The art of creativity with Leila Moussaoui
Leila Moussaoui is Creative — Art Director at Intel working at Agency Inside, their in-house Advertising Agency. Leila has an impressive range of cultural advertising experience, having worked for a number of agencies with clients such as Skype and Hyatt Regency. Her work has earned recognition at the One Show as well as Cannes. We talk to Leila about working inside the agency, the fundamentals of creativity, and how to take it to the next level.
Hello, I’m George from Movidiam, and today we’re speaking with Leila Moussaoui from Intel. Leila is a creative — art director, and works at Intel’s in-house agency Agency Inside. Leila, welcome to the Movidiam Podcast.
Hello, thank you for having me.
Well, it’s great to have you on board and chatting today. Leila, you’re based in San Francisco, which is the center of technology from a global scale with Silicon Valley. Tell us, how do you remain inspired as an art director working at Intel?
It’s very easy to remain inspired working at Intel and in San Francisco. We’re surrounded by people firstly who know what they’re talking about when we’re looking into new medias and expanding creatively on how we can do things. The tools are right there. New device groups are working right under us, and we can see kind of what’s coming up, what’s the next thing that’s going to be trending. Or for instance, right now, there’s a big push for VR and how we can personalize that. In San Francisco in general, it’s very easy to be integrated — in the lifestyle in general as well.
Sure, and I think sort of there’s a real buzz of creativity, which definitely makes sense then. You haven’t been at Intel for a huge period of time. You’ve actually had an array of experience at different agencies in San Francisco as well, is that right?
Yes, I’m from an advertising agency background, and working at Intel is my first client-side, I guess, experience working with a brand, and moving towards a more technical, digital side of things.
How do you think that landscape has changed? Today agencies are sort of owners, or hold the creative identity, or the brand ethos for a brand. But actually, if you’re inside the brand itself it’s a different role, isn’t it?
Very much so, but at the same time, at the core, you’re still pushing for innovation, and you’re still pushing for finding the most creative way to problem solve. But there are differences, I think, that everyone needs to adapt to, and everyone has been becoming more flexible about.
For instance, brands are becoming more and more open to the idea of being more creative in their problem solving and executing to a higher level instead of relying on agencies to do that for the, and generating their own content. They’re also working more and more directly with production agencies as well.
Working from concept development to execution instead of coming in from agency side and then going to production agencies, and working out execution. For advertising agencies also, things are changing in that we’re seeing them be more collaborative with the brands for their more specific and custom needs.
Yes, it’s interesting, isn’t it? So there’s a lot of different approaches coming in, which are technology enabled actually. It’s a lot of different collaborative tools out there raising visibility for agencies globally and a vast sort of creative talent pool, and how you can access that and do the best work for your agency, or indeed the brand that you’re within.
Yes, innovation is definitely very much important, and the collaboration between everyone. It’s basically the only way that you’ll be able to grow and be innovative right now, is by being collaborative and understanding what everyone can bring to the table from concept all the way to execution. It’s not so linear anymore.
Yes, very interesting. What does an average day look like for you in your role at Intel?
Wow, no one day looks the same as another. Coming in, depending on what brief we’re working on, we’re either in the concept phase of coming up with the best on-brand idea that through the filter of what is something maybe that has never been done before, but also being inspired by what’s happening around us right now at the moment with technology and culturally. Then after the conceptual phase, it’s trying to push that through business units, making sure that it’s solving the actual problem that we started off with.
Sure.
And then, depending on what is strongest, we will go through with production agencies either in-house or outside of Intel. No one day is similar to another.
Like you said, well, I suppose that’s a fantastic part of a creative role actually isn’t it, it’s very diverse, it’s a new set of experiences.
Yes, and then the fact that you have to think on your feet and always adapt to what’s changing, and what you can and can’t do. Things pop up from the left and the right, and you have to be able to adapt to it but always without hindering the creative — and that’s always the most challenging part.
Sure, and your work, before you were at Intel was highly celebrated, and earned various awards. I mean, Silver Cyber, all these fantastic awards. Is that part of the industry recognition that drives things forward as well? You’re very heavily decorated.
