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By Minda Smiley, Reporter

June 27, 2016 | 2 min read

At Cannes Lions, The Drum caught up with J. Walter Thompson’s worldwide chief creative officer Matt Eastwood to find out what he thinks it takes to be a great creative.

While attracting top-tier talent to the ad industry has been a buzzy topic as of late, Eastwood believes that talent means nothing if it isn’t paired with passion.

“I think talent is a commodity in our industry,” he said. “Obviously you need talent to be a great creative, but talent is almost wasted by dozens and dozens of people because they don’t have the passion to push through. So I think the truly great creatives are the ones that take their talent and apply passion above reason.”

Eastwood joined J. Walter Thompson in 2014 after serving as chief creative officer at DDB New York. Throughout his career, he has worked at agencies in the US, UK and Australia, and has served as a judge at a number of industry award shows including The One Show and Cannes. He has also overseen a number of iconic campaigns, including Water is Life’s ‘Hashtag Killer’ initiative.

His interview with The Drum can be viewed above. See what Tena Clark, founder and chief creative officer of DMI Music & Media, said when we asked her what it takes to be a great creative.

Creative What Does It Take To Be a Great Creative? Cannes Lions

Other episodes in the series

Episode 1

‘It’s about asking a lot of questions’: Deutsch’s Winston Binch on what it takes to be a great creative

The Drum recently caught up with Winston Binch, Deutsch North America’s chief digital officer, to find out what he thinks it takes to be a great creative.

Episode 2

‘Be a producer’: RPA’s Sarah Bates on what it takes to be a great creative

To Sarah Bates, creative director at RPA in Los Angeles, being weird is perfectly fine. In fact, it’s pretty normal and desirable — especially those “non sequitur adventures” that make a person interesting in a creative field.

Episode 3

‘Distill the brief’: The Mill’s Phil Crowe on what it takes to be a great creative

Are there bad briefs? That’s likely up for all kinds of debate but, to Phil Crowe, ECD of The Mill in Los Angeles, it’s less about the brief and more about the interpretation of the brief.

Episode 4

Saturday Morning leaders on being a great creative

It’s not difficult to be inspired by Saturday Morning, the movement for peace founded after a spate of police shootings against African-Americans including Philando Castile, Alton Sterling and others.

Episode 5

Lola MullenLowe Madrid's Pancho Cassis on what it takes to be a great creative: 'It's not about ideas anymore'

The Drum caught up with Pancho Cassis, executive creative director and copywriter at Lola MullenLowe Madrid, to find out what he thinks it takes to be a great creative.

Episode 6

Colle+McVoy’s Laura Fegley: 'Being a great creative is all about endurance'

Laura Fegley, ECD at Colle+McVoy in Minneapolis, treads a path of undeniable success.

Episode 7

‘Mind numbing patience’: Kirk Kelley, HouseSpecial CCO on what makes a great creative

Browsing through the work of Portland’s HouseSpecial can become a walk through a creative candy shop — starting with (pun kind of intended) iconic creativity for M&M's, including the well-received Candyman spot featuring Aloe Blacc and Zedd.

Episode 8

"Great creatives need a partner": OKRP leaders on becoming a great creative

What Does It Take To Be A Great Creative? is a video series that highlights the thinking of global creative leaders on specifics actions that can build a successful creative career in the industry. See what other creative leaders had to say in past episodes.

Episode 9

'Stick with your gut': Pereira & O'Dell's PJ Pereira on being a great creative

What Does It Take To Be A Great Creative? is a video series that highlights the thinking of global creative leaders on specifics actions that can build a successful creative career in the industry. See what other creative leaders had to say in past episodes.

Episode 10

Hunger, passion, curiosity: MullenLowe Singapore’s Shengjin Ang on being a great creative

What Does It Take To Be A Great Creative? is a video series that highlights the thinking of global creative leaders on specifics actions that can build a successful creative career in the industry. See what other creative leaders had to say in past episodes.

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