On My Radar: Gerard de Thame

What’s the best ad campaign you’ve seen recently?

As I spend my time between the UK and the US, I’ve picked one from each country, although they couldn’t be more different in tone which I guess is a true reflection of my pretty eclectic tastes. 

In the UK it has to be the Cadbury’s Dairy Milk Medley spot (below) where the cat massages the dog’s head in time to a Barry White soundtrack. The expression on the dog’s face is priceless! It’s part of an on-going campaign Tastes Like This Feels and is refreshing in its lateral approach to food advertising. In the US I really, really like Why Girls Can’t Code. Maybe it’s because I have two young daughters, but the message is right on – and deftly directed. 

What website(s) do you use most regularly and why?

Newsnow – and no I’m not a fanatical skier or snowboarder. It’s actually “news now” - and it allows you to select a topic and then it automatically collates any article on the web related to your chosen subject. My chosen subject is the football team Arsenal – so I get every useless bit of rumour and half-truths, gossip and very occasionally a breaking news item relating to my club. It’s compulsive and only a football mad person would use this on a daily basis.

What’s the most recent piece of tech that you’ve bought and why?

I just bought a Metabones lens conversion adaptor that allows me to use all my old Canon lenses with my Sony A7S MK ii. It’s given them a new lease of life and in fact I just shot a couple of days on my last spot with this combo to great effect.

Facebook, Instagram or Twitter?

Twitter - but I’m very bad at it. Normally I take a photo of something I think is cool and tweet that, so in fact I should probably be using Instagram. It’s hard to use it directly for work now as so many clients don’t want anything on social media until the spot airs – but the Twitter account is hanging on in there – just!

What’s your favourite app on your phone and why?

“Notes” – I don’t know if this qualifies as an app but I use it constantly from writing boring ‘to do’ lists to getting down new ideas to drafting emails.

What’s your favourite TV show and why?

I’ve been enjoying the Scorsese / Jagger produced Vinyl and am now into the second series of Gomorra – but actually don’t watch that much TV.

What film do you think everyone should have seen?

Choosing one is impossible - I showed Some Like It Hot to my kids recently, and after getting over the black and white, they absolutely loved it. But for me it needs to be a little less mainstream and so I’ll go for Bruce Robinson’s Withnail & I.

Where were you when inspiration last struck?

I find being in a new place often seems to be great for generating fresh ideas. I just got back from a trip to the Highlands of Scotland which was in itself inspirational in its sheer raw beauty.

What’s the most significant change you’ve witnessed in the industry since you started working in it?

It has to be the fact we can now capture film images at astounding resolution with tiny cameras we can hold in the palm of our hands. I find this enormously liberating.

If there was one thing you could change about the advertising industry, what would it be?

More intelligent, creatively driven ideas – too many ads still talk down to their audience.

What or who has most influenced your career and why?

Almost everyone I meet inspires or influences me in some way or another. There’s no one person.

Tell us one thing about yourself that most people won’t know.

I actually started out as a sculptor – and when I have the time I still mess around building stuff.