I wouldn’t say that it’s the only thing that is important, but in an industry where it’s very hard to measure your skill set creatively, awards are one of the ways to do it and one of the ways to see how immersed a person is in the field. Also, it’s a way for everyone to stay on their toes and know what’s going on out there. It’s a way for people to get together and be able to share all the work that’s happening and to push for better work year by year.
And I think Intel really is a very famous brand, and huge. Actually, just recently, the Intel powered drones flying at the Super Bowl, for example. It’s a huge technical achievement and statement. The benchmark is set very high.
Yes, it is and we need to keep on pushing that. I’d say that the important thing also is not getting a brief that is the perfect brief, that will give you the opportunity to do something big and having the budget. I’d say keeping that benchmark high is key because there is opportunity everywhere.
Sure.
If you’re looking for it and you’re looking to making something innovative, if the leadership is also pushing for that and employees are collectively passionate about it, then you will find opportunity in things even when you don’t necessarily have the budget or means to do so. That’s for agencies and for production houses and client side.
Sure, I suppose that’s where the innovation actually comes from. Sometimes when you are restricted on a budget, start-ups are famously coming out of very tight circumstances and delivered globally changing propositions, big global propositions.
Yes, I can’t tell you how many extremely uninspiring briefs I’ve had to work on, and I think every creative have had to deal with this. It’s about not only delivering on what is asked but also bringing in something that’s even bigger to the table every step of the way.
Sure, it’s actually very taxing, also almost personal effort, that goes into it. Creativity is very internalized. You either have it or you don’t, I guess.
Well, it’s almost obsessively so. It’s either you want to have it or either you don’t.
Yes, that’s a very nuanced way of putting it. So in terms of this sort of project, like the Super Bowl drones, what’s your involvement with that, and how did that come about?
I have to say that it was a push every step of the way of trying to keep it as creative as possible and making sure everyone was heard. It was on the edge of dying a few times. It’s always like this with projects that you really care about. You really want to succeed. So it really is about pushing to make sure everyone is heard, making sure everyone is collaborating, being flexible on changing things if they need to change while trying to find solutions that will keep it as creative as possible.
Yes, absolutely. I think you described the creative tension there very well. I could almost sense it in your voice that the best projects are sometimes the hardest to get out the door. Of course, the last 10% which make them absolutely brilliant is the hardest as well.
Exactly, and it’s part of the job. That’s why it really is for someone who loves it. If you really do obsessively love to push for things that are very creative, then it won’t matter how much you’re struggling to get it out the door. Ultimately, the collaboration and the struggle make it better and it’s part of it.
It becomes part of it, you’re absolutely right. In terms of just more generally stepping back from your specific role. We’re looking at advertising as a whole, I mean, there’s lots of different channels arriving on the scene.
There are different marketplaces, there’s different distribution. It’s no longer just TV commercials are ways that advertising works. It’s a data business, it’s a distribution business. It’s different styles of content: Snapchat, Vimeo, YouTube. Does the creative process remain fundamentally the same when the distribution changes?
At the core of it, when you’re starting off with a creative project, it does in that all creative works stems from the need to understand people and the insights that you get from humans, and the stories that you want to tell about them.
This will always remain because that’s what people care about. That’s what pulls the heartstrings or make people laugh, or helps people in dire situations.
But then on, what tends to happen is that your lenses change as everything is changing around you. So you’re talking about Snapchat and live videos, and VR, AR. As you are fully immersed in this, which you need to be in this business, you start interpreting all those insights, and all those truths in storytelling through those lenses. That’s where there’s some change happening.
Cool yes, I think it’s very interesting. Do you think that ultimately the customer or the consumer is inadvertently inspired by the creativity? Or do you think they, I mean it’s interesting because they consume the output of all the hard work, but do they show any interest in the process to get to there, to get to that final piece of content or output?
It’s kind of a complex issue as it’s a mixture of both. Because whether you’re inspired or you’re soaking things up from the outside and that’s affecting the work, or you yourself are affecting the work. Usually, it’s a combination of both I would say.
