On My Radar: Tim Katz

What the most creative advertising idea you’ve seen recently?

My teenage son just showed me Buck Shelford’s starring role in the 2015 Seed Force Perennial garden supplies spot. No craft, badly shot, probably only ever aired on YouTube, but it made me smile, and I watched all two minutes twenty-three seconds without getting bored. That’s worth something.

What website(s) do you use most regularly?

It used to be BBC News, The Guardian and CNN, but I’ve pretty much stopped looking now. Did all of the other news in the world just stop? Devon tide times are quite big on my feed at the moment.

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

A Leica Q2. It’s a beautiful thing. To be fair, so was the Leica Q1 that I had at the start of quite an excitable night out in Tokyo last November. Sadly, it never quite made it back to the hotel with me.

What product could you not live without?

Patently it would be a Leica Q camera. My phone is probably a close second.

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

Capernaum. Unbelievably good in sobering, raw way.

What film do you think everyone should have seen?

The Room. Especially the scene on the roof. ‘Oh, hi Mark’. Simply the best. If you haven’t seen it, just watch it. It’ll make every film you ever see after that brilliant. 

What’s your preferred social media platform?

I only use one; Instagram. I like taking pics. I asked my teenage daughter if I should get TikTok but she just gave me that look.

What’s your favourite TV show?

I have this problem that every time I see something I like I think it’s the best thing ever until the next thing. So, this year it’s been Succession, Ozark, The Handmaid’s Tale etc. Going back just a bit, it was probably The Six Million Dollar Man [below] and The Professionals.

What’s your favourite podcast?

Thirteen Minutes To The Moon (series 1 and 2). I’m an absolute total space nerd so this is the ultimate in aural nerd porn. Two series full of space stuff. I am rarely happier than when I’m listening to this.

What show/exhibition has most inspired you recently?

The strangely named TeamLab Borderless show in Tokyo [below] blew my mind. I’ve literally never seen anything like that before. Brilliant.

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

Speed. The business just gets faster and faster. Production was always about long days and intense working, and that was fine, but tech has definitely extended our availability ever further. Hopefully, if you ask me this question next year I’ll be able to say that the biggest change is how the industry is completely gender and race equal, and that there is total equality of opportunity for people coming in and moving ahead. A real meritocracy. Doesn’t quite feel that way yet though.

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

The Awards racket. Great work needs to be rewarded, but the number of awards shows is insane. It’s expensive, it’s time consuming, and it’s incredibly self-referential. Let’s ask the guy with the red mohican who works at Oxford Circus tube which his favourite 10 ads are, and then boom, we’re done. Winner gets an Oyster card. Happy days.