCloud. For updates on upcoming episodes and guests, be sure to like the A-List Podcast on Facebook and follow host Tom Christmann on Twitter.