You do need to get inspired from things around you and almost there is nothing fully, fully new. The next level is to take it to a place where it’s never been, and through the filter of what has never been done before try to figure out how can you bring in that new element that will make it stand out. While still being immersed culturally in what we’re seeing right now with trends and what people are reacting to.
Yes. So it’s coming up, it’s standing on the shoulders of previous work or previous piece of creative work or some sort of inspiration, but then adding something additive which also makes a difference. So again, it’s this type creative — it’s got to push forward inevitably. It can’t appear to be copying, but it’s got to stand on shoulders of inspiration or from previous work. I suppose it’s the complex creative paradigm.
It is, and that is why the most creative people I worked with are always questioning themselves. Because it’s not you’re working around all these work that’s already around you and you’re soaking it up. There’s always that kind of anxiety of “am I bringing in a new element, and are people going to react well to it?”
Sure, I agree on that. I suppose it doesn’t matter if people react well to it. Hard work is never really truly thanked but it’s, I suppose it’s a global response. Now online with the various different channels, people can show you collective support for a creative output.
Creatively it’s scary.
Yes.
It’s great, but also it’s very scary because in the span of an hour or less or so, you know if something has worked out not.
It’s terrifying. What do you think, we could talk about in-house or out-house and remaining inspired. I think traditionally inventive companies get bigger and bigger and bigger, and companies in general, get bigger and bigger and bigger, then the innovation is lost or depleted for whatever reason. How do you sort of solve that kind of innovator’s dilemma or that dilemma of losing traction of great ideas?
I’m a very firm believer of collective energy in a company. That is something that’s almost alive that you need to feed and make sure it grows in a positive way, and you need to take care of. It’s a combination of passion and leadership and drive for wanting to do something that is different, that can stand out and hiring the best employees for that. Also pushing from within and pushing from outside with the people that you choose to work with.
The process from the inside needs to keep a certain kind of momentum where even if you fail or even if you take way too many risks than you should, you need to still just keep on wanting to push and wanting to do that next big thing. Because you never know, and usually it’s when you least expect it that something brilliant comes out. It can be from a mistake, or it can be from…
Left field.
Yes, and on time of wanting to create something good and not happening and then finally happening. At an individual level, but also at a business level.
Interesting, I think in a firm that’s innovative and world changing such as Intel you’ve got the resources to be able to keep challenging. It’s challenging status quo.
Yes, I’d say the resources are mostly from hiring very creatively mindset-ed people and people who really, really want to do something great and not just come into the office from 9 to 5 and do what you need to do.
Sure.
And having that perfect amount of competition within the agency as well, within the company as well. Where people inside the agency are seeing what everyone else is doing, and trying to get inspired from that and pushing the work. Not just their own work, but everyone else’s work to be better.
Sure, I think it makes a lot of sense that a good competitive tension drives things forward. So just one last question, because I’ve taken enough of your time. How do you find sort of releasing a creative idea to an execution team, or someone who’s going to actually develop your idea or concept further. Do they always manifest it like they’ve had in your mind’s eye?
No, they don’t and it’s better that they don’t fully manifest it the way we see it. That’ always why when we first reach out to production agencies, we want to have them come in at an early enough stage where they can still mold a concept one way or another.
So we do look for something that they can bring to the table, how they can make it uniquely different. I’d say it’s always safe to check the box of what the client ask and what is being looked for, but also pushing it further. Also, if there’s something separately that production agencies or houses want to bring in it’s always very much welcome.
It’s additive, it’s additive to the process. Well, Laila, it’s been fantastic to talk to you this morning on the podcast and hear about the sort of creative tension, the challenges of executing world-class creative ideas and also a little bit about the sort of internal dynamics of motivation. Very interesting conversation. Thanks so much for your time, I look forward to catching up again soon when the next projects come and develop.
Find Leila online here:
Movidiam: Leila Moussaoui
Website: http://leilamoussaoui.com/
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/leila-moussaoui-b…
Intel: www.intel.com
