The Source: Thierry Albert

W+K Amsterdam creative director and a member of the Surrender Monkeys directing collective Thierry Albert loves Gatsby Le Magnifique and doesn’t love standing in his socks at airports while being groped. But who does?

What is the most creative advertising idea you’ve seen in the last few months?

Hate Mail by Mr Bingo, one of my favourite British illustrators. Basically, you give him £20 and he sends you a vintage postcard with an amazingly hateful illustration on it. Mine said that he dreamt kittens with laser eyes were killing me. Supercool. 

What’s your favourite website?

I particularly love two: whereisthecool.blogspot.co.uk by my friend Laurent Laporte, a young French creative who’s got a great eye for clothes and what’s in or out. Check it out to see if you’re (still) cool. Also, thedayafteryoudie.blogspot.co.uk, I can daydream in front of it for hours.

What website do you use most regularly?

The Guardian. Facebook. And themindfuckofgoldenbirdies.tumblr.com, but it’s like Fight Club, you’re not supposed to talk about it.

What track/artist would you listen to for inspiration?

A Forest by The Cure. Five minutes and fifty-four seconds of pure heaven. 80s new wave music is the best and can’t be beaten. My bad sister Emer and I can’t dance enough to it.

What product hasn’t been invented yet that would make your life/job better?

Seamless security at airports. Don’t you hate it when they make you stand in your socks and grope you to check that you’re not carrying a bomb or smuggling some saucisson?

What product could you not live without?

A baguette.

What’s the best film you’ve seen over the last year?

Beasts of the Southern Wild. I loved Hushpuppy so much. And the monsters.  

What show/exhibition has most inspired you recently?

Sleep No More by Punchdrunk. You spend three hours wandering around a warehouse in New York wearing strange masks and following actors who play a modern version of Macbeth. An unmissable experience. They are the best in the world.  

If you could live in one city, where would it be?

Sydney. I spent some time there last year at my friends Lou and Dylan’s house on Bronte Beach and thought it has everything I dream of: the sea, the sun and the surf. And the work is super good… Dylan [Harrison], who’s the boss at DDB, is killing it there.

What fictitious character do you most relate to?

Gatsby le Magnifique (The Great Gatsby but I admit that for once, the French title is better). A man who can get anything he wants except the one thing that he truly misses: the love of the love of his life. I’m a desperate romantic and I’ve read this book more than twenty times expecting the ending to change. It never does. Anyway, if you haven’t read it yet, you’re very lucky, old sport.

Mac or PC?

Mac. My first computer was an Apple IIc. I felt so empowered, I was totally gonna take on the Pentagon, like Matthew Broderick in WarGames.

What’s your favourite magazine?

Les Inrockuptibles, the best French magazine. I’ve been a subscriber forever. They have great movie reviews, and God knows I love movies.

Who’s your favourite photographer?

Sophie Ebrard. She’s got the amazing ability to make anything look beautiful and touching. She shoots on film, which is pretty rare nowadays, and is a delight to work with. Check her website [and read more in this previous shots feature].

Who’s your favourite designer?

I’d say Oscar Niemeyer, even though he’s an architect. But when you see his drawings, you see the hand of God.  

If you could have been in any band, what band would you choose?

Taxi Girl, a French new wave band from the 80s. Listen to Paris or Cherchez le Garçon on YouTube. Once the lead singer Daniel Darc slit his wrists on stage [supporting Talking Heads in 1979] and splashed the front row with his blood. That’s what we, French people, call being romantic.