Naomi Taylor — Student, School of Communication Arts
Naomi talks to TheNextGag about her dreams of entering the creative industry, what makes her unique and why SCA is the best place for learning advertising.
Naomi Taylor is a Student at School of Communication Arts in the UK.
Naomi Taylor is an advertising student with a lot of talent and an incredible drive.
At this year’s Cannes Lions Festival, she entered and won the inaugural student award at the VOWSS Festival. The speech she gave when receiving her trophy silenced the room. She then penned an article about her experience that was published in Campaign Magazine: How I went from foster care to winning an award in Cannes.
Last year, she launched a fundraising campaign for her living expenses as a student at SCA. The operation was covered by Campaign Magazine: Student launches fundraising appeal to kick-start her advertising career / An aspiring ad industry creative is appealing for help to achieve her dream of gaining a place at School of Communication Arts.
THENEXTGAG: WHAT ARE YOU DOING AT THE MOMENT ?
NAOMI TAYLOR: I am back at SCA after a bad Summer. I felt I had to go back to find out who I was again, as I had lost that for various reasons.
I want to change the world, like everyone always says, but I believe if there is anywhere I can do that, it’s advertising.
TNG: CAN YOU TELL US HOW YOU DECIDED TO TRY ADVERTISING AS A CAREER ?
NT: I never really knew what advertising was, I never knew that it had so much depth and research that went into it. I was on a placement at a small brand agency in London and I worked on a lot of pitches. I would think of the idea and then design it to a fully crafted campaign. I hated the latter, I just wanted to generate more ideas for other brands and products. This is when a designer at the agency told me about creative teams in advertising and how they work together to make big ideas for clients. I want to change the world, like everyone always says, but I believe if there is anywhere I can do that, it’s advertising. The dean of SCA, strongly believes that one of his students will one day win a Nobel prize for their work.
TNG: HOW DO YOU THINK SCA PREPARES YOU WELL FOR A CAREER IN THIS INDUSTRY ?
NT: SCA is ruthless. Its the most unconventional learning experience you will ever encounter, but it works. It’s unorthodox and bloody hard work. You don’t get three months to work on a brief. Generally you will get between one and seven days and you could have six briefs running at once. Its definitely a place that finds the ones who are passionate and driven and in turn tends to create some of the best student work in the world. If you’re happy not to have a life for a year, then its easy, but your heart really has to be in it at every step.
The school is sponsored by advertising agencies and all the mentors work in the industry. We see 1000+ mentors throughout the year from every level and department. Tell me where you’d find that in any other creative school?
You get to know mentors on a personal level, you find what sort of creative they want in their team and you build a reputation with them. All of this can only do you justice on completion of the school year.
TNG: ARE THERE SOME AD AGENCIES THAT YOU WOULD LOVE TO WORK FOR ?
NT: There are a lot of agencies that I would love to work for, especially when on placements. You can never try enough agencies to learn new skills, gain new contacts and experience. Every agency is so different and you can’t really get a true feel for it until you become part of the furniture there for a while.
Mr. President has always been my number one place to work, more so because of their CCO Laura Jordan Bambach. I came into this industry to make positive change and create positive action and I feel that Laura would no doubt be the best person to help me, I mean look all the things she has already done with things like SheSays.
I’ve spent a bit of time at W+K recently and am lucky to be working on a live brief for them. The thought of W+K at first was scary, not only because they are the most attractive to young creatives but because of how shit hot they are. I’ve got to know some of the creatives there and I’m not scared of it now and could also see myself working there, but still early days!
TNG: WHY DO YOU THINK THAT AGENCY MANAGERS SHOULD GIVE YOU A CHANCE ?
NT: I know that I’m not going to appeal to every agency, they’re always looking for something different and of course, this industry needs that diversity of characters, otherwise work would always look the same.
For me, I want them to get me in because they believe in me and my work.
TNG: IS THERE A PIECE OF WORK THAT YOU SAW RECENTLY THAT YOU LIKED A LOT ?
NT: Honestly. No. I feel that there isn’t enough bravery happening right now. People seem to be scared to push the boundaries and deliver the unexpected. We want work that is going to cause a reaction, we need work that get noticed. That is definitely not happening much right now. I understand that this ‘dry’ phase does have a lot to do with clients not wanting to take risks so it’s not all down to the creatives.
TNG: ARE YOU INTERESTED IN FILMMAKING AS A HOBBY ?
NT: Not particularly. You know, if I have to do it for something, then I will and to the best of my ability, but its not something I will do for fun. I’m more of a photo person.
TNG: WHAT WAS YOUR PROCESS FOR THE FILM THAT YOU SUBMITTED INTO THE VOWSS FESTIVAL ?
NT: So I tend to start a brief with free writing and just getting out all the initial thoughts no matter if they make sense of not. That process of filtering helps to leave you with the core of what you are wanting to say. Next, I turn it into a spoken word poem of sorts and I keep iterating until I have something that gives me that ‘feeling’. The animation that followed was made to represent and enhance the spoken word.
TNG: HOW WAS YOUR EXPERIENCE AT THIS YEAR’S CANNES LIONS ?
NT: I’m glad I experienced it, but I can say that I probably wouldn’t go back unless it was for a reason. I mean, the place is like a catwalk and popularity contest. ‘I’ve got this celebrity on my boat!’, was a common phrase that I heard.
Being out there as a young creative, I was hoping to get to know people from various agencies around the world, but I can say that a lot of people were not interested in talking to me or my friends. People were there to get drunk and collect Lions.
The thing that made me the most angry was when we tried to speak to a guy who had collected a gold lion for a campaign on diversity, and when we tried to discuss the subject with him, he had no interest what so ever. People aren’t practicing what they preach. They know what to say when they need to but in reality they don’t generally care.
Thankfully though, I did spend time with people I have known for a while in the industry. That made it all worth it.
TNG: WHY SHOULD COMPANIES/PEOPLE SPONSOR KIDS TO JOIN SCA ?
NT: I don’t feel a lot of people realise how much good SCA actually do. They have assumed that it’s a place full of rich white kids that live of mum and dad. Yes that is true for some, but the majority take out loans or work for a few years before hand to save the money. You have to have a mix in order for the best output of work. You need different experiences.
SCA has changed the lives of so many people, including me. Its a place of hope and freedom. There are no boundaries and you can be whoever you want to be. It’s an amazing place with great opportunities and every person deserves a chance to have a place there no matter who they are or where they come from.
Naomi Taylor
Student
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